Yr 8 Student Invents Quick Kiwifruit Peeler
We get to work with some pretty awesome businesses and see lots of fantastic ideas through the print work we produce. And this super cool product invented by a local 12yr old boy really grabbed our attention.
Fed up with mushy kiwifruit in his lunch box, Tauranga Intermediate student, Christian Stark, set to work on coming up with a smart way to have his favourite fruit snack last the distance.
“His mum used to slice up the kiwifruit and put it in a container to eat at lunchtime but it would all go to mush before he had a chance to eat it,” explains Christian’s father and co-inventor, David. “So we thought of cutting the top and tail off the kiwifruit but leaving the skin on and then coming up with a way to peel this easily later.”
The Kiwi Peel is a food-grade, stainless steel cylinder which can be easily pushed through a kiwifruit to remove the skin, leaving only the sweet flesh in the centre. A rolled rim provides an easy edge to push with while the blunt “cutting” end is just sharp enough to slice through the skin but safe enough for a child to use.
“Our first prototype was cut out of a beer can and taped together with sellotape but our final product is professionally manufactured and will last a lifetime or it can be recycled,” says David.
First launched at the National Fieldays in June this year, Christian & David have also sold and demonstrated the Kiwi Peel at the Seriously Good Food Show in Tauranga. Although not yet available through any retail stores, the family have been approached by large local companies interested in the Kiwi Peel for their business and customers.
We expect Christian will continue to follow in his father’s footsteps as the award-winning inventor of the Stark Hose Swivel. For now, we wish him all the best with his studies and look forward to seeing what he comes up with next!
Please give David a call on 021466828 if you have an queries or want to purchase your own Kiwi Peel!