Method for deboning poultry legs and apparatus for performing the method

An apparatus for processing poultry legs in the form of at least one of whole legs and drumsticks comprising at least one bone, a splint bone (fibula), tendons and ligaments, and meat, and defining a distal and a proximal end, for the purpose of gaining the meat therefrom by severing said tendons and ligaments extending along said drumstick bone at said distal end area thereof and subsequently stripping off the meat by a relative movement between said bone and the meat, which relative movement is directed towards said proximal end of said drumstick bone, which apparatus comprises

• a) tong-shaped gripping means for griping said drumstick bone in the region of its distal condyle and defining a gripping movement plane;
• b) holding means for embracing said condyle in a proximal direction close to said gripping means, which holding means are arranged to be displaced in the longitudinal direction of said drumstick bone such as to reduce the distance relative to said gripping means;
• and
• c) severing means for severing said tendons and ligaments adjacent to the gripping position of said gripping means,
• wherein
• d) said gripping means comprises gripping elements which are provided with recesses for holding said drumstick bone and arranged to extend essentially perpendicular to said gripping-movement plane, and
• e) said severing means comprises a cutting mechanism arranged immediately on said gripping means.