Abstract: A malolactic ferment is produced from at least one malolactic bacterium strain which is cultured in a culture medium containing an assimilable nitrogen source, malic acid and alcohol. The ferment biomass is separated from the culture medium. The biomass may be concentrated and may be frozen with a cryoprotective agent or dehydrated. The biomass may be added directly to wine to effect malolactic fermentation.

Abstract: A toilet for animals has a horizontal part for an animal to stand upon and a vertical part integral with the horizontal part. The vertical part contains a reservoir for containing litter, and a dispenser system is associated with the reservoir for dispensing litter from the reservoir onto the horizontal part. A water distributor is positioned at the bottom of the vertical part beneath the reservoir and dispensing system for flushing the horizontal part. A flushing discharge system has a siphon which extends from an orifice in the horizontal part, and an inlet to the siphon supplies water for flushing the siphon. At least one cell is positioned for detecting the presence of an animal on the horizontal part and for controlling a flushing and litter dispensing sequence when the animal has left the horizontal part.

Abstract: A flavorant composition is prepared by dispersing blue cheese in an aqueous medium containing a buffering agent and then incubating the dispersion with spores of Penicillium roquefortii and with lipase and protease enzymes to hydrolyze and metabolize the cheese.

Abstract: A soluble coffee product which has the appearance of roast and ground coffee particles. The product is produced by a process in which a coffee extract is frozen, comminuted into particles, freeze-dried, and darkened. During the process, the particles are separated into an oversize fraction of size greater than about 1.1 mm (16 US Standard mesh), a fines faction of size less than about 0.87 mm (20 US Standard mesh), and a middle fraction of size between the oversize fraction and the fines fraction. Then, the middle fraction is separated into a by-pass fraction and a major fraction, the by-pass fraction forming 2 to 20% by weight of the middle fraction. The major fraction and the fines fraction are then combined and the particles in the combination are darkened. The darkened particles and the by-pass fraction are then combined to provide the soluble coffee product.

Abstract: A cooked cereal product is made by heating and maintaining a composition having a dry matter content of 20% to 85% by weight and containing water and a starchy substance or soya at a temperature of from 50.degree. C. to 160.degree. C. for from 10 minutes to 180 minutes to obtain a heat-treated composition. The heat-treated composition and a starchy substance or soya are then introduced into an extruder and extrusion-cooked for 20 seconds to 60 seconds at 125.degree. C. to 135 .degree. C. to obtain a cooked cereal product.

Abstract: Two conveyors and a cutting device are employed to prepare and cut folded articles from plastic sheet material. The first conveyor has a conveying run for advancing a sheet of foldable plastic material, and the second conveyor has a conveying run which is positioned above the first conveyor conveying run and which extends for a length of the first conveyor conveying run. A first end of the second conveyor run is positioned intermediate of upstream and downstream ends of the first conveyor conveying run and is spaced a distance from the first conveyor conveying run. The cutting device is positioned above the first conveyor conveying run at a position intermediate of the first conveyor conveying run downstream end and the second conveyor first end for cutting a sheet of plastic material advanced lengthwise on the first conveyor conveying run so that a portion of a width of the sheet between side edges is separated from the sheet.

Abstract: An extruder for extruding a foodstuff terminates in an extrusion head having a product outlet die and having a feed duct pipe for feeding a foodstuff filler material into the foodstuff extruded through the head so that the extruded foodstuff encases the filler material so that a foodstuff-encased product passes through the outlet die. A shaper is positioned for receiving the encased product directly from the die outlet and has an inner rotatable ring body mold and outer rotatable annulus molds, wherein the outer annulus molds are positioned about and off-center of and are rotatable with the ring mold so that upon rotation, the annulus molds and ring mold body converge for shaping the encased product and then the annulus molds separate from the shaped product. A cooling system is positioned for receiving the shaped product and cooling the shaped product.

Abstract: A process for improving the shape retention of chocolate or chocolate type products so that they have a reduced tendency to deform at elevated temperatures which comprises mixing an encapsulated product in particulate form comprising capsules of a polyol enclosed within an edible lipid with a flowable mixture of chocolate type ingredients, the encapsulated product being added in an amount to achieve a polyol content of from 0.2 to 5% by weight based on the total amount of the resultant chocolate.

Abstract: A topical cosmetic composition contains a cosmetic carrier and a mixture of fatty acid triglycerides. The fatty acids of the triglycerides include 40% to 70% by weight oleic acid, 30% to 50% by weight polyunsaturated acids, 0.2% to 1.0% by weight gamma-linolenic, 1% to 5% by weight alpha-linolenic acid, and the ratio by weight of n-6 fatty acids to n-3 fatty acids with a degree of unsaturation of 3 or more in the triglycerides is 10:1 to 30:1.

Abstract: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline is prepared by hydrolyzing a 2-(1-alkoxyethenyl)-1-pyrroline compound with an acid to obtain a reaction medium and then adding an equimolar amount of a base to the reaction medium to obtain a neutralized reaction medium containing 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline.

