BACKGROUND

[0001] Food products such as beverages have been packaged in single serving portions. These single serving beverage portions can be utilized by known single serving brewing machines to produce a single cup of coffee, tea, hot chocolate and the like. These single serving beverage portions may or may not include a filter depending on the type of beverage dispensed by the single serving brewing machine.

[0002] The single serving portions have been referred to as cartridges. Cartridges for use with beverage forming machines are known, and may include one or more filters as well as a beverage medium, such as ground coffee beans, tea leaves, etc. In some cartridges, the filter is located between two or more portions of an interior space of the cartridge, e.g., one portion in which a beverage medium is located, and a second portion into which liquid that has passed through the filter may flow.

[0003] An example of one such cartridge is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,840,189 and/or U.S. Pat.

No. 6,607,762, which may be used with a beverage making machine like that described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,398,726, which patents are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. In use, the beverage forming machine introduces a fluid into the cartridge to interact with the beverage medium. In some machines, a piercing outlet needle of the machine is used to pierce a surface of the cartridge (e.g., a bottom wall of the cartridge container) permitting the liquid that has interacted with the beverage medium to flow through the filter and exit the cartridge.

[0004] Improvements in food product containers are desired. SUMMARY

[0005] The present disclosure relates to food product containers that are configured to be received in a receiver of a beverage forming device. The food product container is a thin film article. The thin film container can be thermoformed and have an average sidewall thickness of less than 150 micrometers.

[0006] In many embodiments, a food product container is configured to be received in a receiver of a beverage forming device. The container has an outer surface defining an interior space and a food or beverage liquid contacting medium disposed within the interior space. The container has a sidewall peak compression force of less than 5 Newtons.

[0007] In some embodiments, a method includes disposing the container described herein within a container receiver of a beverage forming machine and piercing the container outer surface with the beverage forming machine. Then contacting water from the beverage forming machine with the food or beverage liquid contacting medium with the water to form a food or beverage liquid. Then dispensing the food or beverage liquid from the beverage forming machine.

[0008] In further embodiments, a method of forming a food product container includes thermo forming a first polymer film having a thickness of less than 150 micrometers to form a cup form having an open rim top end and a closed bottom end, the cup form defining an interior space. Then disposing a food or beverage liquid contacting medium into the interior space and sealing a second film on the open rim top end to form a food product container.

[0009] These and various other features and advantages will be apparent from a reading of the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] The disclosure may be more completely understood in consideration of the following detailed description of various embodiments of the disclosure in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0011] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an illustrative beverage forming device; [0012] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an illustrative container;

[0013] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a container being placed in a receiver of a beverage forming device;

[0014] FIG. 4A-4E are a schematic diagram of a thermoforming process for making the illustrative container; and

[0015] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an illustrative food product forming system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0016] In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which are shown by way of illustration several specific embodiments. It is to be understood that other embodiments are contemplated and may be made without departing from the scope or spirit of the present disclosure. The following detailed description, therefore, is not to be taken in a limiting sense.

[0017] All scientific and technical terms used herein have meanings commonly used in the art unless otherwise specified. The definitions provided herein are to facilitate understanding of certain terms used frequently herein and are not meant to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

[0018] Unless otherwise indicated, all numbers expressing feature sizes, amounts, and physical properties used in the specification and claims are to be understood as being modified in all instances by the term "about." Accordingly, unless indicated to the contrary, the numerical parameters set forth in the foregoing specification and attached claims are approximations that can vary depending upon the properties sought to be obtained by those skilled in the art utilizing the teachings disclosed herein.

[0019] The recitation of numerical ranges by endpoints includes all numbers subsumed within that range (e.g. 1 to 5 includes 1, 1.5, 2, 2.75, 3, 3.80, 4, and 5) and any range within that range.

[0020] As used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms "a", "an", and

"the" encompass embodiments having plural referents, unless the content clearly dictates otherwise. As used in this specification and the appended claims, the term "or" is generally employed in its sense including "and/or" unless the content clearly dictates otherwise.

