Packaged food product

Abstract

A packaged food product may incorporate an angled back card to improve stability by providing an enlarged footprint when the package is standing upright, i.e., vertically oriented. The angled back card can provide a wider base of support between the front of the product and the back card to improve the ability of the package to be self-supporting in an upright position, i.e., to stand up reliably on a shelf without leaning on other structures for external support. The package may be generally dumbbell-shaped as viewed from the front and/or from other angles, and may comprise a center portion that is narrower and/or shallower than adjacent end portions. This may facilitate handling of the product by the consumer and also may help to provide the product with an impactful appearance and theme at retail when the product is viewed from the front and/or from other angles. The product may include high-protein food items, consistent with the theme established by the shape, and may include prominently-displayed information about the protein content of the food items.

1 . A packaged food product capable of being displayed on edge comprising:
 a tray comprising a flange and at least one cavity;   a lid sealed to the tray;   the flange having a first end and a second end; and   a food product disposed within the at least one cavity;   the at least one cavity having one or more side walls and a rear wall that is angled relative to the flange; and   a back card that extends along and beyond the rear wall;   the back card having a first end and a second end;   the back card being oriented so that so that the packaged food product is capable of being displayed on edge with the first end of the flange in an elevated position above the second end of the flange, and with the first end of the back card in an elevated position above the second end of the back card, and with the second end of the flange and the second end of the back card stably supporting the packaged food product on a horizontal surface, and with the second end of the back card being spaced from the flange by a greater distance than the first end of the back card to provide an enlarged footprint for the packaged food product.   
     
     
         2 . The packaged food product of  claim 1  wherein the rear wall is oriented at an angle of 5° to 40° relative to the flange, and
 the tray comprises an upper cavity and at least one lower cavity, each having a rear wall and wherein the upper cavity has a stabilizing surface engaging a portion of the back card; and 
 the back card is affixed to the rear wall of the at least one lower cavity, and wherein the stabilizing surface comprises either a shallow groove or a shelf; and 
 a portion of the back card extends upward beyond the upper cavity and has an opening above the upper cavity to facilitate hanging the packaged food product from a peg. 
 
     
     
         3 - 5 . (canceled) 
     
     
         6 . The packaged food product of  claim 1  wherein the tray comprises a first portion comprising at least one cavity and a second portion comprising at least one cavity, and an area of weakness therebetween to facilitate separation of the first portion from the second portion. 
     
     
         7 . The packaged food product of  claim 1  wherein the at least one cavity is gas flushed to reduce or eliminate oxygen therein, and
 wherein the packaged food product has a generally dumbbell-shaped front surface that has information prominently displayed thereon referring to protein content, and wherein the food product comprises one or more proteinaceous food products selected from the group consisting of cheeses, meats and nuts, and 
 wherein the tray comprises an upper cavity, a lower cavity, and a middle cavity therebetween, the middle cavity is narrower than the upper and lower cavities, the upper cavity contains a first food product, the lower cavity contains a second food product, and the mass of the food product in the upper compartment is less than the mass of the food product in the lower compartment. 
 
     
     
         8 - 9 . (canceled) 
     
     
         10 . A packaged food product capable of being displayed on edge comprising:
 first and second rigid thermoformed trays, each comprising a flange and at least one cavity, each of the cavities having one or more side walls and a rear wall that is angled relative to the flange, the flange having an upper end and a lower end;   food products disposed within the cavities;   means for enclosing the food products within the cavities; and   back card means extending along and beyond at least one of the rear walls, the   back card means having an upper end and a lower end, and being oriented so that the lower ends of the flanges and of the back card means stably support the packaged food product on a horizontal surface, with the lower end of the back card means being spaced from the flange by a greater distance than the upper end of the back card means to provide an enlarged footprint for the packaged food product, and   wherein the cavities are gas flushed to reduce or eliminate oxygen therein.   
     
     
         11 . (canceled) 
     
     
         12 . The packaged food product of  claim 10  wherein the means for enclosing the food products within the cavities comprise a first film lid hermetically sealed to the flange of the first tray and a second film lid hermetically sealed to the flange of the second tray, and
 wherein the back card means comprise a first back card engaging the first tray and a second back card engaging the second tray. 
 
