A method and device for handling cheese blocks. Compressed cheese curd is released from the inner wall of a mould and after a turning operation is evacuated from the mould, with the mould rotated, lowered and shaken or blown. A lifting gripper is guided as far as the stop on a pick-up device, and in the mould the cheese block is subjected to a shaking movement. The mould, that is to say, the cassette, is then raised, rotated and guided back into the cassette press, so that the cheese block can be fixed in position on the lifting gripper by a clamping means. The pick-up plunger with the cheese block is then lowered, that is to say, retracted, the lifting gripper is traversed towards a secondary mould for the cheese block, preferably downwards, the clamping means open, and the cheese block is positioned in a secondary mould.

The invention relates to an apparatus for cooling high-heat-treated food products with a flash-cooler, having a container for a pre-product to be cooled with an inlet for the pre-product to be cooled and an outlet for the cooled end product of the food product as well as cooling equipment, the cooling equipment having a cooling jacket associated to the container, through which at least one part of the wall of the container is cooled. The invention also relates to a heat-treatment line for food products, having one such apparatus. The invention also relates to a method for cooling high-heat-treated, particularly ultra-high-heat-treated food products, using a flash cooler having a container for a pre-product to be cooled, with an inlet for the pre-product to be cooled and an outlet for the cooled end product of the food product and cooling equipment.

The invention relates to an apparatus for cooling high-heat-treated food products with a flash-cooler, having a container for a pre-product to be cooled with an inlet for the pre-product to be cooled and an outlet for the cooled end product of the food product as well as cooling equipment, the cooling equipment having a cooling jacket associated to the container, through which at least one part of the wall of the container is cooled. The invention also relates to a heat-treatment line for food products, having one such apparatus. The invention also relates to a method for cooling high-heat-treated, particularly ultra-high-heat-treated food products, using a flash cooler having a container for a pre-product to be cooled, with an inlet for the pre-product to be cooled and an outlet for the cooled end product of the food product and cooling equipment.

A block former (1) for the production of blocks of cheese (19) includes an upright drainage column (2) having a feed opening (3) for curd particles (4) at an upper end (5) of the drainage column (2). The drainage column (2) includes an inner wall (6) having an interior surface (7) against which a pillar of curd (8) formed of the curd particles (4) slides as the pillar of curd (8) moves downwardly through the drainage column (2). The upright drainage column (2) is divided into an upper part (9) and a lower part (10). The interior surface (7) at the upper part (9) has a first finish and the interior surface (7) at the lower part (10) has a second finish that provides higher friction with the pillar of curd (8) relative to the first finish.

A block former (1) for the production of blocks of cheese (19) includes an upright drainage column (2) having a feed opening (3) for curd particles (4) at an upper end (5) of the drainage column (2). The drainage column (2) includes an inner wall (6) having an interior surface (7) against which a pillar of curd (8) formed of the curd particles (4) slides as the pillar of curd (8) moves downwardly through the drainage column (2). The upright drainage column (2) is divided into an upper part (9) and a lower part (10). The interior surface (7) at the upper part (9) has a first finish and the interior surface (7) at the lower part (10) has a second finish that provides higher friction with the pillar of curd (8) relative to the first finish.

An inventive solution directed to the production and lamination of pasta filata type cheese ribbons, such as mozzarella, provolone and blends thereof by concurrently and continuously pulling, stretching, cooling, and molding cheese through a series of channels, preferably elongated in nature, having enclosed cavities of particular negative dimension for molding purposes. The cheese is cooled by indirect heat transfer through thermal conductive walls of the elongated channels. The cheese is allowed to set as it is formed within the cooling and molding channels. As the cheese is pulled through and out of the distal end of the elongated channels, the series of released cheese ribbons are combined and pulled through a second series of compression channels by which multiple ribbons are compressed together to form larger laminated strips ready for immediate packaging, storage or further processing.

An inventive solution directed to the production and lamination of pasta filata type cheese ribbons, such as mozzarella, provolone and blends thereof by concurrently and continuously pulling, stretching, cooling, and molding cheese through a series of channels, preferably elongated in nature, having enclosed cavities of particular negative dimension for molding purposes. The cheese is cooled by indirect heat transfer through thermal conductive walls of the elongated channels. The cheese is allowed to set as it is formed within the cooling and molding channels. As the cheese is pulled through and out of the distal end of the elongated channels, the series of released cheese ribbons are combined and pulled through a second series of compression channels by which multiple ribbons are compressed together to form larger laminated strips ready for immediate packaging, storage or further processing.

An apparatus for cheese production, in particular a cassette press and an articulated tube arrangement for feeding cheese raw mixture from a cheese maker into molds of the cassette press, wherein the most uniform, constant filling can be achieved. The device has a trough open in plan view, a pressing head having a plurality of press plungers aligned on the cheese molds for pressing the cheese raw mixture and a distributor head for filling in the cheese raw mixture. The distributor head is movable along the longitudinal sides of the trough. The distributor head is rotatably coupled to an articulated tube arrangement for feeding the cheese raw mixture of a cheese maker.

An apparatus for cheese production, in particular a cassette press and an articulated tube arrangement for feeding cheese raw mixture from a cheese maker into molds of the cassette press, wherein the most uniform, constant filling can be achieved. The device has a trough open in plan view, a pressing head having a plurality of press plungers aligned on the cheese molds for pressing the cheese raw mixture and a distributor head for filling in the cheese raw mixture. The distributor head is movable along the longitudinal sides of the trough. The distributor head is rotatably coupled to an articulated tube arrangement for feeding the cheese raw mixture of a cheese maker.

A device for filling cheese curd into a pressing mould comprising a curd distributor, having an inlet end through which cheese curd may be received, and an outlet end through the cheese curd may exit the curd distributor, a pressing-mould holder arranged below the outlet of the curd distributor, one or more drive units, configured to perform a relative motion between the curd distributor and the pressing mould holder in accordance with a selected number of motion patterns, a control unit, configured to control the motion pattern based on input comprising an identifier of a pressing-mould configuration positioned by the pressing-mould holder.