| (19) |
 |
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(11) |
EP 0 380 269 A3 |
| (12) |
EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
| (88) |
Date of publication A3: |
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22.05.1991 Bulletin 1991/21 |
| (43) |
Date of publication A2: |
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01.08.1990 Bulletin 1990/31 |
| (22) |
Date of filing: 22.01.1990 |
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| (84) |
Designated Contracting States: |
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AT BE CH DE DK ES FR GB GR IT LI LU NL SE |
| (30) |
Priority: |
23.01.1989 GB 8901419
|
| (71) |
Applicant: H.J. HEINZ COMPANY LIMITED |
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Middlesex UB4 8AL (GB) |
|
| (72) |
Inventors: |
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- Stocker, Julian Harry James
Great Missenden, Bucks HP16 9PE (GB)
- Cleaver, Michael James
London, SE13 5ED (GB)
|
| (74) |
Representative: Pendlebury, Anthony et al |
|
PAGE, WHITE & FARRER
54 Doughty Street
London WC1N 2LS
London WC1N 2LS (GB) |
|
| |
|
| (54) |
Method of sealing plastics food containers |
(57) A method of treating a food container having a plastics body portion and a lid sealed
thereto for the purpose of ensuring that micro-organisms cannot penetrate into the
interior of the container through any faults or imperfections in the seal between
the lid and the body portion, which method comprises forming a polymeric coating layer
over the external surface of the container in such a manner as to encompass completely
the join between the lid and the body of the container, the resultant polymeric coating
layer being a retortable polymer.
The method of the invention provides a substantial reduction in the number of failures
of the seal between the lid and body portion of plastics containers for foodstuffs.