Systems and methods for sealing food containers

A sealing system for food containers, comprising:

• a frame;
• a conveyor system for conveying food containers through the sealing system, wherein the conveyor system is supported by the frame;
• a sealing unit configured to receive food containers from the conveyor system, wherein the sealing unit comprises a first sealing tool and a second sealing tool configured to be pressed together in order to seal each food container positioned therebetween, wherein the sealing unit is supported by the frame, and wherein the conveyor system is configured to convey sealed food containers away from the sealing unit;
• a power monitoring unit configured to measure or estimate a power consumption of at least the sealing unit of the sealing system;
• and
• a control unit configured to:
• calculate a measure of power efficiency of at least the sealing unit of the sealing system based on a comparison of the power consumption to a threshold power consumption;
• and
• output an indication derived from the measure of power efficiency of at least the sealing unit of the sealing system.

A method of operating a food container sealing system, comprising:

• conveying, using a conveyor system, food containers to a sealing unit comprising a first sealing tool and a second sealing tool;
• pressing the first sealing tool and the second sealing tool together so as to seal each food container positioned therebetween;
• measuring or estimating, using a power monitoring unit, a power consumption of at least the sealing unit of the sealing system;
• calculating, using a control unit, an energy consumption per sealed food container based on the power consumption and the number of sealing operations performed per unit time;
• and
• outputting, using the control unit, an indication derived from the energy consumption per sealed food container.