HEAD MEAT RECOVERY

摘要

Apparatus for recovering meat from the head (10) of a slaughtered animal is disclosed. A jaw support (15) clamps and supports the head by clamping the jaw (12). Cheek pullers (20) having clamps (21) engage with and hold the cheeks (13) of the animal head (10) in the vicinity of the mouth. A drive arrangement (30) has a lateral drive (31) for moving the cheek pullers (21) outwardly away from each other and has a posterior drive (33) for moving the cheek pullers (21) in the posterior direction (A) so as to pull tissues from both the jaw (12) and the skull (11). A jaw separation means (40) comprises a snout ring (42) to be fitted to the snout of the skull (11) and a drive (33) moves the snout ring (42) so as to move the skull (11) relative to the jaw (12) with an at least partially arcuate path of movement so as to continue to open the mouth wider as or after the cheek meat (13) is removed from the animal head (10).