Introduction

The invention is a system designed for the sanitation of the external surface of food packages, as well as tools for food processing. The system is effective in sanitizing surfaces from SARS-COV-2.

Technical features

The use of conventional sanitizing chemical solutions, despite being the most applied method for sanitizing, has great limits, such as high costs as well as the impact in terms of economic and environmental sustainability. In addition, their use is not allowed on specific types of materials used in packaging containing food.

The invention is a system that allows to sanitize food product containers, and to sanitize the external surface of packaged food products, or to sterilize and reduce the bacterial / viral load of an object, in order to make it aseptic or in any case decrease as much as possible the presence of elements harmful to the health of an individual, such as, for example, a virus. The effectiveness of this system against SARS-CoV-2 has been verified: the tests have shown that 5 to 20 minutes are required to sanitize, depending on the type of material. It has been tested also on Staphylococcus epidermidis, which requires 10 to 20 minutes of treatment.

The system consists of a processing chamber, where packaged food can be placed, and a plasma generator, suitable for sanitizing plastics, paper, glass or metals.

Possible Applications

• Large distribution (GDO);
• Distribution of packaged foods;
• Canteens.

Advantages

• The system is effective in sanitizing from SARS-COV-2;
• It has a low environmental and economic impact, because it does not use chemical agents, nor does it generate residues to be disposed;
• It does not compromise the quality of the food and its characteristics, nor its shelf-life;
• It allows the decontamination of complex-shaped packaging.