Method for packing a food product

Abstract: A cross-linkable, preferably stretch oriented film comprising a blend of a polyolefin and a diene polymer and a transition metal catalyst, wherein the blend cross-links in the presence of oxygen without irradiation to provide a film with high heat resistance.

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method for packing a food product, wherein a crosslinkable film is cross-linked by exposure to oxygen, without irradiation, and subsequently upon packing the food product, is heat-sealed to itself to seal the package. Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) has long been used in many applications in the packaging art. One particularly widespread application for PVC is the use of such material as an overwrap material for trayed retail cuts of meat and other food products in a retail environment such as a supermarket. PVC has several desirable properties for this use. For example, it has excellent burn-through resistance, optics and good elasticity and stretch properties at use temperatures. Unfortunately, PVC also has several disadvantages, including the production of hydrogen chloride gas during heat sealing and the generally corrosive effects of such gases in the packaging room. Extractables from the PVC into the packaged food product have also become of concern. It would be of great benefit to the packaging industry, and particular to applications requiring an instore film for overwrapping trayed food products, to provide a film with many of the advantages of PVC but without the disadvantages described above. In addition to the foregoing, it is desirable to provide a film as aforesaid without the disadvantages of PVC, and to provide such a film which is cross-linked without irradiation. In the applications described above the film material is wrapped around the product and sealed as on a hot plate. Without cross-linking the film might burn through on the hot plate and therefore cross-linking is desirable to provide high heat resistance. Irradiation is customarily used to provide cross-linking, but this procedure is inconvenient, expensive and inefficient and also difficult to perform on very thin films. It is also desirable to provide such a film which is stretch oriented to provide improved properties. Processes for producing oriented films and oriented films themselves are known in the art. U.S. Patent No. 3,456,044 (Pahlke) mentions thin films of thicknesses less than 25.4 µm (1 mil) such as 12.7 µm (0.5 mil), and discloses a double bubble method for biaxially orienting thermoplastic films, including the steps of producing a primary tubing which is inflated by introducing air into the interior thereof, and a cooling ring 22, as well as squeeze rolls 34 and 28, with rolls 34 having a greater speed than rolls 28. Between the two pairs of squeeze rolls is a reinflated secondary bubble. If annealing is desired, the tubing can be reinflated to form a bubble 70. U.S. Patent No. 3,555,604 (Pahlke) is a patent based on a divisional application which was derived from the same priority application as the '044 patent described above, and discloses the same information described above for the '044 patent. U.S. Patent No. 4,258,166 (Canterino et al.) discloses a uniaxially oriented plastic film material with improved strength and clarity in the direction of orientation preferably comprising homopolymers and copolymers of ethylene. U.S. Patent No. 4,355,076 (Gash) discloses monoaxially oriented polypropylene film laminated to a monoaxially oriented high density polyethylene film, the films produced by for example tubular blowing. U.S. Patent No. 4,440,824 (Bonis) discloses a thermoformable coextruded multilayer structure useful for thermoforming into containers, the structure having polyolefin coextruded with a high impact polystyrene layer. A five layer structure is shown. U.S. Patent No. 4,464,439 (Castelein) discloses a coextruded laminate having a sheet of polypropylene and a sheet of a mixture of high impact polystyrene, crystalline polypropylene, and styrene/dienic monomer block copolymer. U.S. Patent No. 4,879,177 (Boice) discloses a monoaxially oriented shrink film having a core layer of butadiene styrene copolymer, outer layers of ethylene propylene copolymer, and intermediate bonding layers of ethylene copolymer. U.S. Patent No. 5,219,666 (Schirmer et al.) discloses polymeric, oriented films made by the use of a combination of a hot blown process and a blown bubble process. It is an object of the present invention to provide a process for packing a food product, comprising a cross-linked, stretch oriented film that can be cross-linked without irradiation. The film can be useful as an overwrap material for trayed retail cuts of meat and other food products in a supermarket or other retail environments. Summary of the Invention The inventor has discovered that a blend of a polyolefin, a diene polymer and a transition metal catalyst cross-links in the presence of oxygen. This provides a film with heat resistance, especially burn-through resistance. The film is a cross-linked, stretch-oriented film with heat resistance and good optical properties used in a method of packing food products which involves heat sealing the film to itself. According to the present invention there is provided a method for packing a food product wherein a cross-linkable film is cross-linked by exposure to oxygen, without irradiation, and subsequently upon packing the food product, is heat-sealed to itself to seal the package, in which said film comprises