What Do We Mean By Food Grade Flooring?

Choosing the right food grade flooring solution for environments where food processing and production are carried out is a vitally important consideration regarding hygiene, safety and efficient processes.

Cleanliness and compliance with food safety regulations are paramount, covering not just production and manufacturing areas but also commercial kitchens, breweries, distilleries, bakeries, dairies and wineries.

For any manufacturing business, cost is an important consideration when making decisions on infrastructure investment. However, a correctly specified food grade flooring system is an investment for the future.

It will combine slip resistance for safety with durability, ease of cleaning and resistance to bacteria, microorganisms and chemical attacks, as well as ensuring compliance with the requirements of bodies such as the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and health and safety standards.

Correctly specified floors will meet the requirements of the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) food safety management system and risk assessment tool. This system is widely used by food processing facilities to provide guidance and assessments of health and hygiene hazards and control the risk of contamination.

What is food safe flooring and what does it mean to be food grade?

When we talk about food grade flooring, we mean specialist flooring systems developed to meet the individual challenges of the food processing industries. The most popular solutions are resin-based, such as epoxy or polyurethane reason flooring systems, which exhibit important characteristics like ease of cleaning, resistance to chemical attack and longevity in use, particularly for wet production areas.

As well as providing anti-slip properties – important in areas frequently washed down for hygiene reasons – industrial food grade flooring systems create seamless flooring solutions that are non-porous and help to restrict the growth of bacteria and microorganisms unwelcome in food production environments.

Food grade flooring systems used within the food and drink industry must be capable of performing well in many different areas.

• Cleanliness: wet production areas must be easy to clean to eliminate microbial growth and food contamination risk.
• Durability: manufacturing processes often require the use of heavy machinery and wheeled traffic, which can place considerable strain on flooring over time.
• Anti-slip properties: areas subject to frequent washdown must incorporate anti-slip characteristics to protect against accidents in the workplace.
• Compliance: food grade flooring installed must comply with strict regulatory standards developed around hygiene and safety.

Options commonly selected for food grade flooring applications include:-

Cementitious urethane – seamless, easy to clean, durable

• Polished concrete – creating a sealed surface resistant to wear and tear, easy to clean and maintain
• Epoxy flooring – Excellent aesthetics, durability, high levels of chemical resistance
• Polyurethane – Versatile, resilient, fast curing, waterproof, easy to clean and maintain.
• Methyl Methacrylate (MMA) – Rapid curing and durable, with good levels of chemical resistance.

Why use resin flooring in the food manufacturing industry

Resin flooring systems offer a range of important performance benefits over other types of flooring for food processing areas, such as tiles and vinyl. Although they may initially seem to require more investment and more preparation and time, their performance in use makes them the ideal match for food industry applications.

Advantages of resin systems for industrial food grade flooring include:-

1. Vital for food preparation and hygiene, resin floors offer a seamless and antimicrobial solution. When combined with coving systems at floor level, they reduce the opportunity for build-up of dirt, bacteria and microbial growth.
2. Resin flooring is strong and durable, capable of withstanding harsh operation conditions, as well as abrasion and impact damage from heavy machinery and wheeled traffic.
3. Food grade resin flooring solutions can withstand high temperatures and can be steam cleaned for optimum hygiene.
4. Many food production processes require acidic components, which can cause corrosion over time. Resin industrial flooring solutions provide a high degree of resistance to chemical attack.
5. Food production areas can also be a slip hazard as a result of liquids, fats and grease. Resin flooring systems offer excellent slip resistance in compliance with health and safety requirements.

Epoxy or Polyurethane Resin Screed Systems?

For industrial food grade flooring applications, polyurethane resin screed systems provide the perfect solution due to their strength and resilience in use, providing excellent protection against impact and abrasion as well as the ability to handle heavy foot and wheeled traffic.

Polyurethane flooring screeds are also resistant to the organic acid compounds often present in food processing and production.

