The operators of today's fleshing machines may be among the biggest and brawniest of the workers in a tannery, but surely none of them would relish the prospect of fleshing as it was first carried out. The removal of flesh and fat from the underside of the flayed hide was originally carried out manually with two-handed knives, with the hide spread over a beam or frame -backbreaking work indeed. The scraps of flesh and fat have to be removed in order to present a clean underside which chemicals can penetrate evenly. Fleshing is either carried out after initial washing of the hides - so called "green" fleshing - or after unhairing and liming. There are process arguments for both methods; for example, "green" fleshings are uncontaminated by chemicals and can be used for gelatine extraction, while limed hides are easier to flesh to a high standard and avoid one process vessel transfer.
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