Abstract: A method for preparing a granular food comprises the steps of mixing a material to be granulated with oil and fat having an open-tubed melting point ranging from 40.degree. to 55.degree. C. under heating without addition of water, then subjecting the mixture to granulation through extrusion and rapidly cooling the granulated product. The method permits the dry granulation of foods without addition of water and efficient preparation of granular foods which do not require any process for adjusting particle size distribution of the resulting foods after granulation and which permits the production of granular foods having appropriate strength.

Abstract: Provided is a dough slice conveying apparatus in which a dough slice can peel off from the reversing part in the terminal of a front side conveyer belt without being deformed and without being dropped between the front side conveyer belt and the rear side conveyer belt, and is then transferred onto and conveyed by the rear side conveyer belt without being folded but in an unfolded condition. The dough slice conveying apparatus is provided with a knife edge having a front end part whose curvature is 2.1T to 11.7T where T is a thickness of the dough slice, and the space between the reversing part in the terminal of the front side conveyer belt and the reversing part in the start end of the rear side conveyer belt is set to less than 0.1R where R is a minimum diameter of the dough slice.

Abstract: A suction-type metering robot hand comprising (a) a hollow suction pad having a gas-permeable obstacle at an opening of the suction pad; and (b) a main body of the robot hand supporting the suction pad and having a vacuum passage communicating with the suction pad. According to the robot hand of the present invention, the provision of the net on the opening of the suction pad makes it possible to suck fragile articles such as a fried cutlet, roasted bean curd, a piece of bread and the like to a desired place.

Abstract: A method for washing a conveyer belt in a heat treatment apparatus permits washing of the conveyer belt without causing splashing of a washing fluid so as not to cause danger in operation and contaminate the surroundings and can cause deformation of the conveyer belt upon washing so as to vary the surface configuration and positional relationship of the components for making washing effective. The method comprises the steps of defining a washing fluid bath containing a washing fluid, and placing the washing fluid bath in a portion of a traveling path of the conveyer belt, within which at least one of configuration and positional relationship of components of the conveyer belt varies, for dipping the conveyer belt at the portion within the washing fluid bath.

Abstract: A puffed snack is prepared from chlorophyll-containing plant grains by pulverizing the grains under completely light shielding conditions, storing the resulting pulverized grains under complete light shielding conditions or light shielding conditions applied within 24 hours after pulverization and puffing the grains in a screw extruder having a die wherein the temperature of the die ranges from 90.degree. to 150.degree. C. for the resulting pulverized grains having a water content of 9-11%, the temperature of the die ranging from 100.degree. to 210.degree. for the resulting pulverized grains having a water content of from 11 to 15%, and the temperature of the die ranging from 160.degree. to 240.degree. C. for the resulting pulverized grains having a water content from 15 to 20%, so that the degree of puffing falls within a range of from 3.0 to 28.

Abstract: A dough mixer has a dough material feeding inlet and a dough discharging outlet at upper and lower portions of a housing, in which a mixing member is disposed. The dough mixer further includes at least one metal shutter member for opening and closing the dough material feeding inlet and the dough discharging outlet, and a guide rail member contacting of the at least one of metal shutter member for guiding motion of the shutter member through an established motion path, the guide rail member being formed of a synthetic resin. The at least one shutter member for removing a dough material in the motion path of the shutter expels compressed air at its tip.

Abstract: A continuous frying apparatus comprising a primary frying vessel for transferring foodstuff with the stream of oil; a secondary frying vessel for holding and frying the foodstuff below the oil surface with the use of a conveyor including rollers, a running member moving around the rollers and interlocked therewith, and projections arranged on the outer surface of the running member; and a joining section for connecting the primary frying vessel and the secondary frying vessel. According to the present invention, one of the rollers which is arranged nearest the starting side of the secondary frying vessel is positioned so that the intersection with the oil surface of a circular arc defined by the ends of the projections moving around that roller is positioned closer to the ending side of the secondary frying vessel than intersection of the oil stream flowing downward and out of the primary frying vessel meeting with the oil level in the secondary frying vessel.

