Dairy Processing -March/April 2022 - 48

FOOD SAFETY
" Traditionally, cleaning was seen as a very labor-intensive
process, " he said. " You had a sanitation crew. Yes, you had things
that were cleaned in place, but there was still a lot of stuff that
was taken apart. And it was moved around a lot, and maybe
being placed in a tub (for cleaning out of place). "
Now sanitation procedures are more heavily scrutinized
when it comes to taking equipment apart.
Generally, there are three issues with having a highlabor
cleaning process, Downer said. First, there is the
aforementioned labor insecurity. Many processors can't seem
to keep people in those jobs, so they have to find, hire and
train new workers all the time. Secondly, these sanitation
duties typically involve high density work areas. And if illness
spreads within a group, the sanitation doesn't get done.
Thirdly, cleaning operations can be difficult to track and
record and be repeatable.
Many plants in other parts of the world don't encounter
these problems, Downer added, because a lot of other
countries build plants in such a way that they don't need a
high number of people on hand. In the United States, the
food infrastructure historically allowed for more fresh and
refrigerated products than in other parts of the world.
Different processes are necessary for fresh milk, which
for the time being doesn't lend itself to automation, a
practice that is more commonly utilized in plants that deal
with shelf stable, ultra high temperature pasteurized milk,
Downer said.
PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
From a food safety standpoint, the biggest challenge
encountered in dairy processing involves proper
Sani-Matic's Clean-Outof-Place
(COP) parts washer.
environmental hygiene and deep cleaning, said Matt
Szewczyk, director of corporate accounts at PSSI Chemical
Innovations, Kieler, Wis.
" In most cases, this is related to facility and peripheral
equipment design, " Szewczyk said. " It can also be linked
to lack of attention or limited manpower dedicated to
environmental hygiene, and deep cleaning. Without proper
sanitation and sanitary design, you risk the potential for a
recall or loss of product due to quality. "
It's common for dairy processors to seek out solutions to
those and other problems.
At Sani-Matic, which designs and manufactures automated
sanitary process cleaning equipment, Downer said in recent
years many of the company's dairy clients have discovered they
need to automate record keeping. More than a decade ago, with
the implementation of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act,
some processors realized they needed to clean more at their
facility. Now, Downer said, some processors are discovering
they need to have documentation that proves they are keeping
their products safe. If a plant is getting audited, staff may need
48 MAR-APR 2022 | DAIRYPROCESSING.COM
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Dairy Processing -March/April 2022

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