Wipe out uncertainty
August 1st 2006

With 35 years experience in the rapidly evolving food sector, Pal International is well placed to keep customers abreast of legislative change and keep their operations contamination-free. Perminder Rupra, technical manager and Vanessa Human, marketing manager, explain the company's approach to impregnated wipes

In recent years, wet wipes have experienced a phenomenal amount of growth as a convenient method for cleaning, cleansing and disinfecting. Impregnated wipes can be used in a wide range of markets to satisfy the various cleaning demands of sectors such as healthcare, food and beverage, personal care, car care and domestic.

Within the home, wet wipes are an established and accepted method of delivering a chemical application for cleaning or disinfection. It is important to recognise the link between the retail consumer who places wipes in their shopping trolley, who is also an employee in industry receptive to this opportune method of cleaning and disinfecting of their workplace.

Pal International, the Leicester-based manufacturer, has been providing effective hygiene solutions to the food and beverage market for over 35 years. Its original entry into the market was via the manufacture and distribution of personal protective equipment. Its product range has grown and evolved to meet the demands of customers; the company now also provides a diverse range of wet wipe and sanitation solutions for this ever-changing sector where adherence to hygiene regulations and standards is critical.

From the raw material manufacturer to the small sandwich shop on the high street, Pal provides disinfectant wipes in a variety of size and dispensing options to fit the purpose. Food manufacturers and processors commonly use large buckets of 500 disinfectant wipes, for heavy duty disinfecting of hard surface production lines. Further down the supply chain, a restaurant may require disinfectant wipes in a pocket pack for probes, to help ensure poultry is cooked and cleanse the utensils afterwards.

Users' demands dictate that manufacturers must pay attention to the following individual elements of the wipes product and how they interact, namely the packaging, the nonwoven substrate and the disinfectant solution. Testing procedures and accreditations are also critical to demonstrate the overall efficacy of the product once manufactured.

Packaging

Pal provides rigid plastic packaging for wipes which has traditionally been the preferred format within the food and beverage sector, as the medium is robust, identifiable, has the ability to contain a large number of wipes and the packaging is recyclable. In addition, Pal has recently launched a range of softpack packaging, including an industrial version of the re-sealable dispenser packs which are common in consumer markets. Convenience, portability around the workplace and ease of storage are key advantages of this particular packaging for the food industry. Refill bags are available for canister and bucket versions of the Pal disinfectant products, enabling rigid packaging to be re-used.

Substrates

The nonwoven substrate materials chosen must demonstrate specific critical properties required within the food sector. These factors include a very low level of linting, blue in colour (for visibility and traceability in the manufacturing process), high wet tensile strength, a high degree of absorbency, good solution holding properties and the ability to provide additional mechanical action by its structure or appearance.

Disinfecting formulas

The disinfecting formulations used to impregnate wipes for the food arena must include anti-microbial properties. They will ideally have an independently tested EN1276 & EN1650 certificate to support the claims that the product has bactericidal, yeasticidial and fungicidal efficacy within the required time frame stipulated by the above European tests.

Pal has successfully combined the three elements above to produce a disinfectant product range which fulfils the requirements of the food sector, including efficacy against organisms such as E.coli 0157, Salmonella, Influenza virus, Norovirus, Hepatitis virus and Listeria. The company places great emphasis on its external testing programmes by accredited laboratories and test certificates are available on request.

Regarding regulatory developments for wipes within the food industry, manufacturers of wipes products are currently regulated by the CHIP III regulation across Europe. Chip III stipulates the classification, packaging and labelling requirements for such products and in addition many individual countries have their own individual approval process for the use of disinfectant products including France (AFNOR), Germany (Bundesumweltministerium) and Italy (Ministero della Salute).

Pending regulations such as the Biocidal Products Directive (BPD) will have a huge impact on the manufacture and distribution of such products across Europe. The purpose of the directive is to ensure the safe manufacture, supply, labelling and use of such products in the future. All users of disinfectants should be aware of this pending regulation and should be in contact with the competent authority managing the introduction of the regulation within their country. Pal International is happy to supply disinfectant products that will be fully adhere to the requirements laid down according to the pending Biocidal Products Directive.

Pal predicts that along with the BPD, the necessity for biodegradable and environmentally-friendly products will influence the future development of wet wipes. Work has already begun within Pal's laboratories on biodegradable and compostable packaging and nonwovens, due to the food industry's requirement to reduce its levels of waste.

The company has recently introduced a wall-mounted wipes dispenser for its refill bags, enabling users to store and dispense 500 large heavy duty wipes on a wall close to the area of use. Customers had identified that a wall-mounted dispenser for wet wipes would be beneficial in areas of high traffic close to production lines. This highlights one of the ways that Pal is working with customers to ensure that they are complying with the ever changing demands of the food industry and the authorities who regulate it.

Pal provides a comprehensive range of surface and hand wipes suitable for HORECA and food processing industries, in addition to its barrier protection clothing and headwear.

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