SHEEP PLUG AND CATTLE PLUG

1. In the past, sheep and cattle plugs used during the slaughtering process have been made out of plastic. These plastic plugs, remain in the carcasses of slaughtered animals and are later ground into fertilizer. Fertilizers with plastic compounds can be later eaten by grazing cattle and sheep, causing a harmful effect.

2. This invention eliminates the danger posed to grazing animals, by being made of biodegradable material.

3. The Sheep and Cattle plug comprises of two items.

1. The throat plug;

2. The anal plug.

4. The throat plug is dome shaped or concave and is hollow through the interior. It is shaped to fit around the 'applicator' which is the rod used to insert the plug into the carcass. Once the animal has been slaughtered, the throat plug is attached to the applicator. The applicator is then inserted 40 cm into the throat of the dead animal to a position close to the paunch where it locks in. Once inside, the plug prevents the leaking of waste and bodily fluid onto the killing floor.

5. The throat plug is designed to remain within the carcass of the animal. When the carcass is later used to make fertilizer, the plug being biodegradable, poses no threat to grazing cattle.

6. The anal plug is also dome shaped and hollow through the interior. The anal plug is attached to an applicator. The applicator is then inserted about 50 cm into the anus of the carcass. The plug prevents bodily fluids and waste material from going onto the killing floor. The plug also prevents such material from going onto the clothing of operators working at the slaughter-house.

7. The Sheep and Cattle plugs are made from the African Oil Palm Tree or 'elaeis guineensis'.

8. This invention may be better understood by referring to the enclosed diagrams.

9. The diagram titled 'Figure 1' portrays several views of the Sheep Plug. The isometric view shows the cone shape of the plug as well as its round base. The figure on the bottom right shows the solid outer of the plug, highlighted in bold.

10. The diagram titled 'Figure 3' also portrays several views of the Cattle Plug. It highlights various orientations of the invention. The figures on the bottom right and top left show the solid outer of the plug. Again, this is highlighted in bold.

11. We also refer you to the diagram titled 'Figure 2' - Turkey Plug, which has sketches of the same attributes as those described previously. The Turkey Plug is used on turkeys.

12. We refer you to the 'Figure 4'. This diagram shows how both the throat and anal plugs are inserted into a carcass. The plugs are inserted on an applicator. The applicator is then inserted into the respective orifice.

Manufacturing Process:

13. Palm fibre is derived from the fruit of oil palm tree whose scientific name is "Elaeis Guineensis" predominantly grown in plantations of Malaysia and Indonesia. It is therefore a renewable source where the fruits of the oil palm are harvested all year around and the oil is extracted for conversion to edible vegetable cooking oil.

14. The husks are the remains of the fruit of oil palm tree after the oil is extracted and this biomass waste which traditionally has been discarded is now being recycled into palm fibre where they are made into a range of natural packaging needs such as sheep plugs and cattle plugs.

15. As palm fibre is the end product of the fruit husk of oil palm plant, the sheep plug and cattle plug is therefore completely natural exhibiting its natural fibre color and is therefore biodegradable and compostable within 90-120 days. It now offers the environmentally responsible consumers the perfect solution and a viable and sustainable alternative from a renewable source to plastic plugs.

ECOFIBRE Production Process

16. EFB from the milling operation is used as raw material for the biomass optimization operation.

17. Wet EFBs is fed into the ECOFIBREX machine where the raw fibre is shredded and combed out. The freshly shred fibres contain approximately 65 percent water, 30 percent dry matter and 2-5 percent of CPO.

18. This process eliminates the residual stench and extracts the remainder oil content of EFB, which has not been extracted in the milling operation. The raw fibre goes into a hydraulic press which removes 70 percent of the moisture in the form of oil and water content. The additional oil extracted from this process also indirectly increase the overall; OER for the mill.

19. Fine, long strands of fibres are produced at the end of the process with merely 30 percent moisture content. These fibres are dried and used as raw material for other downstream products such as sheep and cattle plugs.

20. The raw ECOFIBRE is grinded, chopped and cut, into refined fibre. Water and pulp are mixed with the refined fibre to produce a concentrated mixture.

21. The concentrated mixture is then diluted with water and additives, which is include food-grade water and oil resistant agents, to produce a diluted fibre slurry.

22. The fibre slurry is placed into a perforated moulding device that is vacuumed to eliminate moisture in the form of water and to form an evenly distributed and layered moulded shape. The moulded shape will then be dehydrated in a thermal dryer and sterilized.

ECOPAK Production Process

23. The moulded shape will be trimmed to the desired size and shape according to the defined specifications.

24. Finally, the ECOPAK products produced will go through quality control process to ensure that the products are according to specification prior to packing and shipping.

25. ECOPAK refers to disposable products made out of EcoFibre such as sheep and cattle plugs.