Today’s material handling market has many products to make it easier to clean warehouse equipment and keep products and employees safe from unsanitary conditions. One of those products is the hygienic pallet. Sanitary pallets are used in sterile warehouse environments, including food and beverage, meat processing and pharmaceutical facilities. These pallets resist pests and microbes and feature easy-to-clean surfaces. Cherry’s Material Handling offers many durable, hygienic pallets in several materials and technical specifications.
Jump to Sections:
- Why Is Cleanliness Important in Material Handling?
- Standards of Cleanliness in Material Handling
- Top Hygienic Pallets in the Market
- Benefits of Plastic Pallets
- Shop Hygienic Pallets From Cherry’s Material Handling
Why Is Cleanliness Important in Material Handling?
Cleanliness holds particular importance in the food processing, pharmaceutical manufacturing and chemical manufacturing industries. In these fields, any dirt, bacteria, pests, grease, mold or dust could contaminate the final product, making it unsafe or unusable. Cleanliness is especially critical in material handling, where people and machinery come in close contact with the products. In these specialized industries, clean material handling practices are essential to:
1. Protect Consumers
Contamination makes food inedible, drugs unsafe, and chemicals impure or even reactive. If contaminated products reach their end users, they may cause serious harm. A salmonella outbreak resulting from a meat processing plant’s products could send some consumers to the hospital and may even cause death. A bad batch of drugs can also harbor infectious microbes and create complications for users who need life-saving prescriptions.
Any of these contaminations could harm your company’s reputation. Widespread outbreaks or defects in food and pharmaceuticals often make headlines, which stick in people’s memories for years after the problem resolves.
2. Avoid Expensive Recalls
Another fallout of product contaminations is the ensuing recalls. According to Ohio State University, foodborne illnesses cost the U.S. economy $55.5 billion each year. When a company is the source of such an outbreak, they’re liable for direct and indirect costs associated with a recall. They must remove the product from the market and refund buyers for products sold. They must also investigate the cause to stop the contamination and manage the ensuing public relations crisis. They might face lawsuits, fines, lost sales and a decline in stock value.
3. Meet Federal Regulations
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and other regulators have many rules for cleanliness in food processing, pharmaceutical manufacturing and related industries. Facilities may face fines or worse if they fail inspections with these entities.
4. Eliminate Pest Problems
Beyond FDA-regulated industries, every facility can benefit from safe and hygienic practices. Across the industrial material handling sector, a particular concern is pest control. Because warehouses have multiple entry points and frequently open doors to receive deliveries, they are vulnerable to pests seeking shelter.These pests can ruin stored products. In the textile industry, many insects and rodents make their homes in carpets, blankets, felt, horsehair or down feather filling, knitted goods and woolen products. They can also infest pillows, mattresses, cushions, and natural bristle brushes or paintbrushes. Warehouses’ high ceilings, exposed beams and rafters also make attractive roosting sites to birds, whose droppings can ruin products and spread diseases. Many types of insects eat paper, pulp and wood products. You may be vulnerable to these infestations if you have wooden pallets or paper and cardboard packaging. Many pests also cause property and structural damage to your facility. They can chew on electrical wires or structural elements and hide in machinery for warmth. Droppings can create odors and unsightly discoloration on walls, floors and equipment.
5. Protect Employees
Besides protecting your inventory and property, cleanliness is critical to protect workers. Most pests carry diseases, which can quickly spread through a workforce. Others release allergens and lung irritants, which may affect workers’ breathing and comfort. Rodents, flies and other insects may bite, causing infections or unpleasant working conditions. Unclean environments may also spread bacteria and viruses via commonly touched surfaces such as equipment and pallets.
Standards of Cleanliness in Material Handling
Depending on your industry, you might have several governing bodies, laws and standards regulating your material handling. Each body contributes guidelines dictating how to operate a sanitary warehouse or how to cleanly transport goods. Some of these clean and sanitary standards for warehouses include:
1. ASTM International Industrial Hygiene Standards
ASTM International sets industrial hygiene standards and safety standards affecting material handling. The standards specify certain hazardous materials and the test methods involved in identifying, recognizing and controlling the physical, chemical and environmental hazards associated with those materials.
They also set guidelines for properly handling, transporting and storing specific substances and equipment. These standards discuss protective clothing, ergonomics and ventilation design. Their standards guide the enforcement of industrial hygiene measures and are used to accredit industrial firms.
