Sanitation and hygiene aren’t just boxes to tick for audits in food manufacturing. They are the foundation of everything: safe food, great products, and customer trust. A tiny slip-up can quickly lead to contaminated food, costly recalls, penalties, and a damaged brand name.
Case in point: the U.S. Peanut Corporation of America Outbreak (2008 to 2009).
A Salmonella outbreak traced to the Peanut Corporation of America (PCA) affected over 700 people and led to 9 deaths. The problem stemmed from filthy facilities, poorly cleaned equipment, and the company’s decision to illegally ship products they knew were contaminated.
However, sanitation and hygiene issues aren’t caused by bad intentions. They happen because of small oversights, outdated practices, or simple misunderstandings.
Here, we’ll walk you through some common sanitation and hygiene mistakes that food manufacturing businesses make, so you can avoid them.
#1 Treating Sanitation as a “Once-a-Day” Task
Many operations rely entirely on one massive cleanup shift per day. This approach can be a severe vulnerability, especially in high-risk environments. Germs, particularly the ones that thrive in damp, cold conditions, start growing the moment cleaning stops.
Listeria monocytogenes, for example, thrives in the cold, wet environment of food plants. This pathogen can survive routine cleaning efforts and quickly colonize equipment and floor drains.
If you wait 12 or 24 hours between deep cleans, these bacteria have ample time to multiply. In continuous production lines, this contaminant spread happens incredibly fast across large product volumes.
Federal regulations explicitly require more than just pre-operational checks. Both the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) mandate specific procedures that must be performed daily, before and during operations. This critical ongoing cleaning is known as operational sanitation.
Operational sanitation is designed to prevent cross-contamination mid-shift. The plan must include frequent checks throughout the day. This involves cleaning (sanitizing) items like hands, gloves, knives, and food-contact surfaces whenever needed during production. The plan must clearly state who does what and how often.
#2 Implementing Only Dry Cleaning Technique
Cleaning and sanitizing equipment and facilities without water is a pivotal practice in the food manufacturing industry. But it’s only effective for facilities that produce low-water-activity or low-moisture foods.
Dry cleaning methods, such as vacuuming, scraping, brushing, or wiping, work well for products like powders, where moisture can create more problems than it solves. But for food manufacturing businesses where water use is heavy, relying solely on dry cleaning can be risky.
Operations that handle meat, dairy, seafood, sauces, or ready-to-eat foods often deal with sticky residues, fats, proteins, and sugars that dry methods simply can’t remove completely. Left behind, these residues can harbor bacteria, promote biofilm formation, and increase the risk of cross-contamination.
Wet cleaning technique is one of the best food plant sanitation and cleaning strategies for these industries.
Water, detergents, and approved sanitizers allow for deeper cleaning and better allergen control. Food Plant Safety further adds that regular wet cleaning helps prevent microbial buildup as well as maintain surface integrity.
#3 Overlooking Hard-to-Reach Areas
If your cleaning team struggles to reach a spot, you can be sure that bacteria are setting up camp there. The primary danger in overlooked areas is the formation of biofilms. Biofilms are organized colonies of bacteria highly resistant to sanitizers.
They are a major cause of recurring pathogen issues, such as Listeria outbreaks. Once a biofilm forms, removal is very difficult, often requiring specialized chemicals and prolonged treatment.
Look for open seams, tiny gaps, and lap joints on your machinery. These flaws trap soil and allow microorganisms to grow. Seams on food-contact surfaces must be smoothly bonded. Any narrow space where water or soil can collect must be properly sealed.
Your sanitation program must also intentionally target these non-contact harbor areas:
- Drains and Floor Junctions: These spots stay constantly moist and are known sources of biofilms. Pathogens can spread from drains via foot traffic or aerosols. Implement a specific, regular deep cleaning program for your drains.
- Gaskets and Seals: These components trap organic matter near the product. They become breeding grounds for bacteria. Sanitation requires integrating with maintenance to ensure seals are replaced when damaged.
- Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) and Cooling Coils: Overhead cooling units create condensation. Their drip pans must be cleaned regularly. Residual water in these pans can easily harbor Listeria.
- Equipment Undersides: Frames and legs that do not touch food must still be kept sanitary. These spots are often missed during washdowns.
Building a Culture of Safety
Sanitation and hygiene mistakes in food manufacturing don’t usually stem from carelessness. Rather, they come from habits, assumptions, and gaps in awareness.
The key is recognizing these common pitfalls and taking proactive steps to prevent them. Avoiding these common mistakes can significantly reduce contamination risks, improve product quality, and build trust with customers and regulators alike.
When cleanliness becomes part of your company culture, everything runs smoothly. Employees take pride in their work, inspections become less stressful, and your business earns a reputation for reliability and safety. So, a little extra care today can save a lot of trouble tomorrow.
Also Read: Maximize Efficiency: Choosing Commercial Cleaning Nashville Services