     
     
         13 . The packaged food product of  claim 10  wherein the means for enclosing the food products within the cavities comprise a film lid having a first portion hermetically sealed to the flange of the first tray and a second portion hermetically sealed to flange of the second tray, the film lid having an area of weakness to facilitate separation of the first portion from the second portion, and
 wherein the back card means comprise a back card having a first portion engaging the first tray and a second portion engaging the second tray, the back card having an area of weakness to facilitate separation of the first portion from the second portion. 
 
     
     
         14 - 15 . (canceled) 
     
     
         16 . The packaged food product of  claim 13  wherein the rear walls are oriented at an angle of  5 ° to  40 ° relative to the flanges, and
 wherein each tray comprises an upper cavity and at least one lower cavity, and wherein each upper cavity has a stabilizing surface engaging a portion of the back card means, and 
 wherein the back card means are affixed to the rear wall, and wherein the stabilizing surface comprises either a shallow groove or a shelf, and wherein the area of weakness of the back card comprises a removable strip of material defined by parallel perforations, and 
 wherein a portion of the back card means extends upward beyond the upper cavity and has an opening above the upper cavity to facilitate hanging the packaged food product from a peg. 
 
     
     
         17 - 19 . (canceled) 
     
     
         20 . A packaged food product comprising:
 a thermoformed tray comprising a flange and at least one cavity;   a proteinaceous food product disposed within the at least one cavity; and   a generally dumbbell-shaped lid enclosing the food product within the at least one cavity, the lid having information prominently displayed thereon concerning protein content of the food product.   
     
     
         21 . The packaged food product of  claim 20  wherein the thermoformed tray comprises an upper cavity, a lower cavity, and a middle cavity therebetween, and wherein the middle cavity is narrower than the upper and lower cavities, and
 wherein a first proteinaceous food product is disposed within the upper cavity, a second proteinaceous food product is disposed within the middle cavity, and a third proteinaceous food product is disposed within the lower cavity, and 
 the packaged food product further comprising back card means extending along and beyond at least one of the rear walls, the back card means having an upper end and a lower end, and being oriented so that the lower end of the flange and of the back card means stably support the packaged food product on a horizontal surface, with the lower end of the back card means being spaced from the flange by a greater distance than the upper end of the back card means to provide an enlarged footprint for the packaged food product; 
 wherein the middle cavity has an angled rear surface oriented at an angle of 5° to 40° to the flange, and wherein the back card means are attached to the angled rear surface; 
 the upper cavity has a stabilizing surface that comprises either a shallow groove or a shelf engaging a portion of the back card means; 
 the packaged food product has a central portion of reduced width and depth to enable the product to be easily and comfortably held in one hand; 
 the flange has a width of about 5 to 6 mm; 
 the flange has a return lip dimension of about 0 to 4 mm; 
 a portion of the back card extends upward beyond the upper cavity and has an opening above the upper cavity to facilitate hanging the packaged food product from a peg; 
 the cavities are gas flushed to reduce or eliminate oxygen therein; 
 the food products provide a total of about 13 grams of protein and are selected from the group consisting of cheeses, meats and tree nuts; and the mass of the food product in the upper compartment is less than 
 the mass of the food product in the lower compartment. 
 
     
     
         22 - 24 . (canceled) 
     
     
         25 . The packaged food product of  claim 21  wherein the flange defines a plane, and wherein the tray includes an upper compartment having a rear surface, a lower compartment having a rear surface, and an intermediate compartment having a rear surface, the upper compartment having a greater depth than the lower compartment, and wherein the distance from the plane of the flange to the bottom end of the angled back card is equal to the depth of the upper compartment. 
     
     
         26 . (canceled) 
     
     
         27 . A method of providing a packaged food product, comprising:
 (a) forming a tray with a flange and at least one cavity having an angled rear surface;   (b) placing a food product in the tray;   (c) placing a film over the tray;   (d) sealing the food product in at least one cavity;   (e) placing a rigid angled back card on the angled rear surface in a position that will enable the packaged food products to be stably self-supporting in an upright orientation on a generally horizontal surface with an edge of the flange contacting the generally horizontal surface, and with the back card extending down and away from the angled rear surface to contact the generally horizontal surface; and   (f) repeating steps (a) through (e) to form a plurality of additional packaged food products.   
     
