Hygienic cabling requires more awareness

There is no specific legislation on hygienic cabling. Nevertheless, cabling and components (cable glands, connectors, protective tubes) do have an influence on food safety and therefore on the health of consumers. 

In this blog, food specialist Mike van der Veer explains the importance of hygienic cabling for end customers, machine builders or engineers in the food industry. 

Food safety, a theme that is high on the agenda

"In the field of food safety, a lot has changed in recent years and laws and regulations have been tightened. In short: this theme has become more prominent on the agenda of food-producing companies, machine builders and engineers. This is partly due to the recalls because of the many contaminations in the food industry. " 

Hygienic design is the standard

"Hygienic Design is no longer a new term, nor is it optional. It is now clear throughout the food chain that even minor contamination can affect the quality of products and be dangerous to health. Therefore, the safety requirements for the design and production of installations have become more and more demanding.

The benchmark for hygienic design are the guidelines of the European Hygienic Engineering & Design Group (EHEDG). Among other things, EHEDG has published a number of documents in the field of hygienic design, and HDN is also a knowledge partner in the field of hygienic design."

Hygienic cabling, a grey area

"The requirements for hygienic cabling are not clearly defined in a standard, and detailed European legislation is lacking. That means a grey area and that gives room for different interpretations. 

Hygienic cabling and the EC852/2004 Hygiene Regulation

"In cabling and hoses which are difficult to clean, micro-organisms will nestle in corners, holes and ridges. This increases the risk of contamination. In most cases, cabling does not come into direct contact with food, but it still is covered by EU hygiene regulation EC852/2004."

Hygienic cabling requires more awareness

Hygienic cabling is a theme that is well known to all parties in the food industry. However, this theme needs more awareness. How much awareness does the client have about the influence of hygienic cabling on food safety?

Read more on the Hemmink website

Solutions of Hemmink

Hemmink is your knowledge partner in the field of food safety. Together with our manufacturers Pflitsch, Flexa and Wiska we offer suitable solutions to equipment manufacturers, system integrators, engineers or plant managers at a food processing company. These solutions are carefully coordinated and comply with the EHEGD guidelines and FDA regulations.

• Hygienic Design cable glands from Pflitsch and Wiska
• Food-safe protective hoses from Flexa
• Open wire cable ducts and cable trunking systems from Pflitsch.

Interested in more information? Please contact us or download the whitepaper Food safety on the Hemmink website.