Internal audit and got a minor for our wooden trays

We recently had an internal audit and got a minor for our wooden trays. What kind of trays do your company use? We will be moving to metal or aluminum soon. Do anyone know where I should start looking? All trays I have found is for serving food.

Depending on what you need them for, I would start at a commercial restaurant supply store and buy whole sheet pans (which are pretty big) or 1/2 sheet pans. Easily cleanable and virtually indestructible!

We make candy and uses the wood trays for broken candy and storage of the candy in the heat room.

Strange question, why can't you use a food serving tray for storing your broken candy?

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If you have processes in place to ensure the wooden trays have been risk assessed to show that they pose no hazard and that there are controls in place to ensure that the are maintained in a non-hazardous condition then there is no issue with using wooden trays.

We have wood in direct product contact since it is the best material for the job. With the appropriate risk assessments and controls in place we never had a non-conformance be it from an internal auditor, a customer auditor or a GFSI auditor.

I would therefore suggest you look to your system and possibly the internal auditor training first before you start changing your trays. 

The wood tray for broken pieces is over the conveyer for good product which is the issue (we have no where else to inspect). Also we use the trays for the final step in making the candy in the heated room.

Even if the wooden trays are over the conveyor I see no issue if they are in a sound condition and you have procedures in place to ensure that they are in a sound condition and you have risk assessed them to and can show that they are not suddenly going to explode and spray splinters into everything.

As I mentioned before we have unsealed wood in direct contact with our product, it is a very fine grained hardwood that does not splinter in the application. We have risk assessments to back up our decision to use wood in the application and we have regular inspection procedures to verify the state of the wood.

If this was picked up in an audit on the wood in our processes I would argue the case and have the auditor fully justify their non-conformance and provide evidence as to where our procedures and risk assessments were failing.

Just because an auditor says something does not make is so.

http://www.thefoodsa...aqs.aspx?id=228

Wood is generally speaking, not acceptable in food manufacturing. Please see the link above

Hi, Ms. Powell.

Agree with Scampi, wood is generally not acceptable in food manufacturing. The risk associated can be of possible microbial harborage in wood as it will not generally fit the requirement of the recommended surface rating to be in contact with food. The wood as well, that it may look good at current inspection, the thought of generating splinters (wood) is generally higher. How do you clean the wooden tray as well? Depending on the RH and (moisture of the wood), it may cause further issues such as wood borers or psocids.

metal pans or plastic pans with good thermal resistance will not fit your process?

@Batchoy,

Do you deploy the same process? The last I knew where wood is acceptable for product contact is for coffee beans for silo.