Automatic loader for food processing machines

A tiltable tray (20) is loaded, either manually or automatically, with food products. When signalled by a central computer (19) of the need for a food product, such as a food log, in a cluster box of a food slicing machine (30), the tray is moved linearly to the edge of the cluster box's top openings (32, 34, 36, 38). The tray is then tilted to drop the food log into the cluster box, permitting food to be continuously sliced. The tray is preferably loaded by an automatic loader having a lower horizontal conveyor (52), a vertical conveyor (54), and an upper horizontal conveyor (80). The vertical conveyor has paddles (68) that pick up food logs from the lower horizontal conveyor and drop them onto the upper horizontal conveyor. The food logs are then dropped into the tray by the upper horizontal conveyor when the tray is empty.