Within the ASTM standards, you’ll find guidance on:
- Cleaning chemicals and process selection
- Clothing and chemical selection for applying pesticides
- Cold cleaning specifications
- Dry cleaning specifications
- Practices for pressure water cleaning
- Protective measures for biological and chemical contaminants
- Industrial health matters such as exposure to respirable contaminants
- Practices and specifications for vapor degreasing
2. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Sanitation Standards
OSHA offers several sanitation standards that apply to warehouses and any permanent place of employment. These rules, in particular, aim to keep employees safe from contaminants and unhygienic conditions.
According to these rules, employers must keep workspaces clean and dry to the extent that the nature of the work allows. Floors, working areas and passageways must be kept free from splinters, nails, loose boards and unnecessary openings that may inhibit cleaning. Sweepings, waste and other garbage must be removed from the premises to maintain sanitary conditions. They also must provide adequate vermin control and extermination procedures. Any food on the premises must be processed, prepared, handled and stored to protect against contamination.
3. Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA)
If you’re in the food processing industry, your material handling operations are subject to the FDA’s Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The FDA’s industrial warehouse sanitary standards apply specifically to companies in food and beverage processing. These laws improve food safety by switching the industry from a reactive to preventive approach to foodborne illnesses. For example, one regulation calls for all food processing facilities to start each process cycle with clean warehouse equipment, free of bacteria. This regulation has led to the popularization of easy-to-clean, stainless steel material handling equipment and plastic or aluminum pallets.
When it comes to material handling, the new laws include standards for packing and holding human-grade produce alongside sanitary transportation procedures for human and animal food. The FDA also has regulations describing how to clean pallets. The stringent decontamination process sometimes requires specialized pallet washers and pallet dryers.
Top Hygienic Pallets in the Market
As you begin your pallet sourcing, you’ll quickly run into many different types of hygienic pallets. They come in several shapes and materials. What type of pallet is easiest to clean and offers the features to improve efficiency and safety for your application? Here are a few of our best-selling sanitary pallets, alongside their benefits and applications:
1. Plastic Pallets
Compared to traditional wooden pallets, plastic pallets offer fantastic advantages, hygiene included. They come in designs to fit many applications, and many are FDA and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) approved. Because plastic is a nonporous material, the pallets are durable, washable and inconducive to bacteria and microbe buildup. They reduce foodborne illness transmission and food product cross-contamination. They are easy to sanitize, so employees who come in close contact with the pallets and products are less likely to get sick, too.
Also, bugs will not infest plastic pallets. This benefit makes them safe for storage and transporting goods for international shipments. Another hygiene benefit is they won’t splinter or expose rusty nails or staples. This protects your employees from tetanus and other contaminants during handling.
Plastic pallets can feature high-density polyethylene (HDPE), low-density polyethylene (LDPE), polypropylene (PP), copolymer blends and recycled plastics. They’re reusable and have a life span of up to 10 years.
2. Smooth-Top Pallets
Also called closed-deck or solid-top pallets, smooth-top pallets offer excellent hygiene benefits. Because their surface-platform does not have crevices like standard pallets, they don’t have areas where bacteria and viruses can build up or get trapped. They don’t let dirt or food spills accumulate either. They’re easier to clean since they offer fewer chances for spots to get missed.
Solid-top pallets have HDPE injection mold construction, which means the entire pallet is one piece, with no seams or screws. This quality also aids in cleanliness and makes the equipment strong and impact resistant.
Cherry’s Material Handling offers several USDA-approved smooth-top stackable pallets. They each feature a four-way pallet jack and forklift entry and a versatile 40-inch by 48-inch footprint.
3. Chemical Pallets
Another type of plastic pallet, chemical pallets offers the cleanliness necessary for the industry. They also meet particular needs in chemical material handling. The plastic material resists chemicals, toxic materials and corrosion, so it won’t become compromised or leave crevices for microbe growth. With their microbial resistance and USDA-approved designs, chemical pallets help your chemical material handling facility avoid recalls.
To improve warehouse efficiency, chemical pallets come in three hygienic designs, including:
- HDSC Stackable: This type offers superior strength for stacking palletized products. They also work well with conveyors and other automated material handling equipment.
- HDSC Drum: This innovative design features four recessed rings to secure 55-gallon chemical drums.
- RCKO Rackable: The rackable design is strong, durable and hygienic enough for pallet racking systems.