     
         28 . The method of  claim 27  wherein steps (a) through (f) are performed in line. 
     
     
         29 . The method of  claim 27  wherein the trays are pre-formed off line. 
     
     
         30 . (canceled) 
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 27  wherein each of the trays includes an upper compartment having a rear surface, a lower compartment having a rear surface, and an intermediate compartment having a rear surface, the upper and lower compartments having substantially the same depth, and wherein placing a food product in the tray comprises placing the tray in a horizontal position with the tray resting on the rear surfaces of the upper and lower compartments prior to placement of the angled back card on the angled rear surface, and wherein the flange defines a plane and the tray includes an upper compartment having a rear surface, a lower compartment having a rear surface, and an intermediate compartment having a rear surface, the upper compartment having a greater depth than the lower compartment, the distance from the plane of the flange to the bottom end of the angled back card being equal to the depth of the upper compartment; the method further comprising displaying the product in a horizontal configuration in which it is supported by the rear surface of the top compartment and by the lower end of the back card. 
     
     
         32 . (canceled) 
     
     
         33 . A method of packaging a food product in a high-speed commercial packaging operation and thereafter displaying the food product in a retail setting, comprising:
 (a) forming a tray with a flange and at least one cavity having an angled rear surface;   (b) placing a food product in the package;   (c) placing a film over the tray;   (d) sealing the food product in at least one cavity;   (e) placing a rigid angled back card on the angled rear surface;   (f) repeating steps (a) through (e) to form a plurality of additional packaged food products; and   (g) standing a plurality of the packaged food products upright in a retail display such that each of the packaged food products is stably self-supporting in an upright orientation on a generally horizontal surface with an edge of the flange contacting the generally horizontal surface, and with the back card extending down and away from the angled rear surface to contact the generally horizontal surface.   
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 33  wherein the tray comprises an upper cavity and at least one lower cavity, the lower cavity having the angled rear surface, the method further comprising placing a portion of the back card into a notch on the upper cavity. 
     
     
         35 . A package that is capable of being displayed on edge comprising:
 a rigid thermoformed tray comprising a flange and at least one cavity;   a lid sealed to the tray; and   the flange having a first end and a second end;   the at least one cavity having one or more side walls and a rear wall that is angled relative to the flange; and   a back card that extends along and beyond the rear wall;   the back card having a first end and a second end;   the back card being oriented so that so that the package is capable of being displayed on edge with the first end of the flange in an elevated position above the second end of the flange, and with the first end of the back card in an elevated position above the second end of the back card, and with the second end of the flange and the second end of the back card stably supporting the package on a horizontal surface, and with the second end of the back card being spaced from the flange by a greater distance than the first end of the back card to provide an enlarged footprint for the package.   
     
     
         36 . The package of  claim 35  wherein the rear wall is oriented at an angle of 5° to 40° or relative to the flange; and
 wherein the tray comprises an upper cavity and at least one lower cavity, and wherein the upper cavity has a stabilizing surface engaging a portion of the back card; and 
 wherein the back card is affixed to the rear wall, and wherein the stabilizing surface comprises either a shallow groove or a shelf; and 
 wherein the tray comprises an upper cavity and at least one lower cavity, and wherein a portion of the back card extends upward beyond the upper cavity and has an opening above the upper cavity to facilitate hanging the package from a peg; and 
 wherein the tray comprises a first portion comprising at least one cavity and a second portion comprising at least one cavity, and an area of weakness therebetween to facilitate separation of the first portion from the second portion; and 
 wherein the at least one cavity is gas flushed to reduce or eliminate oxygen therein; and 
 wherein the package has a generally dumbbell-shaped front surface that has information prominently displayed thereon referring to protein content; and 
 wherein the tray comprises an upper cavity, a lower cavity, and a middle cavity therebetween, the middle cavity is narrower than the upper and lower cavities, and the volume of the upper compartment is less than that of the lower compartment.