a layer of a blend of a polyolefin, a diene polymer and a transition metal catalyst and a sealable outer layer. The film is a laminate of which the blend is used usually as a core layer of the laminate with an outer sealable layer and preferably with one or more intermediate adhesive layer. The final laminate may have a thickness of from 13 to 127 µm (from 0.5 to 5 mils), and desirably may be used as a thin laminate in thicknesses from 13 to 51 µm (0.5 to 2 mils) BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING The present invention may be further understood by referent to the accompanying drawing: which is a schematic cross-section of a preferred embodiment of a multi-layered film used in the present invention. DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The cross-linked, stretch-oriented film used in the present invention offers considerable advantages. It is cross-linked without irradiation and obtains high heat resistance. Further, it is stretch-oriented to achieve desirable properties and may readily be formed into an advantageous laminate. The polyolefin is preferably VLDPE (very low density polyethylene) or LLDPE (linear, low density polyethylene), although others can readily be used, as polypropylene and copolymers of ethylene and propylene. Homogeneous ethylene alpha olefin copolymers can also be used in connection with this invention. The diene polymer blended with the polyolefin provides unsaturated groups. Typical diene polymers include octadienes, hexadienes, 1,4-polybutadiene, 1,2-polybutadiene, non-conjugated dienes and heptadienes. Preferably, the transition metal catalyst is in the form of a salt, with the metal thereof selected from the first, second or third transition series of the Periodic Table. Suitable metals include, but are not limited to, manganese II or III, iron II or III, cobalt II or III, nickel II or III, copper I or II, rhodium II, III or IV, and ruthenium. The oxidation state of the metal when introduced is not necessarily that of the active form. The metal is preferably iron, nickel or copper, more preferably manganese and most preferably cobalt. Suitable counterions for the metal include, but are not limited to, chloride, acetate, stearate, palmitate, 2-ethylhexanoate, neodecanoate or naphthenate. Particularly preferable salts include cobalt (II) 2-ethylhexanoate and cobalt (II) neodecanoate. The metal salt may also be an ionomer, in which case a polymeric counterion is employed. Such ionomers are well known in the art. It has been found that a blend of a polyolefin and a diene polymer cross-links in the presence of oxygen. The blend is preferably stretch oriented before cross-linking. For example, the blend is coextruded through a die in the conventional manner and the extruded film hot blown to form a blown bubble. In accordance with standard processing, an air cooling ring may be positioned circumferentially around the blown bubble to cool same as it exits the die. The blown bubble is melt oriented in both the machine and transverse directions using various blow up ratios, but preferably the bubble is hot blown to a blow-up ratio of between 1.5 and 8. If desired, one may immediately reinflate the bubble after cooling into a secondary bubble and then expand same to impart orientation of the material in primarily the transverse direction, primarily the longitudinal direction, or in both the transverse and longitudinal directions. The bubble is collapsed in a set of pinch rolls and transferred to a take-up roll. This procedure is shown in more detail, for example, in U.S. Patent No. 5,219,666, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Naturally, alternate methods may be utilized for providing the stretch oriented film. The cross-linkable, stretch oriented film may be desirably formed into a multi-layer laminate. In a preferred construction, outer layers 12 as shown in figure 1 may comprise a polyolefin like an ethylene polymer or copolymer such as ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA). One may desirably use styrenic polymers and copolymers, for example, styrene butadiene copolymer, such as that commercially available from Phillips under the designation KR-10 having a butadiene content of 25% by weight of the copolymer, or KK-36 (for fatty food contact). Desirably, styrene butadiene copolymers (SBC) are used for the outer layers, especially block copolymers containing a major portion (greater than 50%) of styrene and a minor portion (less than 50%) of butadiene comonomer. These materials provide an optimum balance of stiffness and flexibility to the film. Core layer 10 preferably comprises the blend of polyolefin and a diene polymer, and a transition metal catalyst. More than one polyolefin can be used in the blend, as well as more than one diene polymer. The term "polymer" includes herein not only homopolymers, but copolymers and terpolymers as well provided they blend with the other components to provide a cross-linkable blend. In the embodiment shown in the drawing, the outer layers 12 are bonded to the core layer 10 by means of intermediate layers 14 comprising, for example, a polymeric adhesive and preferably a copolymer of ethylene, and more preferably an ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA). Other polymeric materials, including chemically modified adhesives, can be used for layers 14 provided that they process adequately in processes such as those discussed herein. Blends of polymeric materials and polymeric adhesives may also be used for intermediate layers. For layers which contain