Patent ID: 7250186

Claim:
A process for the manufacture of cooked cereals or dry pet food, the process comprising preparing an uncooked mixture of water and a dry premix mainly comprising cereal flour or semolina, pressing the uncooked mixture using a gear pump comprising two toothed wheels which mesh with each other with the teeth being configured and dimensioned to avoid shearing the uncooked mixture as they mesh, with the gear pump forcing the uncooked mixture first into a heat exchanger and then through an extrusion die to form an extruded product; and cooking the uncooked mixture in the heat exchanger to provide a gelatinization degree of at least 85% before the cooked mixture passes through the extrusion die; the extruded product comprising a starch profile having respective proportions of 40-70% amylopectin, and 15-35% amylose.