Abstract: Food pieces are folded by depositing a food piece onto a conveyor and onto a rotatable bar which is positioned above the conveyor surface. The bar has a perimeter shape which conforms to a half perimeter shape of the food piece and is initially positioned to extend parallel to the conveyor surface. After a food piece has been deposited on the bar and conveyor surface, the bar is rotated in an arc about a bar axis of rotation so that the bar lifts up and folds a half portion of the deposited food piece over onto another half portion of the food piece on the conveyor surface. The bar is rotated to return it to its initial position, and the conveyor surface is advanced to transport the folded food piece. A filling may be deposited on the deposited food piece prior to folding the food piece.

Abstract: A valve device for restricting fluid flow has a hollowed piston member having a closed piston end wall and an open piston seat end. The piston end wall is integral with a second piston wall which extends to the piston seat open end which, in turn, opens into a chamber defined by the piston end wall and second wall. The piston second wall is positioned in slidable contact with a housing interior wall surface and has at least one aperture positioned therethrough for a fluid to flow in or out of the piston from the chamber so that upon the piston being reciprocated in the housing, when the piston seat end is seated in a seat integral with the housing, the at least one second wall aperture is confined by the housing interior wall surface to close the valve to fluid flow and so that when the piston is at a position displaced away from the seat, the at least one aperture is unconfined by the housing so that the valve is open to flow of fluid.

Abstract: The invention relates to the use of a composition which, in a liquid carrier, contains a polymeric hydrogen siloxane (or (H) siloxane) corresponding to the following general formula ##STR1## in which n is a number of from 1 to 70 andR is an alkyl, hydroxyalkyl, aminoalkyl, haloalkyl or aryl radical.The liquid carrier is, for example, water or dichloromethane.

Abstract: Sheet products having a waved marginal portion are prepared by passing a sheet of a plastic material through and compressing the sheet between shaped circumferential rollers which are positioned and configured to provide therebetween a plurality of differing nip clearance gap distances and to compress the sheet to form an intermediate sheet portion flanked by a marginal waved flanking portion and a second flanking portion, wherein the intermediate portion has a thickness greater than the second portion which, in turn, has a thickness greater than the marginal waved portion.

Abstract: Spherical and quasi-spherical objects are fed from a vibratory feeder through at least one outfeed chute to an oscillable plate positioned beneath the chutes. The oscillable plate has pocket passages positioned therethrough so that upon oscillation of the plate in a first direction, a pocket passage aligns with each chute opening to receive an object.

Abstract: Chocolate products are formed by feeding solid set chocolate to an extruder and passing the chocolate through the extruder at a temperature below the pour point of the chocolate to deform and extrude the chocolate.

Abstract: A packaged food product includes a rigid food product bar which has a width, a height and a length extending between end edges of the bar and a package provided by a hand-tearable product packaging material enclosing the bar having a notch positioned therein. The notch is a single linear slit positioned adjacent and parallel to an end edge of the enclosed bar and the notch has a length less than the width of the enclosed bar. The notch is covered on an interior surface of the packaging material by a cover material which liquefies when heated to a temperature compatible with the packaging material, which is adhesive enough to remain on the notch, but which is weak enough to break when the package is bent by leveraging the product contained in the package against the packaging material interior adjacent the covered notch.

Abstract: An ultrasonic cutting device includes a transducer, an ultrasonic horn and a cutting blade. The transducer generates ultrasonic vibrations in a direction having a longitudinal axis, and the ultrasonic horn has a nodal point and at least three projections extending, respectively, to vibrating faces equidistantly away from and symmetrically about the nodal point, one of the vibrating faces being connected to the transducer so that, in operation, the ultrasonic horn is vibrated. The cutting blade is connected to one of the vibrating faces of the ultrasonic horn which is not connected to the transducer and is positioned in a plane transverse to the longitudinal axis of vibrations so that, in operation, the blade is vibrated.

Abstract: Tomato based products, such as tomato puree, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and the like, having improved flavor characteristics, are produced by the modified hot break process of this invention. In this modified process whole tomatoes are subjected to an initial heating step which effects only limited heat penetration of the tomatoes. That is, whole tomatoes are blanched in water having a temperature above 185.degree. F. (85.degree. C.) for a short period of time to inactivate only those enzymes, primarily pectic enzymes, located at or near the surface of the tomatoes. Tomato enzymes located interior of the pericarp are not destroyed in this initial heating step. The tomatoes are then cooled to reduce the surface temperature of the tomatoes below about 110.degree. F. (43.degree. C.), and the cooled tomatoes are macerated in the presence of added alkali and a food grade alcohol, to provide a tomato slurry having a pH of between 4.7 and 5.1 and a temperature of below about 95.degree. F. (35.degree. C.).

Abstract: A process of producing a texturized protein product having a layered meat-like texture and appearance in which only vegetable protein material, particularly soy flour, and water are used as ingredients. A dough-like slurry of soy flour and water is pumped into the gap between a fixed plate and a rapidly rotating plate in a high speed emulsion mill under conditions which rapidly heat the slurry to a temperature above 100.degree. C. to rapidly texturize the protein. The hot slurry is pumped under positive pressure by centrifugal force from the emulsion mill directly into an elongated process tube in which the texturized protein slurry rapidly coagulates to form in the tube a continuous loaf having distinct parallel layers of soy protein bonded together which maintains its structure upon discharge from the tube.