Production of three-dimensional products from a mass of pumpable fibrous foodstuff material

A method for the production of three-dimensional products from a mass of pumpable fibrous foodstuff material, for example from ground meat,

• wherein the mass of pumpable fibrous foodstuff material is fed by a foodstuff mass feed and pressurization assembly into a chamber via an inlet thereof,
• wherein a perforated plate is stationary arranged at an outlet side of the chamber, which perforated plate has a multitude of perforations therein between an inlet face of the perforated plate directed towards said chamber and an opposed outlet face of the perforated plate,
• wherein a flow channels assembly connects to the outlet side of the chamber,
• which flow channels assembly comprises multiple flow channels, each flow channel having a flow channel inlet opening, a flow channel discharge mouth, and a flow channel length,
• wherein the flow channel inlet openings are stationary arranged adjoining the outlet face of the perforated plate, so that each flow channel receives therein strands of fibrous foodstuff material emerging at the outlet face of the perforated plate from a subset of the multitude of perforations in the perforated plate,
• wherein the strands that are introduced into a flow channel merge into a coherent bundle, in which the strands are arranged against one another in a generally parallel orientation,
• wherein said bundle is confined within the flow channel and passes through the flow channel to the discharge mouth where the bundle is discharged, whilst maintaining the generally parallel orientation of the strands in the bundle,
• wherein a production device is arranged at the discharge mouths of the flow channels assembly, which production device is configured and operated to produce three-dimensional products, each product out of a portion of a bundle that is discharged from one of the discharge mouths.

A system for creating multiple coherent bundles of strands of fibrous foodstuff material from a mass of pumpable fibrous foodstuff material, for example from ground meat, and for providing said bundles to a production device that is configured to produce three dimensional products, each product out of a portion of a bundle discharged from a discharge mouth of the system,

• wherein the system comprises:
• a chamber having an inlet connectable to a foodstuff mass feed and pressurization assembly configured to feed mass of pumpable fibrous foodstuff material into the chamber via the inlet thereof,
• a perforated plate that is stationary arranged at an outlet side of the chamber, which perforated plate has a multitude of perforations therein between an inlet face of the perforated plate directed towards said chamber and an opposed outlet face of the perforated plate,
• a flow channels assembly that connects to the outlet side of the chamber,
• which flow channels assembly comprises multiple flow channels, each flow channel having a flow channel inlet opening, a flow channel discharge mouth, and a flow channel length,
• wherein the flow channel inlet openings are stationary arranged adjoining the outlet face of the perforated plate, so that, in operation, each flow channel receives therein strands of fibrous foodstuff material emerging at the outlet face of the perforated plate from a subset of the multitude of perforations in the perforated plate,
• wherein the flow channels are configured so that, in operation, the strands that are introduced into a flow channel merge into a coherent bundle, in which the strands are arranged against one another in a generally parallel orientation,
• wherein the flow channels are configured so that, in operation, said bundle is confined within the flow channel and passes through the flow channel to the discharge mouth where the bundle is discharged, whilst maintaining the generally parallel orientation of the strands in the bundle,
• wherein a production device is arrangeable at the discharge mouths of the flow channels assembly, which production device is configured to produce three-dimensional products, each product out of a portion of a bundle discharged from the discharge mouth.