4. Pharmaceutical Pallets
Another industry that requires hygienic pallets is the pharmaceutical industry. The industry has stringent cleanliness requirements and can’t afford to let contaminated pharmaceuticals enter the market. These conditions demand pallets safe to use in clean rooms and easy to decontaminate. Similar to other plastic pallets, pharmaceutical pallets come in stackable, rackable, solid top and chemical drum varieties. We offer HDPE, LDPE and recycled plastic pharmaceutical pallets for many applications, including several USDA-approved models.
5. Aluminum Pallets
Outside of plastic, metal pallets also provide hygienic construction and are a useful alternative to wooden pallets. Like plastic, aluminum offers pest and rot resistance. As another nonporous material, it’s easy to clean and won’t absorb or harbor microbial growth. Aluminum is temperature resistant and can be sanitized using high-temperature steam. This sterilization process lets facilities maintain stringent sanitation requirements.
Aluminum pallets’ temperature resistance also allows them to store sensitive pharmaceuticals or food products in industrial refrigerators or freezers. This ability lets them protect items that may grow mold or bacteria at room temperature. They’re also fireproof, which makes them ideal for flammable and combustible materials storage.
At Cherry’s Material Handling, we offer lightweight and heavy-duty aluminum pallets. Both can withstand rigorous applications and provide superior strength and life spans.
Benefits of Plastic Pallets
Plastic pallets are a fantastic all-around choice for pallets. They’re even required in specific FDA-regulated environments. While being easy to clean is one of their most popular benefits, they have a host of other advantages, such as:
1. Longevity
Compared to wood’s relatively short life cycle, plastic is durable and long-lasting. Some plastics have ultraviolet light resistance, which gives them an even longer service life. While wood breaks down and rots over time due to water exposure, plastic does not. At Cherry’s, we’ve seen our reusable plastic pallets last up to 10 years.
2. Insect and Fungi Resistance
Plastic pallets won’t become infested with insects or fungi. While wood pallets are the perfect host for these biological contaminants, plastic’s nonporous surface does not provide the conditions needed for them to flourish. As a result, you face reduced risk of pest-related damage to plastic pallets before the end of their service life.
3. Light Weight and Stackability
Plastic pallets are lighter weight and lower density than wood pallets. They’re more ergonomic for workers to handle throughout your warehouse and cheaper to ship when pallet weight is included in your shipping weight. They’re also easy to stack. Because plastic pallets are molded, they feature shapes to ease stacking. For example, plastic pallets come with optional stacking lips. They also prevent products from slipping during transport.
4. Smooth Surface and Uniform Material
Plastic’s smooth top surface is especially helpful for preventing smaller food particles and other smaller materials from falling through the pallet. This is especially helpful for maintaining the cleanliness of warehouses and stocking facilities.Plastic also provides a uniform material. Many plastic pallets have injection molded construction, which gives them consistent dimensions. They’re free of seams, welds or attachment points. Since disposable wood pallets have rough surfaces, often nailed or stapled together, they have some natural sizing variation. Inconsistent shapes and sizes can prove challenging for some material handling applications. Plastic offers a level surface that is more suitable for stacking.
5. Workplace Safety
Another benefit of the smooth, nonporous surface and seamless injection mold construction is enhanced safety. Workers won’t be exposed to potential splinters and sharp or rusted fasteners. Any non-automated parts of your handling process become instantly safer.
6. Recyclability
When plastic pallets reach the end of their useful service life, they can be recycled at a nearby recycling plant. Instead of heading for a landfill, they’ll be remade into new plastic products. Some pallets have recycled plastic content. By using recyclable pallets, you’ll help your company meet its sustainability and waste-reduction goals. Since plastic pallets have value to recyclers, you can even earn back some of your initial investment when you retire the pallets.
Shop Hygienic Pallets From Cherry’s Material Handling
At Cherry’s Material Handling, we offer an extensive pallet collection in many sizes for various applications. Many of our pallets are USDA- and FDA-approved and feature easy-to-clean materials and construction. We offer nestable, stackable and rackable designs for easy storage, pallets to meet export guidelines and hygienic pallets for transportation.
If you can’t find what you’re looking for within our inventory of hygienic pallets, we also offer customizable plastic and aluminum pallets to help you resolve 100% of the problem. Find custom sizing, designs and construction to meet your facility’s exact handling needs. Shop for sanitary, easy-to-clean pallets today. If you need help finding the right design, construction, size and material for your application, you can reach our material handling specialists through our online contact form or by dialing 877-350-2729.