[0021] "Include," "including," or like terms means encompassing but not limited to, that is, including and not exclusive. It should be noted that "top" and "bottom" (or other terms like "upper" and "lower") are utilized strictly for relative descriptions and do not imply any overall orientation of the article in which the described element is located.

[0022] As used herein, a "food product" is a food produced by combining two or more edible ingredients. Food products include both solid and liquid foods and beverages.

[0023] As used herein, the phrase "sidewall peak compression force" refers to peak force required to compress the sidewall of the container. This is a physical property of the sidewall structure of the container.

[0024] The present disclosure relates to food product containers. The food product container is a thin film pressurized article where the pressure can assist in maintaining the structural integrity or form of the container. The thin film container can be thermoformed and have an average sidewall thickness in a range from 5 to 100 micrometers or in a range from 5 to 50 micrometers. The container has an outer surface defining an interior space and a food or beverage liquid contacting medium disposed within the interior space. The container can be pressurized to provide a sealed interior space where the pressure within the container provides sidewall structural support for the container. This pressurized container can have a peak compression force of greater than 40 Newtons or greater than 50 Newtons. When the pressure is released, the container is easily crushed with an applied compressive force. This container can have a sidewall peak compression force of less than 5 Newtons. While the present disclosure is not so limited, an appreciation of various aspects of the disclosure will be gained through a discussion of the examples provided below.

[0025] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an illustrative beverage forming device 10. The beverage forming device can be a single serve beverage forming device such as the device described in U.S. 7,165,488. A beverage cartridge is received in a receiver 12 of this single serve beverage forming device 10 and the beverage is dispensed into a cup 14 below the receiver 12.

[0026] The beverage forming device utilizes a needle or piercing element that forms a hole in a top surface and a bottom surface of the beverage cartridge. The needle or piercing element can have a diameter of up to a few millimeters and forms a hole or a void in the beverage cartridge that is substantially equal to the diameter of the needle or piercing element. The containers 20 described herein are able to be pierced with the needle or piercing elements of the beverage forming device even though the pressurized sealed interior space provides sidewall structural support for the container.

[0027] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an illustrative container 20 that can be received in the receiver 12 of a single serve beverage forming device 10. The container of FIG. 2 has a frustroconical shape with a side surface 22 extending between a top surface or lid 24 and a bottom surface 25. The side surface 22 and bottom surface 25 cooperate to define a "cup form" of the container 20. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a container 20 being placed in a receiver 12 of a beverage forming device 10.

[0028] A food or beverage liquid contacting medium can be contained within a sealed interior space of the container 20. The food or beverage liquid contacting medium can be any useful food or beverage material. In preferred embodiments the food or beverage liquid contacting medium is agglomerated to assist in quick dissolution into the water stream. In some embodiments the food or beverage liquid contacting medium includes soluble food material and/or insoluble food material. The solid food material can include any useful food item that can be infused or hydrated such as soup solids, dried fruit, nuts, croutons, and the like for example. The soluble food material can include any useful food item such as flavorings, spices, starches, protein, soluble fibers, vitamins and minerals, dairy solids, and the like for example. Liquids can also be present in the food or beverage liquid contacting medium such as flavors, fats, emulsions, oils and the like for example.

[0029] In some embodiments, the container 20 includes a removable (e.g., peel-off or tear-off) lid

24. In these embodiments, food or beverage liquid contacting medium includes solid or insoluble food or beverage material that is dispensed into the food product by removing the lid of the container 20 and removing the food or beverage liquid contacting medium from the container 20 to form the food product. [0030] The container 20 has an outer surface defining an interior space and a food or beverage liquid contacting medium disposed within the interior space. In many embodiments the interior space is pressurized and sealed to form a pressurized sealed interior space. The pressurized sealed interior space provides sidewall structural support for the container 20. When the pressure is released, the container 20 is easily crushed with an applied compressive force. In other words, the cup form or sidewall 22 of the container 20 do not provide vertical structural support so that a compressive force applied to the top of the cup form or sidewall 22 will collapse the sidewall 22.

