Many of today’s food processors are adopting hygienic design principles to ease cleaning and reduce the potential for pathogen contamination. However, it can be overwhelming to identify hard-to-clean niches and potential bacteria harborage areas. Whether building a new facility or working with an existing plant, here are seven steps to form and manage an effective hygienic design team:
1. Start with top management. It is extremely important for upper management to extend their full support to hygienic design projects. Implementing hygienic design may require capital investments or operational changes that need top management buy-in. You may require production line upgrades. The time to create smooth welds, install cleanable materials and eliminate hard-to-reach areas may cost more upfront. Make sure top management understands the importance of hygienic design.