Apparatus for stripping meat from the extremities of poultry

An apparatus for stripping meat from the extremities of poultry, particularly from leg parts such as thighs or drumsticks, which comprise a bone at least partially surrounded by meat, of turkeys or chickens, said apparatus comprising

• (a) a first supporting disk driven to rotate about a substantially vertical first axis and defining a rotary plane;
• (b) a second supporting disk rotating synchronously with said first supporting disk about a second axis intersecting in inclined manner said first axis;
• (c) means for axially advancing said leg part to be processed, whilst engaging said bone in a centring manner in the vicinity of its proximal joint, which means are associated with said second supporting disk and essentially comprise at least one depression arranged on the underside facing said first supporting disk, which depression supports said leg part in the vicinity of its proximal condyle in a shape-adapted manner;
• (d) means for retaining said meat during said advancing action, whilst radially embracing said bone, which meat retaining means are attached to said first supporting disk and comprise at least one stripping tool opposite to said at least one depression, respectively, having a tubular body of at least two segments, and initially embracing said bone in the vicinity of its distal condyle, said tubular body being designed at its projecting front edge as a circular cutting edge and being oriented substantially perpendicular to said rotary plane of said first supporting disk;
• and
• (e) a receptacle also associated with said first supporting disk and adapted to receive in a centring manner with respect to said stripping tool said leg part to be processed, which receptacle is arranged above said stripping tool.