Food safety and packaging: the importance of hygienic design
The subject of hygienic design tackled with the support of the Galdi microbiologist: from the role of design to packaging management for systems
In the food industry, adopting the principles of hygienic design is an essential active prevention strategy aimed at ensuring product safety.
With the support of Ilaria Trento, Food and Microbiology Scientist at Galdi, this article explores the importance of hygienic design and the advantages of its application, with a concluding focus on the solutions introduced with the Galdi RG280 packaging machine.
The advantages of hygienic design
Hygienic design not only meets the requirements of European and non-European regulations on protecting consumer health, but also helps to improve the overall efficiency of production processes.
An approach based on hygienic design is, indeed, a strategic investment that reduces hidden costs associated with inefficiencies, production flaws, delays, non-compliance and product recall – the so-called costs of non-quality, which may also adversely affect the company's reputation.
Proper application of hygienic design principles also results in easier and more effective food safety management, as Ilaria Trento points out:
“Systems designed according to hygiene criteria make cleaning processes easier, thus leading to optimised production times. A number of pilot studies have shown a reduction in cleaning times of up to 75% while resulting in a decrease in the use of chemicals, water and energy. This brings economic and environmental advantages while reducing non-compliant products and waste disposal costs.”
Hygienic design and packaging: from design to systems management
Hygienic design is applied in two distinct stages:
- Design of the production line or production plant
At this stage, close collaboration between system manufacturers and food companies is essential to ensure that surfaces and equipment are designed to be easily cleaned, crack-free and wear-resistant.
Galdi pursues this goal through its interdepartmental team of specialists, to which Dr. Trento belongs.
The team is involved in developing and validating new hygienic packaging solutions in accordance with hygienic design principles.
It also provides full support during the stage regarding the design and installation of packaging lines and systems, transferring know-how and best practices for optimal and safe production management.
- Operational management of production and systems
Packaging plants and systems designed according to hygienic design principles perform a key role in preventing contamination risks while helping to maintain ideal hygienic conditions in the packaging area.
A properly designed production environment combined with clear procedures also supports the work of packaging machine operators, since:
“The consistent application of hygienic design principles encourages the development of a hygiene culture among operators, thus actively contributing to quality and safety throughout the production chain.”
Applying hygienic design to the Galdi RG280 packaging machine
Packaging systems play a vital role in ensuring food safety, from filling to consumption.
This holds even more true for delicate products and/or those with ambitious shelf life targets.
The Galdi RG280 model, the packaging machine with the best hygienic performance in the range, was designed precisely for this purpose, as Ilaria Trento emphasises:
“In developing the Galdi RG280, we adopted gold standard hygienic solutions for food safety, taking as a benchmark the VDMA guidelines for products with an extended shelf life in refrigerators or refrigerated conditions. We also introduced a number of innovations to ensure consistent hygiene performance over time, even in less than optimal working conditions.”
The main solutions introduced and developed include:
- Disinfection of packages and caps using 35% hot vaporised hydrogen peroxide
- SIP (Sanitation-In-Place) sterilisation using pressurised steam
- Controlled air flows and self-adaptive system: combined with the design of the hygienic chamber, it allows maximum control over the air inside the filling machine while minimising the risks of recontamination
- Automatic external washing based on the recirculation of soda and acid at a high temperature
- Optimised welding with strict acceptability specifications to ensure that packages remain intact also when products have a long shelf life
For further information, please refer to the article on hygienic solutions for the RG280 packaging machine and the detailed analysis regarding performance repeatability.
Hygienic design and shelf life: the results achieved
The synergy of solutions adopted for the Galdi RG280 food packaging machine has enabled clients to achieve extremely challenging targets in terms of shelf life and product quality:
- Shelf life of up to 70 days for cow's milk undergoing ESL heat treatment, distributed along the cold chain. (For the North American market, where milk undergoes UHT heat treatment and where cold chain management is more efficient, we expect a shelf life of up to 100 days).
- Shelf life of up to 70 days for refrigerated plant-based beverages.
Such achievements show how the application of hygienic design principles can make a difference in terms of product quality and shelf life.
Discover how Galdi can support you in the design, installation and management of packaging lines with the same performance.