Abstract: A dyeing agent for dyeing strawberries comprises (a-1) a lac dye; (b) alum; (c) L-ascorbic acid and/or a salt thereof; and (d) a phosphoric acid salt in a weight ratio in an amount of 0.8.about.6.0 parts by weight of component (b), 1.0.about.10.0 parts by weight of component (c) and 2.5.about.23.3 parts by weight of component (d) relative to 1 part by weight of component (a-1), or (a-2) a cochineal dye and a lac dye; (b); (c) and (d) in an amount of 0.8.about.3.6 parts by weight of component (b), 1.0.about.6.0 parts by weight of component (c) and 2.5.about.14 parts by weight of component (d) relative to 1 part by weight of component (a-2). A method for dyeing strawberries comprises the steps of removing the cuticula layer of unripe strawberries, charging the strawberries in a container together with a dyeing solution containing the dyeing agent, degassing the contents of the container, then sealing the container and heating the sealed container.

Abstract: A method for manufacturing a snack food comprises the steps of preparing a paste of a ground or pulverized vegetable and/or fruit, the paste having a moisture content ranging from 50 to 85% by weight and a saccharide content ranging from 5 to 35% by weight, and then drying the paste to give a snack food having a moisture content ranging from 1 to 6% by weight and a bulk density ranging from 0.3 to 0.8 g/ml. The method can provide snack foods exhibiting palatability which has never been attained, mainly comprising vegetables and/or fruits, having a moisture content ranging from 1 to 6% and a bulk density ranging from 0.3 to 0.8 g/ml. The snack foods manufactured according to this method can be used as health confectionery after independently packaging or incorporating into a container.

Abstract: A dyeing agent for dyeing strawberries comprises (a-1) a lac dye; (b) alum; (c) L-ascorbic acid and/or a salt thereof; and (d) a phosphoric acid salt in a weight ratio in an amount of 0.8.about.6.0 parts by weight of component (b), 1.0.about.10.0 parts by weight of component (c) and 2.5.about.23.3 parts by weight of component (d) relative to 1 part by weight of component (a-1), or (a-2) a cochineal dye and a lac dye; (b); (c) and (d) in an amount of 0.8.about.3.6 parts by weight of component (b), 1.0.about.6.0 parts by weight of component (c) and 2.5.about.14 parts by weight of component (d) relative to 1 part by weight of component (a-2). A method for dyeing strawberries comprises the steps of removing the cuticula layer of unripe strawberries, charging the strawberries in a container together with a dyeing solution containing the dyeing agent, degassing the contents of the container, then sealing the container and heating the sealed container.

Abstract: A centrifugal separation apparatus comprises a rotatable cylindrical member including a side perforated wall and an opened bottom and a bottom lid member including a central raised portion and a side wall inclined downwardly and outwardly. The bottom lid member is moveable between an upper position in which said bottom lid member is engaged by the lower end face of said cylindrical member and a lower position in which said bottom lid member is spaced apart from the lower end of said cylindrical member to form a gap therebetween.

Abstract: A continuous vacuum frier feeds material along a path of conveyance within a vacuum frying chamber while maintaining the chamber vacuum. A frier comprises material conveying means for conveying the material through frying oil. The material conveying means includes endless belt means having a plurality of openings formed therein and a plurality of partitioning members extending downwardly from the endless belt means and each having a plurality of apertures formed therein. The partitioning members defines a plurality of compartments which receive the material and in which the material are fried and conveyed.

Abstract: A method for preparing a puff snack comprises the steps of puffing an ingredient essentially consisting of a bean which may or may not have the husk and having a water content of 9 to 20% in an extruder at a die temperature ranging from 90.degree. to 150.degree. C. for the ingredient having a water content of 9 to 11%, 100.degree. to 210.degree. C. for the ingredient having a water content of more than 11% and not more than 15% or 160.degree. to 240.degree. C. for the ingredient having a water content of more than 15% and not more than 20% so that the degree of puffing falls within the range of from 3.0 to 28.0 times the volume of the bean to give a puffed product having a water content of not more than 7% by weight after drying or without carrying out drying and then applying fat and oil to the resulting puffed product.