[0031] A physical property of the sidewall of the container is the "sidewall peak compression force," that is the peak force required to compress the sidewall of the container. This physical property can be measured with a force tester available under the trade designation MTS Instron Sintech ReNew, from MTS Systems Co,. Eden Prairie MN. This physical property is measured when the container is not in a sealed or pressurized state, in other words the container has one or more vent holes to allow air to leave the container as it is compressed. The containers described herein have a sidewall peak compression force value being less than 5 Newtons or less than 3 Newtons or less than 2 Newtons. Typical containers commercially available under the trade designation K-CUP have a sidewall peak compression force of about 200 Newtons or greater.

[0032] In many embodiments, the outer surface is formed of a thin film material. The thin film material can be a polymeric film having a thickness of 150 micrometers or less or 125 micrometers or less or 100 micrometers or less that can be thermo formed into the cup form and final container. The cup form or final container can have sidewall thickness of less than 125 micrometers, or less than 100 micrometers, or less than 75 micrometers.

[0033] The polymeric film can be formed of any thermoplastic polymer material that is capable of being thermoformed and containing the food or beverage liquid contacting medium and the gas pressure. In many embodiments, the polymeric film if formed of a polyolefm or polyester. Illustrative examples of thermoplastic polymer material that exhibit dimensional stability sufficient to allow the material to maintain a desired expansion potential, during extended storage periods, include certain types of polyethylene terephthalate (PET, or PETE), APET (amorphous polyethylene terephthalate, or polyester), APET base material with EVOH nylon (polyethylene sealant or polypropylene- based sealant); PETE; and oriented PET (oriented PET polymer with PE sealant base with various levels of nylon); APET-cross direction; APET-machine direction; OPET machine direction; OPET cross direction.

[0034] In some embodiments, the top surface 24 of the container 20 is formed of the same type of polymer material as the remaining cup form of the container 20. In other embodiments, the top surface 24 of the container 20 is formed of a different type of material (polymer or film) as the remaining cup form of the container 20.

[0035] In some embodiments, the container 20 outer surface is transparent to visible light so that the food or beverage liquid contacting medium disposed within the sealed interior space is observable by a user of the food product container. For example the polymeric film forming the sidewall 22 of the container 20 is visible light transparent. In some embodiments, a portion of the outer surface is transparent to visible light and a portion of the outer surface is opaque to visible light. In other embodiments, the container 20 outer surface is opaque to visible light so that the food or beverage liquid contacting medium disposed within the sealed interior space is not observable by a user of the food product container.

[0036] In some embodiments the container 20 is formed of a thermoplastic porous layer, such as a filter or mesh material. The thermoplastic mesh layer can be thermoformed into the cup form and a lid can be fixed to the cup form to form the final container. This container would not be able to be sealed or pressurized and can have the same physical properties and dimensions described for the sealed and pressurized containers above.

[0037] The container 20 outer surface is defined by a top surface 24 sealed to a thermoformed cup form 22. In many embodiments, The thermoformed cup form or side wall 22 has an average thickness in a range from about 5 to 75 micrometers or from about 5 to 50 micrometers or from about 5 to 30 micrometers.

[0038] In contrast, traditional containers have a sidewall thickness of at least 200 micrometers and preferably more than 250 micrometers. These traditional containers have polymeric or metallic sidewalls with these greater thicknesses. These thick polymeric or metal sidewalls provide structural support and resist compressive forces. In other words, when these traditional containers are pierced and depressurized, the sidewalls themselves resist compressive forces so that the container will not crush under compressive forces that will crush the containers described herein.

[0039] In some embodiments the container sealed interior space includes a filter element to contain the food or beverage liquid contacting medium. This is particularly useful for any type of infusion-type beverage such as tea, coffee and the like. A portion of the filter can be attached or fixed to a lid or top portion of the container. In many embodiments the filter mimics the form of the container, such as a cup form.

