A poultry chiller includes a tank and an auger rotatably held in the tank. The auger includes a first auger section and a second auger section. The first auger section includes a first auger shaft and a first auger flight. The first auger flight includes a first helical portion on the first auger shaft and a first flight extension that extends away from the first helical portion. The second auger section includes a second auger shaft coupled to the first auger shaft and a second auger flight. The second auger flight includes a second helical portion on the second auger shaft and a second flight extension that extends away from the second helical portion. The chiller includes a hanger bearing assembly between the first and second auger sections and extending to an upper portion of the tank.

The present invention relates to an apparatus for optical inspection of the opened abdominal cavity (10) of gutted fish (11), comprising a conveying device (12) configured for conveying the fish (11) along a processing line in the longitudinal direction, pivotable ventral flaps holding elements (17) configured for holding open the abdominal cavity (10) of the fish, at least one optical imaging system (21, 22, 23) arranged along the processing line, said optical imaging system being designed and configured to take at least one sequence of images of abdominal cavity regions of one of the fish (11) in each case, said sequence comprising a plurality of single images, at least one illumination device (24, 25) configured for illuminating the abdominal cavity regions in each case with light of a predetermined spectral composition, in each case at the times the single images are taken, an evaluation unit (26) configured to evaluate the image sequence according to prescribed quality parameters, said evaluation unit being designed to activate an ejection device to remove the relevant fish (11) from the processing line by ejecting it, should the evaluation reveal any deviation from the prescribed quality parameters. The invention further relates to a corresponding method.

A power operated rotary knife including an annular rotary knife blade supported for rotation in a blade housing. The rotary knife blade including a body and a blade section extending from the body. The body includes an outer wall including an arcuate surface having an upper region extending from a first upper end portion to a second intermediate portion and a lower region extending from the second intermediate portion to a third lower end portion. A plurality of gear teeth extend downwardly from the upper end of the body, each of the plurality of gear teeth including an outer peripheral face forming a portion of the upper region of the arcuate surface of the outer wall. The body outer wall includes a bearing surface having a lower bearing face in the lower region of the arcuate surface and an upper hearing face in the upper region of the arcuate surface.

A carcass cleaning tool for removing dag from a suspended carcass has a body with at least one handle mounted to it for allowing an operator to hold the tool away from them. A driver is mounted in the body and rotates a head having a shaft extending therefrom. A plurality of arms extend from the shaft and have tines at distal ends, the tines adapted to engage the animal carcass to remove dag from the carcass hide. The head is oriented to permit movement of the arms and tines in front of the tool operator. A suspension point for hanging the body from an overhead support permits the operator to move the tool arms and tines toward and away from the carcass to remove the dag without damaging the carcass hide. The tool body never makes contact with the ground as a result of using the suspension point.

A chiller bath includes a tank for holding a volume of chiller water; a dosing system for dosing a first solution and a second solution into the chiller water, arranged to create a plurality of zones within the volume of water, wherein each zone has a higher concentration of either the first or the second solution than surrounding portions of the volume of water; and a meat or poultry immersion arrangement for immersing and moving carcasses in the chiller water. A method for reducing bacterial load on meat or poultry includes generating a plurality of zones within a chiller bath containing water by dosing a source of alkalinity and antimicrobial into the water, wherein the plurality of zones comprises at least one alkaline zone with a pH above 8.5, and at least one antimicrobial zone with pH below 8.5; and submersing meat or poultry in the bath. The zones can also be generated using spray nozzles in a meat or poultry operation.

A food processing system and a method, includes: an overhang rail system having a plurality of spaced apart shackles designed for carrying carcass parts such that the carcass parts are at least partly freely hanging, a re-positioning apparatus having an engagement structure selectively moveable by a moving mechanism, and at least one food processing device for performing at least one food processing step on the carcass parts while the carcass parts are conveyed past the at least one food processing device. The plurality of spaced apart shackles and the engagement structure move in a synchronized manner. The engagement structure is configured to engage the carcass parts at a position different from the carrying position of the shackle and adjusting the angular position relative to a vertical axis from an initial angular position to a pre-defined angular processing position.

A tool, and a method using the tool, for skinning game animals. Specifically, the tool relates to a curved blade knife, sharpened on the curved, top edge, and possessing a spherical structure at the tip. The tool is used by forming a cut through the soft skin of a game animal, inserting the spherical structure through the cut, and pushing or pulling the blade such that the sharpened curved, top edge cuts through the skin and connective tissue. This tool and method takes advantage of the fact that because the spherical structure at the tip of the blade is retained inside the skin and connective tissue of the game animal, the blade is automatically properly positioned to cut the skin of the game animal.

A meat quality and yield improvement process comprises hanging the hind leg(s) of a carcass and applying an additional pulling force of from 50 to 500 kgf to the leg and back muscles of the carcass. The additional force stretches the muscle filaments of the leg and back muscles and is maintained until rigor is complete. The hind leg(s) of the carcass may be hung at an angle of 90 to 170 degrees to the vertical.

An apparatus, designed and configured for optically inspecting articles of the fish and meat processing industry, includes at least one imaging system which is arranged so as to be encapsulated on all sides in a housing and is configured for optically scanning the articles. The housing has a transparent viewing window and a protective element, forming a light-transmissive channel, and is releasably arranged on the outside of the housing to protect the viewing window from contamination. In addition, an arrangement for processing and inspecting the opened abdominal cavity of gutted fish, includes a conveying device configured for conveying the fish along a processing line in the longitudinal direction, which is characterised in that the arrangement comprises at least one apparatus configured for optically inspecting the abdominal cavity.

An apparatus for detecting surface characteristics on food objects conveyed by a conveyor has a first imaging device for capturing two-dimensional image data (2D) and a second imaging device for capturing three-dimensional image data (3D) of a food object. A image processing unit is configured to utilize either the 2D or 3D image data in determining whether a potential defect is present on the surface of the food object. The image processing unit determines a surface position of a potential defect, and utilizes the 2D or 3D image data in determining whether an actual defect is present on the surface of the food object at the indicated surface position. The apparatus has an output unit for outputting defect related data in case both of the 2D and the 3D image data indicate that an actual defect is present on the surface of the food object at the indicated surface position.