Apparatus and method for continuous milling and mixing

A continuous mixing and milling apparatus, comprising:

• a first stage comprising:
• a first milling chamber;
• one or more first hoppers arranged to continuously discharge unprocessed ingredients into the milling chamber;
• a plurality of grinding balls disposed in the milling chamber;
• a vibration generating device operable to agitate the grinding balls and thereby grind the unprocessed ingredients and generate processed ingredients;
• a first collection chamber positioned to receive the processed ingredients discharged from the milling chamber;
• and
• an outlet in communication with the first collection chamber;
• and
• a second stage comprising:
• a second mixing chamber in communication with the outlet for receiving processed ingredients from the first collection chamber;
• and
• a second collection chamber positioned to receive processed ingredients discharged from the second mixing chamber.

A method of continuously mixing and milling a plurality of ingredients, comprising:

• introducing a first unprocessed ingredient from a hopper into a milling chamber;
• agitating grinding balls via vibration to thereby grind the first unprocessed ingredient within the milling chamber and thereby generate a first processed ingredient;
• and
• continuously introducing the first unprocessed ingredient into the milling chamber so that the first processed ingredient overflows the milling chamber and spills into a collection chamber positioned to receive the first processed ingredient overflowing the milling chamber.