1. Brief Introduction

Plastic casings are extruded like most other plastic products. They also can be flat or shirred. Generally, smoke and water do not pass through the casing, so plastic casing is used for non-smoked products where high yields are expected. The inner surface can be laminated or co-extruded with a polymer with an affinity for meat protein causing the meat to stick to the film, resulting in some loss then the casing is peeled, but higher overall yield due to better moisture control.

Plastic casings are generally made from polymeres such as polyamide, polypropylene or polyethylene.Polyamide(Nylon)plastic casing are the most commonly used in production of cooked suasages and hams such as luncheon meat and bologna.Polyamide casing come in two main varieties: Oriented and non-oriented. The oriented polyamiede are shrinkable casings and will shrink during the cooking process thereby reducing the warter loss. Non-oriented polyamide casings remain the same diameter during the cooking process and thereby allow for expansion of the meat during the cooking.


2.  Calibers and Flat Width Sizes