GB2462260A - Cake preserving device - Google Patents

Abstract

A cake preserving device comprises two rectangular sheets joined together by a hinge, wherein in use, the sheets are placed against the open ends of a cake to reduce the cakes contact with air. The device can be an injection moulded product made up of two polypropylene moisture retention sheets, one with a moulded handle on. Both sheets may have moulded stabilizing feet. The sheets may be connected together by a male/female central hinge system which allows the device to move in a circular clock style movement over 270 degrees.

Description

Le Wedge mi patent application

Description

Le Wedge TM IS a shelf life enhancer for the food industry mainly aimed at increasing the life of cakes.

Background

Once a cake product has been sliced, it then leaves 2 open edges of the cake. These edges are open to the air which generally has a much lower relative humidity than the cake it comes in contact with (cake is usually around 70-80% while air is around 40%). The cake then needs to reach an equilibrium with the air it is in contact with.

In doing so the cake begins to lose the moisture contained within, however, when this happens the cake begins to dry out and causes the product to become inedible.

Research has found that the side of a cake open to the air generally becomes inedible after 1-2days as it loses around 10% of it's moisture (see graph 1). Due to the length of time it takes to finish a cake this means generally that part of the cake that is in contact with the air has to be thrown away each time another slice is required for consumption. The graph below (see graph 1) shows the moisture movement of the sides of a cake over a 20 day period (which is generally around the life of an average cake guided by a best before label), the darker line represents the open side and the lighter line represents the side covered with Le Wedge TM.

Cake water activity chart -90.00 ---______ ______- 80.00------____________ -4-Open side 60.00 - Covered side 50.00. p I I I -, -s', Time/days (Graph 1) UsaRe Le Wedge TM is used when a cake product is sliced open and then needs to be stored to stop staling to take effect, it is used to combat this drying to great effect. Once the cake has been sliced to leave 2 open sides (it is best to have the side cut as vertical as possible as making diagonal slices will not make Le Wedge TM effective), clean the cake board as well as possible of cake debris, Le Wedge TM can then be clipped together using the central hinge system (see fig 3/4) and placed into a cake with both sheets being pushed up against the open sides of the cake, thereby closing the sides of the cake from air contact producing a wedge shape (see fig6). As the cake is consumed and slices are taken from the cake, Le Wedge TM 15 then opened up by use of the handle to keep the sheets in contact with both open sides of the cake. This is continued in a clock style movement with one sheet moving clockwise and the other moving counter clockwise until the cake is consumed or the cake passes it's labelled best before date.

Key features Sheets Le Wedge TM features 2 injection moulded polypropylene sheets in a rectangular shape (see fig 1).

Handle One Le Wedge TM sheet includes a small rectangular shape of polypropylene (a moulded part of the sheet) on the top of the sheet (see fig 1).

Stabilising feet Le Wedge TM is stabilized by 2 feet, one per sheet, which are of a flat and rounded design and are part of the moulded sheets (see fig 1/2).

Central hinge system The Le Wedge TM central hinge system uses a male and female type joint (see fig 3/4). Co Co

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