Retort - Autoclavable Pouches

What Makes the Retort Pouch Revolutionary?

Many consumers may not be aware that the food inside a retort pouch is cooked right in the sealed bag. This revolutionary packaging process of heating and sterilizing the pouch and its contents is called retorting and can be traced back to the processing of military rations in the 1960s. Unlike traditional metal cans or glass jars, retort pouches are made from a lamination of flexible plastics and thin metal foils which can withstand high temperatures and pressure. The retort pouch is filled with the product to be heated, then hermetically sealed (airtight) before being processed in a heated pressure vessel according to industry guidelines for time and temperature. This process is similar to autoclaving, which is used in non-food manufacturing to sterilize instruments and their packaging.

Commercial vs Home Retorting

The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration provide extensive guidance regarding safe retort packaging practices for commercial food producers. Much of it pertains to choosing the proper materials (pouches) and to correct usage of commercial-grade retort equipment. For example, it is crucial to maintain a precise 1 atmosphere pressure environment in a retort machine in order to prevent retort pouches from bursting. IMPAK stands by the quality of our pouches that are rated for safe usage in retort applications. When employing the proper methods for commercial retort packaging, our pouches help to make shelf-stable food products that can be enjoyed years after being produced.

There are many people who practice “canning” with flexible retort pouches at home, often including a chamber vacuum sealer and a pressure cooker in the process. Some of those people have shared their technique for doing this in videos or on websites. Retort pouches are a great way to keep ready-to-eat food in long-term storage for emergency preparedness.

While we are aware that people have been using retort pouches at home for years, we at IMPAK Corporation are obliged to recommend against this practice. Flexible retort pouches will burst if not processed with the precise pressure requirements that can be consistently attained with a commercial retort. There is a real risk of food safety issues with at-home retorting, especially when raw proteins are involved.

Custom Retort Pouch Production

The key to retort pouch production is high-quality laminated materials. Laminated layers of plastic and thin foils create a barrier impervious to gases and moisture entering or exiting the packaging. IMPAK understands the technology and methodology required to bond the layers of a retort pouch together with a secure seal and a polished look. We have the tooling available to create retort pouches with design options such as a dispenser tip, 55-gallon drum liners with integrated round bottoms, stand up pouches, and other custom shapes and fitments.

IMPAK can customize retort pouch designs using our specially engineered raw materials in sizes ranging from 1” x 3” to 30” x 68”. We can produce retortable bags in a variety of shapes, styles, and colors (inluding transparent), and we offer full custom printing services. Contact us for more information, and to discuss your product requirements.

RETORT TO THE RESCUE!

How is retorting and asceptic processing different than traditional industrial canning methods? Unlike traditional methods using metal cans or glass jars, retorting takes considerably less time to heat the contents to temperature. Retort pouches allow more surface area and even distribution of heat, rather than waiting for the contents to heat from the outside walls to the center through a cylinder. The goal of retorting technology is to produce ambient-temperature, shelf-stable, high-water activity, low-acid foods with higher quality than traditionally canned contents.

Why Choose Retortable Packaging?

• Cost Savings – contents do not have to be blanched or pre-cooked prior which reduces manufacturing and processing time and cost as well as reduced energy and water use
• Material Handling – reduced packaged weight and dimensions eliminates heavy, bulky cans/jars during handling / waste easy to handle, ship, store, use and dispose of. Bulk waste is reduced, making clean up and disposal a fraction of the space and processing taken up by traditional cans, glass jars or semi-rigid thermoformed containers.
• Convenience – Consumers find pouches easy to handle, store, and dispose of, as well as retort pouches are easy to open versus needing to puncture metal or require additional tools.
• Safety – heating liquids in cans can produce dangerous pressure, and opening cans leave raw edges that are sharp, whereas retort pouches are easily and safely handled
• Branding – better consumer visibility with larger branding and labelling surface area and product placement
• Quality - Foods cook safely and evenly, and since overcooking or uneven cooking of canned foods can be avoided.
• Design Options - Retort packaging comes in multiple sizes and configurations shapes, printable surfaces, with various hanging or standing methods. Packages can be flat, oval, truncated, conical or almost anything that can be imagined and designed, whereas canned or bottled foods have obvious limitations. For more information on over 62 standard and special flexible film options.

What Can Retort Pouches Be Used for Commercially?

• Packaged foods
• Re-packaging foods for shelf-stable long-term storage
• Fully cooked ready-to-eat meals (MRE’s)
• Field Rations
• Camping, boating, hiking or backpacking rations
• Space program rations
• Fish products
• Pet foods or snacks
• Beverages
• Condiments
• Emergency Preparedness

Need more information? Call us now! We have a technical representative available on stand-by to answer your questions!