The invention belongs to the classes A 47 G 19/16 and A 47 G 19/04 of IPC.

The technical problem solved by the invention is how to design such a spoon, which will combine the basic functions of stirring and scooping a liquid e.g. coffee, tea etc.

with sanitarily unobjectionable containing of sugar, sweetener, extracts etc. and their controlled dosing into the liquid.

US pa2ent 3,946,652 describes a coffee or tea spoon with a hollow handle and bowl, whereat the wall of the convex side of the bowl is perforated and in the vicinity of the free end of the handle or on it an opening with a cop is arranged for pouring isl a dry powder e.g. sugar, sweetener, instant coffee or tea, etc. NMIen the spoon is inserted into the liquid, the latter enters through the bowl perforation into the interior of the spoon and dissolves the powder contained in it. By stirring the spoon in the liquid the blending of the dissolved contents of the spoon with the liquid is accelerated. A dis- advantage of this solution lies in the lacking possibility to control the quantity of the the contents of the spoon to enter the liquid. However, this would be required due to different tastes of people. Another disadvantage lies in the fact that the sweetener very slowly dissolves and passes through the perforations. With the perforation size increased in order to accelerate the dissolution rate, the sweetener granules would fall out before use. Even with a smaller perforation the smaller granutes of the con- tents may drop out before use. Therefore an additional packaging of each spoon is necessary. The packaging is also necessary to assure unobjectionable filling. The packaging, however, makes the product more expensive. There is also a risk that partly dissolved granules of the sweetener may clog the perforation, thus slowing down or totally stopping the further dissolution of the sweetener.

Another spoon is known from EP 0 321 333 Al. On the flat stirring part a manually removable seat for a sweetener container is arranged, the sweetener being preferably in a lump and not in granules. The disadvantage of this spoon is the same as with the above-mentioned spoon, i.e. the clullntity of the sweetener cannot be controlled.

With the sweetener arranged on the stirring part of the spoon and thus immersed in the liquid, the container with the sweetener must always be removed if one does not wish to sweeten due to health or other reasons or uses his own sweetener. The con- tainer of this spoon is not closed in a sealed manner, therefore undesired effects may appear.

The mentioned technical problem is solved by the spoon according to the invention so that in its handle a container for a sweetener is arranged, preferably for a quantity of 4.5 g, which is sufficient to sweeten one cup of coffee or tea. On the handle end the sweetener container is closed by a stopper, preferaby by a sealing foil to be opened only once. Such a spoon can be used as a stirring device without using the sweetener at all. If the sealing foil on the top of the handle is opened, an optional quantity of the sweetener can be poured into the liquid. Despite a possible rest of the sweetener in the container, the spoon can still be used to stir the liquid. The sealing foil prevents misuse. The handle or the foil can have an inscription or a graphical symbol designat- ing rne type of the sweetener in the container.

The substance of the invention is explained in more detail by the description of an example of embodiment and the enclosed drawing showing Fig. 1 a longitudinal cross-section of the spoon according to the invention.

The spoon with a sweetener container comprises a bowl 1 and a handle 2, both being of an optional design from the aesthetic and ergonomic point of view. In the handle 2 a container 3 for a sweetener is arranged, which container 3 is open at the free end of the handle 2 and oriented towards the bowl 1 and the volume of the container amounts to approx. 4.5 g of a sweetener.

An opening 4 of the container 3 provided at the free end of the handle 2 is executed with a border S to increase the laying surface for a sealing foil 6 entirely covering the opening 4. For an easier removal thereof a grasping tongue 7 is placed on the edge of the foil 6.

The spoon is made of a sanitarily unobjectionable thermoplastic material, the seal- closing foil is made of a material making possible ultrasonic or thermal welding of the foil onto the spoon opening. The method of spoon manufacture, filling and closing is the same as with other packages (e.g. yogurt in plastic pots) in food industry.

It is understandable that a person skilled in the art can design a spoon with the fea- tures defined in the patent claim in an optional manner from both aesthetic and er- gonomic points of view without departing from the novelty and substance of the described spoon.