Kraft Foods Group Brands LLC

Kraft Foods Global Brands LLC

Nestec S.a.

Mark Ervin Malenke

Tod Wesley Heleniak

Scott A Adler

Brian Adamski

Brian Wayne Tomac

David Hess

Larry D Wierschke

Gary S Rusch

Amy Lynn Nehls

Matthew A Hurm

Edward A Kusmider

Carrie K Giannettino

Muluken Tilahun

Vernon Donald Karman

Randy Glynn

Lynda Cabrales

Charles Robert Sample

Sarah C Humke

Dave Hess

Tod Heleniak

Methods and apparatus are disclosed for producing irregular pieces of meat from meat products. Further, a method of mass-producing a home-style meat product with an irregular appearance includes combining whole muscle meat with a mixture having a low-phosphate solution and/or a low-salt solution and cooking the combination to produce whole muscle meat logs. Once the whole muscle meat has been cooked, the meat may be pulled, shredded, or sliced on a variety of pulling, shredding, and slicing equipment to create a home-style meat product with an irregular appearance.

Home-style meat product and method of producing same

An apparatus for handling food products comprises an alignment trough disposed at an incline for holding a stack of the food products at an incline. The alignment trough defines a portion of a passage upon which the food products travel. The stack defines a bottom food product. At least one movable member extends into the passage to control the separation of the bottom food product from the remainder of the stack by moving to provide clearance fro the food product to pass.

Apparatus for stacking, singulating, and dispensing pliable food products and methods therefor

An apparatus and method for placing food products into a food tray are disclosed. The apparatus comprises at least one sleeve at least one sleeve having a first end configured to singly receive food products and an at least partially closed second end opposite the first end. The at least one sleeve has a first position where the food products are singly receivable through the first end to form a stack having a predetermined orientation in the at least one sleeve. The at least one sleeve is configured to rotate from the first position to a second position where the food products are positioned over the food tray and substantially simultaneously unloaded in the predetermined orientation through an opening positioned between the first and second ends into the food tray.

Food product orienting and loading apparatus

An apparatus for handling food products comprises an alignment trough disposed at an incline for holding a stack of the food products at an incline. The alignment trough defines a portion of a passage upon which the food products travel. The stack defines a bottom food product. At least one movable member extends into the passage to control the separation of the bottom food product from the remainder of the stack by moving to provide clearance for the food product to pass.

A method and apparatus are provided for the volumetric metering and depositing of a food product comprising a plurality of particles or flowable particles. The plurality of food particles are transported upon a discharge conveyor having a first rate of speed, the plurality of particles arranged uniformly from passing beneath a product leveling device. When the plurality of particles reach the end of the discharge conveyor, the particles fall from the end of the conveyor under the operation of gravity and are deposited in a shuttle while the shuttle travels at a second rate of speed from a position at least partially below the conveyor to collect the falling particles in cells or receiving receptacles. The relationship between the first rate of speed of the conveyor and the second rate of speed of the shuttle define a metered amount of particles collected in each of the receiving receptacles.

Method and apparatus for volumetric metering and depositing

A conveyor system for assembling and stacking sliced food products is provided. The conveyor system includes an assembly area, wherein groups of a predetermined quantity of sliced food products travel from a slicer on a conveyor and are deposited on discrete carrier sheets on a downstream conveyor. The assembly area is configured to delay advancement of the carrier sheets on the downstream conveyor until a group of the predetermined quantity is formed. The slicer is configured to calculate the number of slices in each group and determine whether a group is complete. A stacking area of the conveyor system includes a nose conveyor that extends and retracts to deposit each carrier sheet onto a pair of initial supports. The initial supports reciprocate away from each other in opposing directions to drop the carrier sheet onto a subsequent level, with the initial supports reciprocating each time a carrier sheet is deposited thereon.

Food product conveyor and handling systems

An apparatus for forming a stack of food products in a storage container, and a method therefor. The apparatus comprises a first gate moveable between an open and a closed position that drops a row of food products onto a second gate moveable between an open and a closed position. The second gate receives multiple rows of food products and once a predetermined number of rows have been received, the second gate opens to release the rows of food products into the storage container below it. As the first gate shifts from the open to the closed position, it can advance, at least in part, a subsequent row of food products onto the first gate for later release onto the second gate. The area defined by the second gate and the first gate is a temporary staging area which can increase in height after receiving subsequent rows of food products.

Apparatus and method of forming a stack of food products within a storage container

A system and method are provided for handling food products whereby stacked food products can be mechanically singulated or singulated product not on pitch can be dispensed individually at a regular pitch onto transport system carrying the food products to a subsequent process unit or units in an automated and essentially labor-free manner. The automated handling system may be used advantageously on stacks of pizza crusts, among other food product types.

Automated system for handling food products

A flexible, composite unitary belt for forming spaced intervals in a stuffed casing, and method therefore, the belt cooperating with another belt to pinch the stuffed casing. The belt comprises a body forming a continuous loop and having at least one embedded flexible reinforcing member extending throughout. Additionally, the belt has at least one pinching member extending outwardly from the body and positioned to cooperate with a pinching member of another belt to pinch the stuffed casing when fed between the belts and pinched by the pinching members.

Growing community of inventors

Sun Prairie, WI, United States of America

Mark Ervin Malenke