Patent ID: 8079390

Claim:
A process for producing a disposable wooden utensil, the process comprising the steps of: a) providing at least one male platten and a corresponding at least one female platten, said at least one male platten and said at least one female platten moulded to form a wooden utensil from pre-shaped utensil blanks made from sheets of wood veneer having heat curable adhesive in a layer between said sheets when said blanks are compressed together and heated in compression between said at least one male platten and said at least one female platten, wherein said at least one male platten and said at least one female platten having a formed shape shaped to form from said blanks a utensil shape having a handle having a distal end and an opposite neck end, a load-engaging member extending cantilevered from said neck end in generally coplanar alignment with said handle so as to form a neck between said handle and said load-engaging member, and a raised dorsal ridge substantially medially along said handle and extending substantially along said load-engaging member, b) heating to a first temperature said at least one male platten and said at least one female platten, said first temperature at least sufficient to vapourize moisture in said blanks to thereby harden said blanks in said formed shape and cure said adhesive in said blanks when compressed between said at least one male platten and said at least one female platten, c) sandwiching said blanks between said at least one male platten and said at least one female platten, d) compressing to a first pressure said blanks between said heated said at least one male platten and said at least one female platten so as to apply compression to each blank in said blanks for sequential first and second time intervals, and reducing, so as to relieve said compression and releasing steam at least once including between said first and second time intervals for at least one momentary pressure reduced period for said each blank, wherein each said pressure-relief period is sufficient to release steam from between said at least one male platten and said at least one female platten.