Add to that the ability to withstand high temperatures such as those found in food production around ovens and other equipment and the inherent slip resistance characteristics, which can be tailored to match different environments, and polyurethane screed floors are hard to beat for the food industry.  

“For food grade flooring in food production facilities, we would always recommend a polyurethane resin screed system, as these materials meet the highest levels of food hygiene and safety standards,” stated Luke Sunderland, External Sales Manager for resin flooring specialists UltraSyntec.

“When installed together with coved skirting, the entire area is easy to clean down, and it is very difficult for bacteria to become trapped and spread as the entire system is effectively ‘tanked’, eliminating the right-angled edges which have notorious hygiene implications and creating hygienic flooring solutions.”

Whilst epoxy systems are physically stronger, polyurethane is more flexible and exhibits excellent chemical resistance and resistance to high temperatures than epoxy. An epoxy resin flooring may be marginally cheaper per square metre than polyurethane, but the additional benefits offered by polyurethane will far outweigh the initial cost differences.

Polyurethane resin food grade flooring is typically resistant to materials including concentrated citric acids, lactic acids, alcohols such as ethanol and methanol, inorganic acids, mineral oils and solvents.

What specific systems does UltraSyntec recommend?

UltraSyntec works closely with resin flooring developers and manufacturers Resdev Ltd on all projects involving resin screeds and flooring materials to create a hygienic floor.

“For resin floor food grade flooring solutions within food and beverage production, we almost always recommend either Pumadur RT or Pumadur HF, depending on the conditions within the production environment,” said Luke Sunderland. “Every site is different, and we make our recommendations based on a detailed site visit, where we assess the processes, operating conditions and individual requirements.”

Ideal for food grade flooring applications, Pumadur RT and Pumadur HF are seamless and non-tainting, ideal for use on concrete and cementitious screeds. They offer advanced levels of durability, impact, abrasion and chemical resistance, and are ideal for wet and dry processing environments.

Complete your installation with resin coving

For food grade flooring applications, resin floorings are often installed together with a coved skirting, which eliminates the right angle between resin floor and wall and creates a seamless, curved junction which is easy to clean, eliminating entrapment of bacteria.

Coved skirting is usually laid as part of a seamless flooring solution, creating a tanked system which provides a hygienic environment for food processing environments. Stainless steel drainage systems are usually incorporated into the floor to channel away fluids.

The importance of drainage

Food safe drainage systems are an important consideration when installing food grade flooring in food production and processing environments as well as commercial kitchens. They ensure the safe removal of wastewater and other products, reducing any accumulation of bacteria and contamination.

Effective drainage is also a vital part of the cleaning process, enabling washdowns to be carried out thoroughly and effectively, leaving no potential for water pooling on the floor and presenting safety and hygiene issues.

Incorporating food safe drainage systems together with industrial food grade flooring ensures compliance with quality and regulatory standards as well as health and safety requirements for food preparation.

Maintain your food grade flooring

Looking after your food grade flooring will extend its longevity, combat wear and tear and ensure you have a floor which matches your food processing environment requirements and standards and continues to look good into the future.

• Routine daily maintenance procedures like inspection, sweeping and mopping play an important role in keeping your floor clean and protected.
• Depending upon your processes, floors should be cleaned more thoroughly on a weekly basis, avoiding any abrasive cleaners which could damage the surface.
• Periodic deep cleaning using a specialist resin flooring cleaner is vital too. Ask your installer for full details on the best products to use for your floor and your processing environment.
• Any cracks or surface damage should be repaired immediately to prevent them from worsening. In many cases, a simple patch repair can be used for this. For more serious damage, consult your specialist installer.

Summary

Food and beverage production and processing environments and commercial kitchens must be kept hygienically clean at all times, and a resin flooring system effectively combines durability with cleanliness and safety.

Talk to us about forthcoming food grade flooring projects or arrange a quote for installing the correct food grade flooring solutions to match food processing industry requirements.