Within the food & beverage industry the composition of dusts varies depending on the finish product. It is crucial to understand your application and the processed ingredients, to determine the best performing extraction solution and to protect your production environment.

Handled ingredients: Coarse grains, fine spices, additives, flour, starch, sugar, cocoa flavourings and many more

Typical applications: Silo-venting, bulk handling, sack-tipping, weighing, mixing, blending, granulating, conveying, packaging etc.

If you are uncertain or don´t have all the relevant data, it´s recommended to evaluate the properties of the processed material. Besides analysing the dust characteristic, it also makes sense to perform a dust hazard analysis to evaluate the risk for employee exposure and a dust explosion & flammability test, which can be required according to ATEX-directives.

INDUSTRY´S CHALLENGES & CONCERNS

The major challenges for manufacturers in the food and beverage industry are:

• Cross-contamination: airborne dust can have negative effects on the quality of your products and can release microbial growth. Worst-case scenarios are product call-backs and brand damage.
• Health hazards: even though ingredients are processed in our food products, the dusts from the handling or the manufacturing processes can be harmful for the operators when inhaled. Employers are required to protect workers from exposure and have to comply with legal limits.
• Combustion risk: dry dust deposits in your production area are the breeding ground for combustion or dust explosions.
• Housekeeping: nuisance dust from the handling of raw materials or food processing requires good housekeeping to protect the machinery and the facility from unforseen events.
• Indoor air quality: clean air is a vital ingredient in the food & bevarage industry and crucial for the health and well-being of the employees.