[0040] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a container 20 being placed in a receiver 12 of a beverage forming device 10. Once the container 20 is received in the receiver 12 of a beverage forming device 10, the sidewall of the receiver 12 contacts the sidewall 22 of the container 20. Then in illustrative beverage forming device 10 a needle pierces the container 20 outer surface at both the top surface 24 and bottom surface 25 at the same time or substantially the same time. Then water from the beverage forming machine contacts the food or beverage liquid contacting medium with the water to form a food or beverage liquid and dispenses the food or beverage liquid from the beverage forming machine 10.

[0041] It is surprising that the top surface 24 and bottom surface 25 of the container 20 can be pierced since the sidewall 22 of the container 20 does not resist crushing once the pressure is released from the container 20. In other words, the piercing step substantially eliminates the sidewall structural support of the container 20, and yet both the top surface 24 and bottom surface 25 of the container 20 can be pierced.

[0042] FIG. 4A-4E are schematic diagrams of a thermoforming process for making the illustrative container 20. The method includes thermoforming a first polymer film 21 to form a cup form having an open rim top end and a closed bottom end and the cup form defining an interior space. A form 50 is pressed into the first polymer film 21 and against the mold 55 to deform the first polymer film 21 into the cup form. FIG. 4B illustrates the form 50 and mold 55 in place with the first polymer film 21 conforming to the mold 55 and form 50 shape. A thickness of the first polymer film 21 can decrease during the thermoforming process.

[0043] FIG. 4C illustrates placing a filter media 30 into the cup form. The filter media 30 can be formed of any suitable material. The filter media 30 can have a similar cup form as the container 20. The filter media 30 can be fixed to the sidewall 22 of the container 20 or lid or top surface 24 of the container.

[0044] FIG. 4D illustrates disposing a food or beverage liquid contacting medium 26 into the interior space of the filter media 30, for example. Then the process includes pressurizing the interior space to form a pressurized interior space and sealing a second polymer film 24 or top surface on the open rim top end to form a food product container 20 having a pressurized interior space. In some embodiments the method does not include the filter element 30 within the interior space.

[0045] Before the first polymer film 21 is thermo formed to form a cup form, the first polymer film has a thickness of 150 micrometers or less or 125 micrometers or less. The thermoformed cup form has an average thickness in a range from about 5 to 75 micrometers or from about 5 to 50 micrometers or from about 5 to 30 micrometers. A plurality of containers 20 can be joined to form a web of containers 20. This web of containers 20 can be sub-divided into single containers 20 or a connected set of containers 20 that a consumer can detach for use.

[0046] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an illustrative food product forming system 50. The system 50 includes a container 20 as described above and a portion packaged food product 30, 40 that is associated with the food or beverage liquid contacting medium within the container 20. In some embodiments, two or more of the food product forming systems 50 can be packaged together and sold to a consumer in a convenient package 100.

[0047] The portion packaged food product 30, 40 can include a pre-set portion of dry food ingredients 40 or wet food ingredients 30 within a pouch or package that is combined with the liquid component formed with the food or beverage liquid contacting medium within the container 20. In some embodiments the portion packaged food product 30, 40 can include a pre-set portion of frozen or refrigerated food ingredients. The portion packaged food product and liquid component formed with the food or beverage liquid contacting medium can be combined in any order.

[0048] In many of these embodiments the portion packaged food product includes a retort pouch

30. A retort pouch refers to food packaging created by aseptic processing and made from one or more flexible barrier layers that allow for hermetic packaging of the food product. A retort pouch can be formed of plastic or metal foil layers and can be an alternative to traditional canning methods or any method that extends a shelf life of a food product. In some embodiments the retort package is a rigid container that can be utilized to combine portion packaged food product and liquid component formed with the food or beverage liquid contacting medium.

Thus, embodiments of FOOD PRODUCT CONTAINER are disclosed. The implementations described above and other implementations are within the scope of the following claims. One skilled in the art will appreciate that the present disclosure can be practiced with embodiments other than those disclosed. The disclosed embodiments are presented for purposes of illustration and not limitation.