Conflicting Footwear Scenarios for Production Area: BRC Guidelines and Best Practices

We're a new facility JUST got our BRC certification a couple weeks ago and are ramping up production (have another small facility in CAN that's been running about 3 years)

We're about to implement dedicated footwear for production (plant-based meat products).  
 

A couple of us have conflicting ideas about footwear.

 Scenario #1:
Employee enters hygiene room, there is a rack to put their street shoes and a rack to store their work shoes, with a couple benches between the racks.  Once work shoes are on, they proceed to hair nets, hand washing & smocks, etc. Shoes are changed before leaving hygiene room to access main office, lunchroom, etc.

 Scenario #2:

Employee goes to locker room, changes into work shoes, then walks through halls to hygiene room to wash hands, hair net, smocks, etc. Employee wears work shoes through office/lunchroom to locker room.

Employee suggesting #2 gave this as a guideline: The BRC (British Retail Consortium) requires that inside and outside footwear be stored separately in a dressing room (changing or locker room), and that inside shoes be put on in the "clean" area of the dressing room. Also, according with BRC when an employee enters a high care area, either hygiene room or production process areas, they need to wear clean footwear before entering.

Employee suggesting #1 sited 8.4.1

Which is a better idea, and how does your company handle footwear?

Suggestion #2 is less time consuming/easier to manage. Employees put on their dedicated footwear when they arrive to work then taken them off when they leave for the day.

This works if have employees go through foot foamers before entering food production areas. 

From what I've seen, Suggestion #2 is more common in plants in the USA. 

Suggestion #2 is less time consuming/easier to manage. Employees put on their dedicated footwear when they arrive to work then taken them off when they leave for the day.

This works if have employees go through foot foamers before entering food production areas. 

 

From what I've seen, Suggestion #2 is more common in plants in the USA. 

Interesting take.

So, you're okay with employees walking through the hallways and lunchroom with their work shoes on?  

No floor foamers (yet) Only a hygiene machine with a boot scrubber in the hygiene room.
(in this facility, the offices, change rooms (one upstairs, one downstairs), & lunchrooms (upstairs) are on the front of the building then you enter into production through a hygiene room into production area.)

If you have foot foamers - yes. The hazard is contained. 

Each facility is different. It is based upon your risk assessment. At my facility, your scenario #1 is not feasible and would create a bigger risk. 

If you go with scenario #1 - make sure you have cameras on the area you are keeping employees personal shoes to prevent theft of the shoes. 

(Someone could swap their shoes with an employee who has nicer ones) 

So to my mind plant based meat products could be ready to cook (low risk) or ready to eat (high risk) zoning.  Which you choose will depend upon what risk it is.  However, to my mind, these are the controls I consider best practice for open product areas.  It is a slight tweak on both options 1 and 2.

The first act would be to put on a hair covering.  This can be on the low hygiene side of the changing process and can be kept on all day.  The reason for this is it minimises hair contamination before you get close to any other processes.

Next, remove and store shoes.  If you have a bench later, then it's useful to have shoe racks just before the bench so employees don't walk far without shoes.

If your product is ready to eat, I would have a bench and that bench should be sealed to the floor so there is no cross contamination during cleaning processes.

Then after swinging over a bench if applicable, the boots for the production area are put on (if the floor is routinely cleaned throughout the day or shared boots are used, consider providing overshoes to wear inside the boots.)

For high risk (RTE)
Then wash hands

Put on captive coat

Wash hands again and enter production

For low risk (ready to cook)

Put on coat

Wash hands and enter production

Which ever method used the process is reversed on the way out and recommended for RTE that the staff member washes hands after removing the boots and essential for RTC areas as the micro loading may be high enough in the area to cause employee illness if they later eat without washing hands.  (This would certainly be the case with RTC meat.)

So to my mind plant based meat products could be ready to cook (low risk) or ready to eat (high risk) zoning.  Which you choose will depend upon what risk it is.  However, to my mind, these are the controls I consider best practice for open product areas.  It is a slight tweak on both options 1 and 2.

 

The first act would be to put on a hair covering.  This can be on the low hygiene side of the changing process and can be kept on all day.  The reason for this is it minimises hair contamination before you get close to any other processes.

Next, remove and store shoes.  If you have a bench later, then it's useful to have shoe racks just before the bench so employees don't walk far without shoes.

If your product is ready to eat, I would have a bench and that bench should be sealed to the floor so there is no cross contamination during cleaning processes.

Then after swinging over a bench if applicable, the boots for the production area are put on (if the floor is routinely cleaned throughout the day or shared boots are used, consider providing overshoes to wear inside the boots.)

 

For high risk (RTE)
Then wash hands

Put on captive coat

Wash hands again and enter production

 

For low risk (ready to cook)

Put on coat

Wash hands and enter production

 

Which ever method used the process is reversed on the way out and recommended for RTE that the staff member washes hands after removing the boots and essential for RTC areas as the micro loading may be high enough in the area to cause employee illness if they later eat without washing hands.  (This would certainly be the case with RTC meat.)

I agree with the above.

Shoes should be changed PRIOR to entrance not worn in canteens etc...

Mop cap.

Outside shoes off 

Over barrier

Factory shoes on

Wash hands

Coat/Smock

Re-wash hands prior to entry...

& then reverse..