Machinery Lubrication magazine published by Noria Corporation
Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1463313
www.machinerylubrication.com | March - April 2022 | 31 ML ML (USDA) and the U.S. Food and Drug Admin- istration (FDA). Before 1998, all food-grade lubricant oversight and formulation review were the responsibility of the USDA. Lubri- cant manufacturers were required to prove that their formulas complied with a series of guidelines referred to as Title 21 under the Security Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). en, the USDA put the responsibility on manufacturers to assess risk following a shift in its program in February 1998. is meant lubrication manufacturers were charged with assuring their lubricant ingredients were safe. Because of the weighty responsibility, this major program change resulted in third-party consultants and vendors entering the market to help manufacturers develop systems, identify risks and create SOPs so they could receive lubrication certification. Today, the NSF oversees a food lubrication evaluation program. It's basically what the USDA designed, which requires manufacturers producing lubrication for food processing applications to deliver supporting documents that prove health and safety compliance. What does this mean for lubricant manu- facturers and operations that use food-grade lubricants? Essentially, there are layers of compliance, required systems and sets of checks and balances that must be adhered to for the sake of public health. Common Lubricants Used in Food and Beverage Manufacturing Lubricants used in food and beverage processing are rated based on how safe they are if they come in contact with food. e National Sanitation Foundation (NSF) oversees a lubricant evaluation program that includes a list of approved lubricants. Based on NSF ratings, an H1 lubricant can be used in food processing areas and is safe for incidental food contact. H2 lubricants can be used in food processing areas but must not be in contact with food. H3 lubricants can be used in contact with food, but are limited by FDA regulations. HT1 lubricants are heat transfer oils and also may be used in situations where incidental food contact could occur. e NSF offers a list of additional food-safe solvents and degreasing agents and constantly updates its product list. To help guide food and beverage manufac- turers in selecting the right food-safe lubricant for every application, these are the NSF lubri- cation basics to understand. H1 Lubricants ese food-grade lubricants can be used in food and beverage processing when there is a potential for incidental contact. ese lubricants can contain basestocks, additives and thickeners. H1 lubricants can be petro- leum-based or synthetic. Petroleum-based lubricants used in food and beverage manu- facturing include white mineral or USP-type white mineral oils that are refined, colorless, tasteless, odorless and will not stain. Synthetic food-safe lubricants include: ba sestock s like polya lphaolef ins a nd polyalkylene glycols and silicons like dimeth- ylpolysiloxane. H2 Lubricants H2 lubricants can be used in food and beverage manufacturing facilities but not in applications where contact with food is a possibility. ere is no defined list of ingre- dients that H2 lubricants must contain, but there are ingredients that cannot be present in food processing areas: carcinogens, mutagens, teratogens, mineral acids and heavy metals like arsenic, lead, mercury and others. H3 Lubricants ese are edible or soluble oils generally used for cleaning and preventing rust on machine parts. ey are composed of oils from corn, cottonseed, soybean or minerals. What Makes a Lubricant Food-Grade? e FDA specifies the components that food-grade lubricants must be made of to safely have incidental contact with food. Lubricants that are NSF-certified as food-grade and achieve the FDA's zero-tolerance standard are listed as an NSF H2 certified non-food compound. Food-grade lubricants are safe for use in meat, poultry, and other food processing equip- ment and applications. e FDA Codes in Title 21 explain what ingredients are allowed in food-safe lubricants. For example, H1s are more limited because they are allowed for incidental exposure with foods. H2 guidelines are less restrictive and include a broader selection of lubricants, yet they still meet governing guidelines and require manu- facturers to have compliance protocols in place, as with any lubricant. Food-grade lubricants are odorless, tasteless, and rated safe for incidental exposure. Also, food-grade lubricants can withstand extreme cold and hot temperatures. ey are more stable than traditional mineral and white oil-based food-grade lubricants. Aside from complying with stringent regulatory standards, food-grade lubricants also have been shown to extend equipment life and reduce maintenance costs. How Can Lubricant Contamination Occur? ere are many moving parts in food and beverage processing equipment. e lubricants used to grease bearings, chains, gearboxes and other machine components can potentially drip, leak, mist or otherwise "touch" a product that consumers will eventually eat or drink. Every step of the production process can include some potential hazard. Identifying those potential hazards is the first step to putting controls to reduce risk exposure in place. Understanding Your Responsibilities — Regulation 101 Food and beverage manufacturers have a responsibility to ensure safe, reliable manufac- turing — and this accountability is mandated by the FSMA. SOPs must be in place to ensure FSMA compliance, guided by Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) and Hazard Analysis and Risk-Based Prevention Controls (HARPC). What is the FSMA? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 48 million people in the United States get sick — that's 1 in 6 — and 128,000 are hospitalized. ML ML