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Aretort pouch orretortable pouch is a type offood packaging made from alaminate offlexible plastic andmetal foils. It allows the sterile packaging of a wide variety of food and drink handled byaseptic processing and is used as an alternative to traditional industrialcanning methods. Retort pouches are used inbaby andtoddler food,camping food,field rations,fish products,[1]instant noodles,space food,[2]sports nutrition, and brands such asCapri-Sun andTasty Bite.
Some varieties have a bottomgusset and are known asstand-up pouches.
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In 1968 Otsuka Foods Company ofJapan became the first company in the world to commercialize a retort food product. The product was aJapanese curry called "Bon Curry".Curry became a food that could be stored for long periods of time and likeinstant noodles, could be eaten after being cooked for three minutes.[3][4] Since detailed technical information on the retort pouch, which was a military technology, was not publicly available, Otsuka Foods Company developed it in cooperation with a Group company that developed intravenous drugs using high-temperature sterilization technology.[4]
The current form of the retort pouch was invented by theUnited States Army Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center,Reynolds Metals Company, and Continental Flexible Packaging, who jointly received theFood Technology Industrial Achievement Award for its invention in 1978.[5]
A retort pouch is constructed from a flexible metal-plastic laminate that is able to withstand the thermal processing used forsterilization. The food is first prepared, either raw or cooked, and then sealed into the retort pouch. The pouch is then heated to 240–250 °F (116–121 °C) for several minutes under high pressure inside aretort orautoclave machine. The food inside is cooked in a similar way topressure cooking. This process reliably kills all commonly occurringmicroorganisms (particularlyClostridium botulinum), preventing it fromspoiling. The packaging process is very similar tocanning, except that the package itself is flexible. The lamination structure does not allow permeation of gases from outside into the pouch. The retort pouch construction varies from one application to another, as a liquid product needs different barrier properties than a dry product, and similarly anacidic product needs different chemical resistance than abasic product. Some different layers used in retort pouches include:
This multi-layer structure prevents the retort pouch from being recycled into other retort pouches or food packaging. However, the material can be recycled into an aluminized resin or up-cycled into textile materials.[6] The weight of a pouch is less than regular cans or bottles, and the energy required to produce each pouch is less than competing packaging from metals, paper, and glass.
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In the consumer market, retort pouches have gained great popularity outside of the United States, particularly in thePacific Rim region. However, American consumers have evidently demonstrated reluctance regarding the packaging technology and adoption has been slow. As a result, many retort packages sold in the United States are packaged incartons to give them an appearance more familiar to consumers.Tasty Bite products are an example of a retort pouch product packaged in a carton. Several American food distributors have begun manufacturing foods in retort pouches without cartons, notablytuna canning companies asChicken of the Sea andBumble Bee and baby/toddler food companies asPlum Organics.
