A tubular, seamless, water vapour permeable, smokable, biaxially draw-oriented and partially or completely heat-set food casing is provided having at least two layers based on thermoplastic polymers. At least one layer A, which does not form the inside layer, comprises a blend of aliphatic (co)polyamide and at least one hydrophilic polymer, while the inside layer I comprises a blend of aliphatic or isocyclic (co)polyamide and a block copolymer selected from polyether-amide, polyether-ester and polyether-urethane. The casing is produced by a tubular-film blowing process or a process with biaxial tubular-film draw-orientation. The casing is envisaged more particularly as synthetic sausage casing, especially for smoked raw sausage, such as salami.

The present invention relates to a multilayer film, especially to a multilayer thermoplastic film, which may be used for food packaging, wherein the multilayer film according to the present invention may be provided, on its inner side, with a food additive, particularly with a flavoring and/or coloring and/or an aroma producing food additive (such as e.g. a liquid smoke), which food additive is then released and transferred onto the surface of a foodstuff encased in the multilayer film during cooking and/or processing of the foodstuff.

The present invention provides a multi-layered coextruded thermoplastic food casing comprising: at least one thermoplastic porous absorbing layer; and at least one layer having a barrier effect for water vapor and/or oxygen, wherein the at least one layer having a barrier effect for water vapor and/or oxygen has an average layer thickness in a range of from 5 to 60 m over the entire surface area, wherein the at least one thermoplastic porous absorbing layer comprises as a main component at least one thermoplastic polymer material selected from the group consisting of (co)polyamides and (co)polyolefins, wherein the at least one thermoplastic porous absorbing layer comprises areas having a reduced average layer thickness and areas having a non-reduced average layer thickness, wherein the average layer thickness of the at least one thermoplastic porous absorbing layer in areas having a non-reduced average layer thickness is in a range of from 10 to 200 m, wherein the average layer thickness in areas having a reduced average layer thickness is lower by 7 to 140 m and is reduced by a range of from 30 to 85% compared to the areas having a non-reduced average layer thickness of the at least one thermoplastic porous absorbing layer, and wherein both areas having a reduced average layer thickness and a non-reduced average layer thickness comprise pores which are able to absorb a functional additive.

The present invention provides a functional additive transferring (co)extruded thermoplastic food casing having a water vapor barrier and/or oxygen barrier effect wherein an inside surface of the thermoplastic food casing has a textured surface which forms a three-dimensional pattern of higher and lower retaining capacity for a functional additive, wherein the thermoplastic food casing having a textured surface in case of a monolayer casing or an inner layer comprising the inside surface having a textured surface in case of a multilayer casing comprises as a main component at least one thermoplastic polymer material selected from the group consisting of (co)polyamides, (co)polyolefins, (co)polyester and vinylidenchloride (co)polymers, wherein the (co)extruded thermoplastic food casing does not comprise a net and/or a material forming a net or any other three dimensional structure on its outside surface, wherein the average thickness of the thermoplastic food casing in the areas having a higher retaining capacity is in a range of from 1 to 100 m, wherein the average thickness of the thermoplastic food casing in the areas having a lower retaining capacity is in a range of from 191 to 2000 m, provided that the thickness difference between the average thickness in the areas having higher retaining capacity and the average thickness in the areas having a lower retaining capacity is in a range of from 160 to 1950 m and that a ratio of the average thickness of the thermoplastic food casing in the areas having a higher retaining capacity and the average thickness of the thermoplastic food casing in the areas having a lower retaining capacity is in a range of from 0.002 to 0.25.

A tubular, seamless, water vapour permeable, smokable, biaxially draw-oriented and partially or completely heat-set food casing is provided having at least two layers based on thermoplastic polymers. At least one layer A, which does not form the inside layer, comprises a blend of aliphatic (co)polyamide and at least one hydrophilic polymer, while the inside layer I comprises a blend of aliphatic or isocyclic (co)poly amide and a block copolymer selected from polyether-amide, polyether-ester and polyether-urethane. The casing is produced by a tubular-film blowing process or a process with biaxial tubular-film draw-orientation. The casing is envisaged more particularly as synthetic sausage casing, especially for smoked raw sausage, such as salami.

A single- or multilayer film is disclosed, the film made on the basis of a blend of (co)polyamide and polyvinyl alcohol, soluble in at least one solvent A, comprising more than 50% water, at that said film comprising polyvinyl alcoholPVAs, soluble in the same solvent A, and bonded polyvinyl alcoholPVAB, which (i) is virtually insoluble in the same solvent A at temperatures from 18 C. to the initial boiling point at normal pressure, (ii) is soluble in at least one of the solvents, capable of dissolving (co)polyamide, (iii) gives the typical for PVA color reaction with iodine, and (iv) reacts with at least one primary amine, with formation of water-soluble PVA, wherein the CB/CS ratio, where CB is the film content for PVAB, that becomes water-soluble after its treatment with said primary amine, and Cs is the content of PVAs in the film, is not less than 0.05. When this condition is satisfied, there is noticeable improvement in the stability of the technological process of production, and in the mechanical strength of the film. The claimed film can be used, specifically, for sausage casings. 2 independent and 30 dependent claims, 6 tables.

The present invention is related to a method of producing a snack-sized thermally processed meat-based product, provided in an easy-to-peel tubular package. Moreover, a snack-sized thermally processed meat product provided in an easy-to-peel tubular package, is herein disclosed.

An elongate strip (10) is disclosed which can be manipulated into a cylindrical shape to form a casing for a food product. The strip comprises films of synthetic plastics material which are laminated together. One of the two outer films of the laminate is a peelable ionomer and the other is an olefin. A plurality of web weakening formations (18) for facilitating initiation of transverse tearing of the web are provided along one of the longitudinal edges of the web. The formations constitute the boundaries of a plurality of pull tabs (20). The weakening formations can be lines of perforations extending inwardly from said one edge of the web

A description is given of a tubular food casing having a fiber layer on the inside and having two or more polymer layers. The polymer layers include a first continuous polymer layer (A), with which the inner fiber layer or nonwoven-web layer is coated on the side of the tubular casing facing away from the inside, and completely covers the layer, and at least one polymer layer (B), and a monoaxially or biaxially oriented film based on polyamide and/or copolyamide. At least two of the polymer layers are joined to one another directly by a layer of adhesive. The inner fiber layer may absorb colour, smoke, aroma and/or flavour substance(s), such as liquid smoke or caramel, store these substances and transfer them to a food located within the casino. The casing is suitable as artificial sausage casing, especially for cooked-filling and scalded-emulsion sausage.

The present invention relates to a tubular casing (S) for food produced by polymerizing a lactam (A) and a monomer mixture (M), where the monomer mixture (M) comprises 1,5-diamino-3-oxapentane. The present invention further relates to the use of the tubular casing as a packaging casing, particularly a sausage casing.