Hygiene is a very important aspect to maintain in a chocolate factory in the Middle East. The reason goes beyond getting certified and building a good reputation. It is a matter of protecting people’s health through a clean, hygienic environment. Here are some ways to maintain a good hygiene in your chocolate factory:
Provide constant maintenance of food equipment and infrastructure.
All the equipment used in your chocolate production must be regularly audited and any sign of deterioration must be directly fixed. Accordingly, if the broken part can be repaired without being taken away from the production zone, a delicate work and a placement of an isolation screen are required. It is very important not to create any mess that will affect the entire machine or even worse, the product itself. On the other hand, equipment and machines that should be taken out of the production space for repair must be carefully handled. Everything that comes out of the food processing area must come in neat and sterilized.
As for the infrastructure part, periodic checkups must take place to keep your work environment safe and clean. Any abnormality in the building must be taken care of directly before generating bigger issues like soil and dust. Building and edifice repairs must be done out of production periods, but if it’s not possible, a separation wall must be set to isolate the production space.
Arrange a safe working environment away from contaminations.
The reputation of the factory (and the brand) will be damaged if one little thing gets developed into an undesirable way. Therefore, all tools that might get in touch with any ingredient must be sanitized. Cleaning and disinfecting must be part of your factory’s daily work. Undesirable materials like residues and foreign bodies must be removed from all the equipment to keep them neat and hygienic.
On the other hand, 2 storage rooms must be set apart from each other to protect your products. The first room will be used for the disinfection products to preserve them away from the production area. The other one will be used to protect your edible materials from contaminations and must be cleaned and disinfected with intensive care.
Keep insects away with constant use of pest control products.
Food factories, especially chocolate ones, attract insects through the odors. These places are seen as a fine habitat for bugs to have water, food and shelter. For this reason, inspectors should permanently visit your factory to determine the danger and remove it. To eliminate future risks, inspectors must check in previous findings. However, when pest control technicians are away, the staffs must warn for any sighting of hazards, as they are always present in the factory.
Impose hygiene policy on all your employees and visitors.
The chocolate production areas must be free of contaminations. For this reason, clear rules must be set for anyone willing to enter this zone. Staffs working close with chocolate are bound to take more serious precautions. Every step they make must be safe. Working directly with chocolate imposes them to regularly wash their hands. This doesn’t spare them from wearing gloves, mouth masks, hairnet and clean disinfected clothing. Any infraction of the hygiene rules must be heavily punished.
In conclusion, having a good hygienic structure involves an effort from all parties to preserve the brand and product’s reputation and most importantly, the health of consumers. Starting from the top level administration to all the employees, the personnel of a chocolate factory is required to follow precaution measures to maintain a healthy environment and preserve a high chocolate production level.