A cooler including a compartment, a conduit including a first end portion configured to be in communication with the compartment and a second end portion, food product at a first product temperature entering the first end portion, a fluid discharge positioned substantially within the conduit between the first end portion and the second end portion, and a pressurized fluid source in communication with and for supplying fluid through the fluid discharge, the fluid being at a first fluid temperature less than the first product temperature, the pressurized fluid source being operable to propel the fluid through the fluid discharge to move the food product from the first end portion of the conduit toward the second end portion and to cool the food product to a temperature below the first product temperature.

A metering apparatus (1) for metering frozen piece goods, comprising a housing (10) which defines a refrigerated chamber (11), wherein a piece goods container (3), a first conveyor unit (4), and a weighing unit (5) are arranged in the refrigerated chamber (11), wherein piece goods can be transported from the piece goods container (3) via the first conveyor unit (4) to the weighing unit (5), wherein an airlock (13) is arranged below the weighing unit (5), through which piece goods can pass out of the refrigerated chamber (11).

A system (20) for thermal processing food products (28) includes an oven 22 operating under selected parameters. A buffer area (26) receives and holds the food products heated in the oven for a selected time period before further processing. The buffer area can be heated or cooled as needed. A temperature determining system (120) determines the temperature of the food product during the thermal processing. A control system (30) receives the operational parameters of the oven and/or the buffer area and receives the temperature determination system data. The control system uses the temperature determination system data to determine over time the temperature equilibration of the interior of the food product after being heated in the oven to model the lethality of pathogenic microorganisms in the interior of the food product. The control system can adjust one or more of the operational parameters of the oven and/or buffer area as needed to achieve a desired lethality of the pathogenic microorganisms in the interior of the food product.

A conveyor system can include a first side member and a second side member, a top conveyor portion, a middle conveyor portion and a bottom conveyor portion. The top conveyor portion can extend along an inclined section and a horizontal section and can include a top conveyor belt driven by a top motor and supported by a top return roller. The middle conveyor portion can be positioned below the top conveyor portion and can include a middle conveyor belt driven by a middle motor and supported by a middle return roller. The bottom conveyor portion can be positioned below the middle conveyor portion and can include a bottom conveyor belt driven by a bottom motor and supported by a bottom return roller.

A preservation method of fresh tremella fuciformis suitable for cold-chain circulation includes pretreatment of fresh tremella fuciformis: selecting fresh tremella fuciformis with no mildew, no rot, no disease and insect pests, and water content≤90% to enter subsequent cold-chain circulation; precooling: precooling the pretreated fresh tremella fuciformis put in a cold store at 1° C.-3° C., or performing vacuum precooling on the pretreated fresh tremella fuciformis; packaging, wherein a temperature of a packaging operation room of the fresh tremella fuciformis is less than or equal to 18° C., and time of the fresh tremella fuciformis from entering the packaging operation room to the completion of packaging does not exceed 1 h; storage: storing the packaged fresh tremella fuciformis immediately, controlling a storage temperature to 1° C.-3° C., and performing cold-chain transportation within 24 h; and cold-chain transportation: performing transportation by a refrigerated vehicle or by adding ice packs.

A food processing system is provided with: a heating unit equipped with a heating mechanism for indirectly heating food; a cooling unit equipped with an air blowing cooler for cooling the food heated by the heating unit; and a conveyor for transferring the food through the heating unit and the cooling unit. The integrated food processing system allows a large amount of sterilized food having a good texture, good taste and long shelf life to be provided.

A horizontal axis rotary separation apparatus is deployed in a process for separating resinous trichomes rich in flavoring, aromatic and/or medicinal components produced in plant trichome glands from unwanted plant matter. The process physically separates resin rich beads at the trichome gland head from extraneous plant matter by one or move separation sieves. The sieves are provided in or as a casing over a rigid frame member. The sieves are mesh fabric bags or screen that are easily opened and replenished in a batch operating mode, and are removable from the frame for cleaning and maintenance. Other aspects of the invention include processes that improve process efficiency and speed, and yield products of superior quality.

An electrostatic spray chilling system is configured to rapidly cool foodstuffs. A conveyor traverses foodstuffs through a chilling tunnel. A chilled primary airflow is provided to the chilling tunnel to cool the foodstuffs. As the foodstuff is traversed through the chilling tunnel, spray modules generate and apply sprays of electrostatically charged fluid onto the foodstuff. The charged fluid droplets are attracted to the grounded foodstuff. The charged fluid droplets can be guided onto the foodstuff by secondary fans, configured to generate subflows of the chilled primary air, and by air guiding baffles.

The invention is a cooling tunnel for rapidly cooling a food product (1). The cooling tunnel (10) includes a plurality of thermal zones (21, 31) within the tunnel, and a conveying means (14) for transporting the food product sequentially therethrough. In operation, circulating air and the food product within each thermal zone are in a heat exchange relationship whereby heat from the food product is transferred to the circulating air and a heat exchanger extracts heat from the circulating air and exhausts the heat from the thermal zone.

A method and apparatus for temperature processing a food item. It should be noted that the description provided herein will primarily focus on cooking temperature processing, but cooking is referred to, the process for determining core temperature can also be used for chilling and/or freezing a food item. One implementation of the technology as disclosed and claimed, utilizes a combination of 3D profile scanning camera, mid-range infrared camera, high-resolution encoder-based positioning device, and cook profile settings in order to measure the physical attributes of the product related to the fully cooked state. The system is measuring at least two aspects that determine the temperature change within an object during the cook process and they are geometry and thermodynamic properties.