Flavor pouch

Abstract

A flavor pouch includes a porous covering that encloses a carrier having a flavorant. The carrier may be solid or particulate. Flavorants may be one or more of tea, coffee, rose hips, honey, royal jelly, fruit extracts, mint, sweeteners, ginger, pepper extract, exotic flavors, ethnic flavors and the like. Where the carrier comprises a plurality of beads, the beads may have randomly dissolvable encapsulation to extend the time duration of flavor release. To use the flavor pouch, it is placed in the mouth and masticated or exposed to saliva to thereby release the flavorant.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A pouch for oral delivery of flavor, comprising:
 a flavor source combined with a soluble or insoluble carrier surrounded by a porous membrane wherein overlapping portions of the porous membrane are sealed and the pouch does not have any sharp corners.   
     
     
         2 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the porous membrane comprises a web having a wet tensile strength of about 15 to about 75 N/m and the flavor source comprises a dissolvable film. 
     
     
         3 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the flavor source comprises a soluble carrier which dissolves in saliva over time and releases the flavor through the porous membrane. 
     
     
         4 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the flavor source comprises a granular material having a polymeric matrix and a surface coating of flavorant material. 
     
     
         5 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the flavor source includes a flavor selected from the group consisting of tea, rose hips, honey, royal jelly, fruit extract, coffee, ginger, pepper extract, mint, exotic fruits, exotic vegetables, international, and ethnic flavors. 
     
     
         6 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the major dimension of the flavor pouch is about 0.6 to 1.2 inches. 
     
     
         7 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein said flavor pouch has rounded corners. 
     
     
         8 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein said flavor source comprises strip of dissolvable material. 
     
     
         9 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the porous membrane is not soluble in saliva and has structural integrity sufficient to remain intact while the flavor pouch is present in the human oral cavity. 
     
     
         10 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the porous membrane includes combination of natural and synthetic material. 
     
     
         11 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the porous membrane is a non-woven web. 
     
     
         12 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the porous membrane is heat sealed along an arcuate seal. 
     
     
         13 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the porous membrane has a basis weight of 5 to 25 g/m 2 . 
     
     
         14 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the porous membrane is a water-permeable, water-insoluble stain resistant polymer membrane. 
     
     
         15 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the flavor source comprises at least two flavor compounds mixed with a polymeric carrier. 
     
     
         16 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the flavor source comprises a viscous fluid. 
     
     
         17 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the flavor source comprises a liquid flavorant, the liquid flavorant released by mastication of the flavor pouch. 
     
     
         18 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the flavor source comprises a dissolvable flavor film on an inner surface of the porous membrane. 
     
     
         19 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the flavor source comprises powder or granular material which completely fills an internal volume of the porous membrane. 
     
     
         20 . The pouch of  claim 1 , wherein the flavor source comprises a coating soluble in saliva, the coating dissolving in saliva such that the flavor passes through the porous membrane.