6 replies to this topic

[Tomato Country Girl]

Just curious has anyone had their SQF BRC audit during COVID 19 and had an issue with hand air dryers being used?

 

Interested in anyones thoughts on them being used during COVID 19 and if so what extra precautions are you doing?

 

 

[SQFconsultant]

Regardless of CV - the standard calls for paper towels.

 

With that said, a couple of our clients have the dyson hot air (dyson calls them air blades I think) hand dryers and one client was gigged for it a ways back a couple years.

 

However, all clients followed the suggestion to do a combo air test and risk analysis and this has satisfied every Auditor since doing so.

 

Since CV is not airborne the issue with that is a non one.

 

You'll be fine with just a test (similar in nature to the SQF requirement for compressed air testing) and a risk analysis.

 

All of our clients did the test once, they show documentation that filters are cleaned on a routine basis and the risk analysis and you are good to go.

Edited by SQFconsultant, 14 May 2020 - 03:22 PM.

[Timwoodbag]

As said above, paper towels are pretty much a must, I am surprised you haven't been docked a point yet,  Do you already have extensive testing and maintenance schedules etc?  If they have been approved in the past they will not get you in trouble because of Coronavirus.  OSHA might be a whole different animal, though I have not seen any guidance on limiting air flow in rooms, they actually want increased airflow so who knows? 

[pHruit]

BRC does permit "suitably designed and located air driers", so if you've already managed to demonstrate that this is the case for previous audits then I wouldn't expect it to be significantly different now. Nonetheless there does seem to be an expanded focus into areas that are at best only tangentially related to food safety, so you may want to review any risk assessment you've currently got in place for that just to make sure it's suitably robust - whilst the standard does permit driers, it's an area in which I'd expect a reasonable amount of scrutiny as it's less commonly encountered than paper towels, and anything unusual typically gets more attention...

[Timwoodbag]

Are you SQF or BRC?  SQF says....

 

11.3.2 Hand Washing

 

11.3.2.1 Hand wash basins shall be provided adjacent to all personnel access points and in accessible locations throughout food handling and processing areas as required.

 

11.3.2.2 Hand wash basins shall be constructed of stainless steel or similar non-corrosive material and as a minimum supplied with:

          i. A potable water supply at an appropriate temperature;

          ii. Liquid soap contained within a fixed dispenser;

          iii. Paper towels in a hands-free cleanable dispenser; and

          iv. A means of containing used paper towels.

[Tomato Country Girl]

TImWoodBag,

 

Probably should have clarified we have done the risk assessment and hand swabbing as well and do it annually.   

[Ryan M.]

We have hand dryers.  They weren't well maintained until now with the COVID (so good for that?).  Had our SQF audit last week with no issue, but the hand dryers did come up in the facility I was in previously.  We got an NC for it and did a risk analysis with swab testing and air quality monitoring.  It was a good exercise because it showed us how frequent the PM's needed to be on the filters based on the air quality monitoring.