Frozen edible product

Technical field of the invention

The present invention refers to a frozen edible product. The present invention most particularly relates to a frozen edible product in a cartridge.

Background to the invention

Conventional soft ice is dispensed from a semi-continuous, pressurised scraped surface heat exchanger (SSHE) at temperatures of -4 to -9°C. The rheology of ice cream and the shear provided by the SSHE are such that a pressure of a few atmospheres is sufficient to dispense the ice cream at an acceptable rate. Unfortunately, SSHEs are large and expensive, require power, training to operate, do not deliver consistent product quality if used over a period of time & are difficult to dismantle & clean for the operator. Each SSHE can also only offer one type of product (e.g. flavour/ice cream/sorbet etc) at a time - separate barrels are required for different products.

These pre-existing systems are expensive, characterised by a slow rate of dispensing, a narrow range of product, a lack of consistency in portion control and deterioration of bulk product not used.

Frozen aerated products in cartridges have therefore been proposed and are for example described in EP995685. They are constituted by an ice cream product in a cartridge, the cartridge comprising a hollow body which is open at one end and closed by an end wall at the other end, a dispensing aperture in the end wall through which the frozen product is dispensed and a plunger which sealingly fits within the bore of the hollow body and which is movable within the bore of the body towards the end wall. The hollow body, the end wall and the plunger delimit a cavity wherein a frozen aerated product is located.

These products in individual cartridges allow for the delivery of individual doses of a wide range of flavours at a single point of sale without further requiring the use of SSHE. They are already constituting a very significant breakthrough.

There is a need for extending the range of ice cream products which can be delivered through such systems, particularly by adding sauces to said products and by creating new products which could not before be produced using SSHE systems.

Tests and definitions

Overrun

Overrun is defined by the following equation$$\mathit{\text{OR}}\text{=}\frac{\mathit{\text{volume..of..ice..cream - volume..of .. premix..at..ambient..temp}}}{\mathit{\text{volume..of .. premix..at..ambient..temp}}}\text{× 100}$$

It is measured at atmospheric pressure.

Brief description of the invention

It is the object of the present invention to provide a frozen edible product in a cartridge,

• the cartridge comprising a hollow body with a bore and two ends, of which one end is open and the other end is closed by an end wall containing a dispensing aperture through which the frozen edible product is dispensed
• the hollow body, the end wall and the open end delimiting a cavity wherein a frozen aerated product is located,

Preferably, said food inclusion represents less than 15% of volume of the cavity. Preferably also said food inclusion represents at least 8% of the volume of said cavity.

Preferably said cartridge further comprises a plunger which sealingly fits within the bore of the hollow body and which is movable within the bore of the body towards the end wall.

Preferably, in the frozen edible product in a cartridge according to the invention, the food inclusion is situated between the plunger and the frozen aerated product. More preferably, the food inclusion is situated in a well in the frozen aerated product, this well being located at an end of the frozen aerated product facing the plunger.

In an alternative preferred embodiment of the invention, the food inclusion is situated inside the frozen aerated product.

Preferably, the dispensing aperture is covered prior to use by a removable seal.

Preferably also, the hollow body is cylindrical. In an alternative preferred embodiment the hollow body is frusto-conical.

The food inclusion can be of a viscosity lower than, equal to or higher than the viscosity of the frozen aerated product.

The food inclusion can be a single substance of uniform composition or a mixture of different substances, such as a chocolate sauce containing pieces of nuts.

Detailed description of the invention

The present invention will be further described with reference to the drawings wherein

• Figure 1 represents a cross section of a cartridge filled with a frozen product, according to the invention,
• Figure 2 represents a cross section of a preferred cartridge filled with a frozen product, according to the invention,
• Figure 3 represents a cross section of another preferred cartridge filled with a frozen product, according to the invention,
• Figure 4,5 and 6 each represent a cross section of a frozen product in a cup, after extrusion from cartridges according to figures 1, 2 and 3 respectively.

As illustrated on Figure 1, a cartridge has a hollow cylindrical body (1) defining a cavity of capacity suitable for a mass of frozen confection it is to contain. The frozen confection is constituted by a frozen aerated product (such as ice cream) (8) and a food inclusion (9). The hollow cylindrical body (1) is open at one end and closed at the other end by an end wall comprising a truncated conical section (5) extending from the cylindrical body and a flat circular section (6) having a dispensing aperture (7). The larger circular base of the conical section (5) is directly attached, or is formed integrally with, the end (2) of the cylindrical body (1). A plunger (3) is in sealing fit inside the bore of the cylindrical body and is movable within the bore of the cylindrical body towards the end wall so as to urge the frozen confection towards the dispensing aperture (7) so that it can be extruded through the dispensing aperture (7). The plunger (3), besides being one of the elements for sealing the pack during its storage and handling from the place of packing to the time of its consumption, is designed to receive the action of a piston of a dispensing machine when it is required to dispense the product.

In Figure 1, the frozen aerated product (8) is located at the bottom of the cartridge, the bottom being defined by where the dispensing aperture (7) is located. The food inclusion (9) is located between the plunger (3) and the frozen aerated product (8) .

As can be seen on Figure 2, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, the frozen aerated product (8) extends over the whole height of the cavity delimited by the hollow body (1), the plunger (3) and the end wall. A well (10) is provided at a surface of the frozen aerated product touching the plunger (3). It is in this well (10) that the food inclusion (9) is located.

As can be seen on Figure 3, in another preferred embodiment of the invention, the food inclusion (9) is fully situated within the frozen aerated product (8).

Each cartridge for each embodiment represented on figures 1, 2 and 3 was filled with identical frozen aerated products (ice cream) but with three different food inclusions. One, was a typical sauce with a viscosity lower than the viscosity of the ice cream. One was an ice cream of a viscosity similar to the viscosity of the main ice cream. One was a chocolate truffle of a higher viscosity than the viscosity of the ice cream.

The extrusion of three cartridges according to figure 1 filled with the three different inclusions all lead to similar products as disclosed in figure 4.

The extrusion of three cartridges according to figure 2 filled with the three different inclusions all lead to similar products as disclosed in figure 5.

The extrusion of three cartridges according to figure 3 filled with the three different inclusions all lead to similar products as disclosed in figure 6.

It therefore surprisingly shows that the end product depends on the location of the inclusion in the original cartridge but not on the viscosity of the inclusion.

When a frozen edible product in a cartridge according to the invention as can be seen in Figure 3 is placed on a dispenser not represented, a pressure is exerted on the plunger (3) and the frozen aerated product starts flowing into a wafer cone or a cup (11) shown in Figure 6. Owing to the laminar nature of the flow, the inclusion (9) channels through the frozen aerated product (8) and ends up flowing through the dispensing aperture (7) before the whole of the ice cream has been dispensed. The continued pressure exerted on the plunger then causes the remaining frozen aerated product to be dispensed through aperture (7), resulting into a product as described on Figure 6.