Handwashing/bootwashing systems help processors with SQF

May 6, 2011

Safe Quality Food certification provides assurance processors manufacture safe food. Clean hands and boots are part of the overall bacteria-fighting picture.

Automated handwashing systems use less time and water than manual methods and do a better job as well. Source: Meritech.

Safe Quality Food certification provides assurance processors manufacture safe food. Clean hands and boots are part of the overall bacteria-fighting picture

Increasingly, North American retailers are requiring Safe Quality Food (SQF) certification to provide assurance that products, processes and services comply with safety standards. Automated handwashing and bootwashing stations helped two processors secure and surpass compliance requirements in their food processing applications. With consistent, high-quality handwashing, automated systems can eliminate up to 99.98 percent of dangerous pathogens and increase compliance up to 400 percent.

Jel Sert, which makes freezer bars, desserts and beverages, found that Meritech’s CleanTech automated handwashers assisted them in being recommended for food safety certification. “Handwashing was a critical component of the audit, but when the auditors saw your validated systems in place and in use, there was nothing they could say,” says Simon Richards, Jel Sert plant manager.

Oregon Freeze Dry installed seven CleanTech 500EZ handwashing units. “After one year of service we have found them to be very reliable,” says Marsha Swanson, Oregon Freeze Dry project specialist supervisor. “Our employees enjoy the units and readily adapted to using them. In the past, we were reliant on each individual to consistently and correctly clean their hands. With our 500EZ units and CHG soap at every entrance, our handwashing reliability has significantly improved for all employees, visitors and vendors.”

The most common cause of illness is attributed to poor hand hygiene. CleanTech systems ensure thorough handwashing while preventing transmission of infection. The automated handwashing system provides an invigorating massage for the hands while cleaning thoroughly and consistently, which encourages its use and thereby increases compliance. Besides killing bacteria, the automated systems use 75 percent less water compared to washing hands in the conventional way.

For more information, contact Michele Colbert, 800-932-7707 or visit www.meritech.com.