Abstract: A method and apparatus for feeding resiliently compressed articles into a form/fill/seal machine. The method includes steps of receiving horizontally compressed articles into an infeed end of a pair of conveyor belts, continuously conveying the compressed articles to a discharge end, continuously forming a plastic film around the pair of cantilevered conveyor belts without the stack of articles exerting expansion force against the plastic film, forming and sealing a closed tube, and releasing the stack of compressed articles into the closed tube only after the seal has sufficient strength to maintain the stack of articles compressed. The pair of conveyor belts has rigid conveyor backing members and cantilevered ends with a discharge pulley mounted at each cantilevered end. At least one tie bar connects the backing members near the cantilevered ends in order to resist the expansion force of one or more stacks of resiliently compressed articles between the conveyor belts.

Abstract: A resilient squeeze bottle dispensing package including an internal flexible bag which is suitable for dispensing viscous product such as toothpaste, but which includes an air valve which will automatically permit pressure equilibration in the chamber formed between the flexible bag and the interior of the bottle in response to a decrease in the atmospheric pressure surrounding the package. Employing a valve which permits such automatic pressure equilibration avoids unwanted oozing of viscous product from the discharge orifice of the package when the atmospheric pressure surrounding the package decreases, e.g., as by airplane travel or by travelling from a first elevation to a second substantially higher elevation.