Produce shaping, apparatus therefor and uses thereof

38:

• The apparatus of claim 37 wherein a product crowner acts on the recently shaven produce item at a station at which the shaver is indexed, other than the stuffing station, whilst still supporting its shaven product.

39:

• The apparatus of claim 38 wherein a product ejection arrangement acts on the shaven and crowned product whilst the shaver still supports the product to remove the product in a direction opposite its stuffing direction.

40:

• The apparatus of claim 39 wherein the product ejection arrangement uses a fluid flow or is a fluid flow.

42:

• The apparatus of claim 41 wherein a product crowner acts on a shaven produce item whilst its shaver is still supporting the shaven produce.

43:

• The apparatus of claim 42 wherein a product ejection arrangement (e.g. a fluid flow) acts on the shaven and crowned produce whilst the shaver still supports the produce to remove the produce as a shaven and crowned product in a direction opposite its stuffing direction.

44:

• A method of shaping a product from product (e.g. such as a carrot), said method comprising or including
• feeding a feedstock of the produce, one item at a time, longitudinally into a dedicated shaver carried by a carousel and shaping the produce by shaving whilst holding the produce relatively still in the shaver as at least one blade the shaver rotates about the axis of the longitudinal item.

45:

• The method of claim 44 further comprising or including crown shaping a larger end of each shaven produce whilst it is still supported by its shaver.

46:

• The method of claim 45 further comprising or including ejecting each shaped and crowned product from the shaver.

47:

• The method of claim 44 wherein each crowning and ejection step for a particular produce item occurs at a different rotational position (e.g. optionally at stations) of the shaver about the rotational axis of the carousel.

48:

• The method of claim 44 wherein the produce item feed into its shaver from a magazine or hopper under the action of a ram.

49:

• The method of claim 44 wherein the crowning is by a ram supported produce item reliant on rotation of the blade(s) of the shaver relative to the produce (whether the produce itself is cause to rotate by the shaver or the blade is rotated, or both).

50:

• The method of claim 46 wherein the ejection is under the action of a fluid flow.

51:

• The method of preparing a root or bulbous vegetable (e.g. carrot, parsnip, beetroot or the like), said method comprising or including
• mechanically shaping a vegetable feedstock form using an apparatus of claim 37 to a predetermined product form and product size (“the product form”), and
• creating a sterile package that includes the product forms.

52:

• The method of claim 51 further comprising or including the step of pre-sizing vegetables of the same kind to provide a sufficient feedstock thereof (“feedstock form”).

53:

• The method of claim 51 wherein the creation of the sterile package involves both a sterilization step for the shaped product forms as well as the packaging thereof.

54:

• The method of claim 51 wherein said vegetables are carrots and (i) the pre-sizing is by (preferably by one or both) topping and tailing and/or (ii) the predetermined form and size is to a predetermined length and girth of a simulated carrot form.

55:

• The method of claim 51 wherein each said product shaver is a substantially conical or frustoconical shaver that performs in a manner similar to a pencil sharpener with the feedstock carrot being stuffed into the shaver to a uniform extent and being so held so as to provide a shaving relativity of rotational movement therein.

56:

• The method of claim 55 wherein the shaver rotates and the carrot does not, or vice versa.

57:

• The method of claim 51 wherein a ram drives each feedstock carrot of predetermined length in a predetermined distance into the shaver.

58:

• The method of claim 57 wherein said ram feeds a feedstock form from a magazine or hopper thereof.

59:

• The method of claim 51 wherein each shaped carrot is discharged from the shaving apparatus from the larger end thereof under the action of a fluid (e.g. air or water) introduced from the other end.

60:

• The method of providing a carrot product which is a predetermined carrot simulating form and a substantially predetermined reduced size, said method comprising or including
• feeding a feedstock carrot into an apparatus of claim 37, said feeding being a mechanical feed of the carrot into the apparatus and shaping the carrot, and
• crown shaping of the still apparatus supported carrot using a product crowner, and removing the thus sized and shaped carrot form from such apparatus prior to the infeed of a subsequent feedstock carrot there into.

61:

• The method as claimed in claim 60 comprising or including cutting the carrot to length to provide a feedstock carrot of a predetermined length and a girth beyond that desired.

62:

• The method of claim 60 which includes in addition sterilizing and packing such carrot forms in a sterile pack.

64:

• The method of claim 63 wherein the creation of the sterile package involves both a sterilization step for the shaped product forms as well as the packaging thereof.

65:

• The method of claim 63 wherein said vegetables are carrots and (i) the pre-sizing is by (preferably both) topping and tailing and/or (ii) the predetermined form and size is to a predetermined length and girth of a simulated carrot form.

66:

• The method of claim 65 wherein step (i) and/or step (ii) are (is) machine automated.

67:

• The method of claim 65 wherein the shaping step is performed by serially presenting a number of the pre-sized feedstock carrots to a shaping apparatus.

68:

• The method of claim 67 wherein said shaping apparatus is a substantially conical or frustoconical shaver that performs in a manner similar to a pencil sharpener with the feedstock carrot being machine feed into the shaver to a uniform extent and being machine held so as to provide a shaving relativity of rotational movement therein.

69:

• The method of claim 68 where any over girth carrot for the shaver is either excluded or trimmed in its girth to allow entry fully into the shaver.

70:

• The method of claim 68 wherein the shaver rotates and the carrot does not, or vice versa.

71:

• The method of claim 70 wherein a ram drives each feedstock carrot of predetermined length in a predetermined distance into the shaver.

72:

• The method of claim 71 wherein said ram feeds a feedstock form from a magazine thereof.

73:

• The method of claim 68 wherein each shaped carrot is discharged from the shaving apparatus from the larger end thereof under the action of air or other fluid introduced from the other end.

75:

• The method of claim 74 which includes in addition sterilizing and packing such carrot forms in a sterile pack.

76:

• The method of claim 75 wherein a preservative, composition, solution, etc. can be associated with the carrot forms in the pack.

77:

• A carrot form that is the result of topping and tailing a carrot and shaving the truncated carrot form to a carrot simulating form of lesser girth using an apparatus of claim 37.

78:

• A sterile packed carrot form being a reduced size and girth carrot simulating form using an apparatus of claim 37.

79:

• Any shaped foodstuff that has been shaped using a method of claim 39.