Abstract: A method for preparing retort Tofu comprises the steps of adding a coagulating agent to soy milk obtained by removing bean-curd refuse from Go, charging the mixture in a heat-resistant container, closely sealing the container and then subjecting the sealed container to a retort treatment, wherein the content of insoluble solids present in the soy milk is controlled to not more than 3% by weight on the basis of the total weight of the soy milk. The Tofu obtained according to the foregoing method can be stored for a long time period since it is subjected to the retort treatment. In addition, the Tofu thus obtained has resiliency almost comparable to that for the usual Tofu and good taste, although it is retort-treated.

Abstract: A novel pyrimine-producing strain belonging to genus Pseudomonas exhibits the following bacteriological properties: denitrification reaction: negative; assimilation of carbon sources:D-arabinose: positiveL-lysine: negativeand a novel pyrimine-producing strain belonging to genus Pseudomonas exhibits the following bacteriological properties: denitrification reaction: negative, assimilation of carbon sources:D-arabinose: positiveL-lysine: positiveThese novel strains produce pyrimine in high yield and if the strains are cultured in a proper culture medium in the presence of an iron salt, a natural red dye, ferropyrimine, can be easily produced and directly be recovered from the culture medium.

Abstract: A packing device for articles having directionality that includes imaging means for taking an image of the articles, means for recognizing the direction of the articles, first memory means for storing the direction of the articles, second memory means for storing the direction of the articles to be packed into a container, and means for calculating the difference in angle between the directions stored in the first and second memory means. The direction of the robot hand for grasping the articles is controlled by the output of the calculating means.

Abstract: A method for sealing a retort container comprises the steps of heat-sealing an opening of a retort container after charging contents into the container so that a line-seal having a width ranging from 0.5 to 2.5 mm is formed to thus seal the container and then performing knurled sealing at a portion including the line-seal. The sealing method can provide a container having sufficient seal strength and does not spoil the beautiful appearance of the flange portion of the container even if contents thereof remain in the flanged portion or the like. Moreover, the method does not cause foaming in the sealed regions at all and it is not necessary to perform the sealing treatment under substantially severe conditions to prevent the occurrence of the foaming and, therefore, the method can provide containers having a sealed portion easily peelable.

Abstract: Sterilized and packaged mineral water comprises sterilized mineral water having a hardness of not less than 50 mg/l and a content of dissolved carbonic acid gas ranging from 9 to 30 mg/l (as calcium carbonate) and a number of bacteria of not more than 10.sup.-3 /ml which is obtained by sterilizing pumped-up mineral water having a hardness of not less than 50 mg/l and a content of dissolved carbonic acid gas ranging from 10 to 31 mg/l by filtering through a filter having a pore size of not more than 0.22 .mu.m. The packaged and sterilized mineral water can be effectively prepared by a method which comprises packaging pumped-up mineral water in a container without subjecting it to any heat-sterilization treatment wherein the mineral water is sterilized by passing through a filter having a pore size of not more than 0.22 .mu.m, packaged in a sterilized container under an aseptic condition of not more than Class 100 and then the container is airtight-sealed.

Abstract: A method for manufacturing starting material for dried sweet potato chips comprises heating raw sweet potatoes at a temperature ranging from 70.degree. to 100.degree. C. for 180 to 8 minutes to adjust hardness of the sweet potatoes to 1,800 to 12,000 and then slicing the heated sweet potatoes to a desired thickness. The sweet potato slices are further subjected to a second heat treatment to convert starches present therein to .alpha.-starches and then dried as such or after freezing to obtain dried sweet potato chips edible as a snack food.

Abstract: A novel pyrimine-producing strain belonging to genus Pseudomonas exhibits the following bacteriological properties: denitrification reaction: negative; assimilation of carbon sources:D-arabinose: positiveL-lysine: negativeand a novel pyrimine-producing strain belonging to genus Pseudomonas exhibits the following bacteriological properties: dentrification reaction: negative; assimilation of carbon sources:D-arabinose: positiveL-lysine: positiveThese novel strains produce pyrimine in high yield and if the strains are cultured in a proper culture medium in the presence of an iron salt, a natural red dye, ferropyrimine, can be easily produced and directly be recovered from the culture medium.