Description
The aim of this book is to provide a useful reference for people working in the food industry who need some ideas to help solve issues they may be having with weak and leaking seals on their food packages.
The vast majority of prepacked food is sold in flexible and semiflexible packages that are sealed using heat. This handbook considers these packages along with other food packaging systems using rigid materials such as metal and glass. It also looks at other methods of sealing a food package such as ultrasonic, induction and cold seals using adhesive.
Seal integrity, or rather the lack of it, is a major contributor to food waste in manufacturing, distribution, retail and domestic contexts. The benefits of a fuller understanding of the causes of leaking and weak packs and the remedial actions that are required are obvious in terms of reduced cost and increased efficiency of the food supply chain, but there are also benefits in terms of food safety and brand protection.
This handbook includes a comprehensive index to allow easy access to the information you are looking for, but you can also increase your overall knowledge of the topic areas by reading whole sections and, it is hoped, answering the questions raised by your particular systems and circumstances.
I would like to thank all of the people who helped me put this handbook together, especially Proseal, Multivac and RDM, who helped with photographs and illustrations.