SBC, anti-fog/plasticizing agents, such as Atmer 645 and/or Atmer 1010 are preferably included, desirably in amounts between about 0.5 and 10% by weight of the layer or layers. The intermediate layers 14 also desirably may contain such agents in the aforesaid amounts. The multi-layer film is preferably prepared by coextrusion techniques as discussed hereinabove. The present invention utilises a film in which the blend has been cross-linked by exposure to oxygen. The cross-linking may be initiated at any time after production of the film and may continue even after the film has been used to package meat. The invention provides a method, wherein a cross-linked film is used to package food, and is heat sealed to seal the package. The present invention will be more readily understood from a consideration of the following illustrative examples. Three samples rolls of film were produced, by the general process described in U.S. Patent No. 5,219,666. The construction of each of these three films was as follows: Example 1 SBC/EVA/BLEND 1/EVA/SBC Example 2 SBC/EVA/BLEND 2/EVA/SBC Example 3 (Comparative) SBC/EVA/VLDPE/EVA/SBC In the examples, "SBC" is a styrene butadiene copolymer available from Phillips under the designation KK36-2. The SBC materials of the skin layers included about 2% each, by weight of the layer, of ATMER 1010 and ATMER 645; both Atmer materials are used as antifog agents, and are available from ICI. Atmer 1010 is a glycerol ester liquid. "EVA" is an ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer, and in the examples produced in accordance with the invention, the EVA actually comprised a blend of 50% (by weight) of an EVA resin, and 50% (by weight) of an EVA master batch. The EVA resin was Elvax 3165 available from DuPont. This resin has a vinyl acetate content of about 18% by weight. The EVA master batch comprised 92%, by weight of the master batch, of Elvax 3165, and 4% each, by weight of the master batch, of ATMER 1010 and ATMER 645. The BLEND 1 of Example 1 was made up of: 72% by weight of a VLDPE (DEFD 1015-8 available from Union Carbide) which has a density of about .900 and a melt index of about .1; 20% by weight of the blend layer of RB830, a 1,2-polybutadiene available from JSR; and 8% by weight of an LLDPE master batch, i.e. a blend of 40% by weight of a linear low density polyethylene, and 30% each, by weight, of ATMER 1010 and ATMER 64540, the LLDPE master batch provided commercially under the designation Santec 23-222. The BLEND 2 of Example 2 was like BLEND 1, but also included 5%, by weight of the blend, of cobalt decanoate master batch, wherein a cobalt decanoate material was compounded with EVA resin. In the cobalt decanoate master batch, EVA (9% VA) comprises 97,7% of the master batch, and the cobalt decanoate comprised 2,3 % of the master batch. The core layer 10 of Example 3 contained very low density polyethylene, the DEFD 1015 material available from Union Carbide. Samples of a stretch olefin film made in accordance with the method disclosed in U.S. Patent 5,219,666, were produced to determine if cross-linking would occur by an oxidation reaction. These samples were analyzed for percent gel in general accord with standard ASTM procedure for determining gel content and inferentially the degree of cross-linking of the film after a predetermined period from manufacture during which period contact with oxygen took place. All examples were extracted in boiling toluene, vacuum dried and re-weighed. The samples were extracted a second 21 hours to assure complete solubility of all soluble portions. The results were as follows: Example 1 Example 2 Example 3 Gel % (ASTM D-2765-84) 0 14.7 0 The cross-linkable material, as illustrated in Example 2, is very useful in producing a heat resistant material useful in overwrap applications such as those described above.

Claims: A method for packing a food product wherein a cross-linkable film is cross-linked by exposure to oxygen, without irradiation, and subsequently upon packing the food product, is heat-sealed to itself to seal the package, in which said film comprises a layer of a blend of a polyolefin, a diene polymer and a transition metal catalyst and a sealable outer layer. A method according to claim 1 in which the said blend constitutes a core layer, of a multilaminate (preferably coextruded and/or stretched) film. A method according to claim 1 or claim 2 in which the outer sealable layer comprises a styrene butadiene copolymer. A method according to any preceding claim in which the film comprises a second outer layer. A method according to claim 4 in which the second outer layer comprises a styrene polymer. A method according to claim 5 in which the styrene polymer is a styrene butadiene copolymer. A method according to any preceding claim in which the film includes an intermediate (interlayer) polymeric adhesive layer. A method according to claim 7 in which the adhesive layer comprises an anhydride grafted olefin polymer. A method according to any preceding claim in which the polyolefin is an ethylene-alpha-olefin copolymer. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the blend comprises polyethylene, polybutadiene and cobalt decanoate. A method according to any preceding claim in which the film has a thickness in the range of from 13 to 127 µm. A method according to claim 11 in which the film has a thickness of up to 51 µm.

Inventors: SCHIRMER HENRY G, SCHIRMER, HENRY G.
Applicants: CRYOVAC INC, CRYOVAC, INC.
Application year: 1995
Main classification: C08L23
IPC codes: C08K5, C08L9, C08J5, C08L23