Fibrous sausage casing

The ViskoTeepak's Fibrous casing can be tailor-made to fit any application and production process. First of all, the right paper needs to be selected in terms of size, strength and extension properties. Secondly, the cellulose, or "viscose," which is the technical name given to the soluble derivative of naturally occurring cellulose, is coated in a single or double layer and to the extent that's required by the application and sausage process.

In the case of ViskoTeepak, this latter form of cellulose is derived from the highest grades of purpose-grown pine trees. Once regenerated upon its abaca fibrous matrix, a variety of subsequent special treatments creates a casing to suit the most complex demands of the meat processor.

ViskoTeepak's Fibrous casing offers the world's widest choice of possibilities of tailoring to the specific needs of the meat producer or food packager. From this experience, we've developed a range of fibrous casings in over 80 different calibers and some 20 standard and variable non-standard colors to suit all applications, for both automatic and manual operations.

The basic fibrous casing, as previously described, is treated in a plasticization stage that involves multiple passes prior to drying, depending on the intended use. This ensures that the adhesion level of the casing is perfect for each application and production process. The casing can be sold as regular or treated with a meat-cling and easy-peel coating and impregnation. Also, the adhesion levels and properties can be tailored to any application and process conditions. Improved meat-cling is obtained by applying a substance that acts as a binding agent between the fibrous material of the casing and the proteins in the meat. Whenever easy-peel properties are required, the internal surface of the casing is treated with a release agent.

Many of the properties of a fibrous casing derive from the use of long-fiber paper in its construction. In order to activate these excellent properties, the casing has to be moisturized. A dry casing has strength but no elasticity. By effective moisturizing methods–i.e., pre-soaking in connection with customizing or soaking immediately before use in the sausage factory–the casing is given the right combination of strength and stretch in order to guarantee trouble-free sausage processing operations. ViskoTeepak can also offer the Ready-to-Use (RTU) pre-moisturized casing options that make it possible to use shirred strands straight out of the box while eliminating the risk of contamination from soaking water.

Fibrous casings are permeable to gases. This property plays a crucial role in the process where smoking, maturation and drying are required. By controlling the permeability levels of both water and gases, the casing will dry and shrink in a uniform way and allow the proper smoke transmission while maintaining caliber stability, thus ensuring very high yields.

A wide variety of fibrous casings is available to meet the most demanding needs of the sausage maker. Their mechanical strength, dimensional stability and uniformity, treatments for permeability and surface properties, printability and other customization options are among the possibilities that make fibrous casings the most versatile type of casing product.