Nowadays, households depend more and more on convenience meals and, in close cooperation with MicVac AB from Sweden, SEALPAC has developed a unique packaging line for chilled ready meals.
With this in-pack microwave cooking and pasteurization concept, the shelf-life of premium convenience foods becomes at least 30 days.
The final result is a cooked, pasteurised and vacuum-packed product with excellent quality in taste, nutrition and texture, which can be presented attractively on retail shelves – even vertically.
Consumers are able to reheat the product in their microwave in only about three minutes, with the valve releasing the steam. Due to the packaging method, heating with no cold spots will occur. Furthermore, the pack whistles as soon as it is ready! The top film can easily be peeled from the tray and the meal is ready for consumption.
SEALPAC developed a special application device for the patented MicVac® valve on its traysealers. Owing to their servo driven film transport, accurate punching of the hole and positioning of the valve is ensured. In addition, SEALPAC’s A-series traysealers, due to their high sealing pressure and accurate control of sealing temperatures, guarantee that the film seal on the trays is strong enough to withstand the internal pressure during pasteurisation as well as reheating in the microwave – yet remains easy for consumers to peel away.
How it works:
- The special MicVac® tray is filled with fresh food ingredients
- A unique valve is applied to the top film
- The tray is sealed with the top film on a SEALPAC traysealer
- The tray is transported to a microwave tunnel, where the contents are cooked at clearly higher speeds than traditional pasteurisation methods. During this heating process, the valve opens due to pressure caused by the food releasing steam
- As soon as the pasteurisation process stops and cooling begins, the valve will close again. The remaining steam condenses, causing an under-pressure in the tray
