Situations where unsafe or improperly applied lubricants or other chemicals have resulted in contamination and ultimately product recalls are relatively few, but have occurred:
• “A total of 4,740 pounds of turkey sausage was recalled because the product had been contaminated with grease.”
• “More than 490,000 pounds of smoked boneless hams were recalled by manufacturer because they were contaminated by a gear lubricant after several customers reported a “bad taste” and “burning in the throat for up to three hours” from eating the ham.”
• “The City Council in the United Kingdom confirmed that tests on a can of baby food revealed a toxic substance. The investigations indicated that a can of Potato Bake was contaminated with mineral oil lubricant.”
Over the last decade, leading brands and retailers have placed significant pressure on processors to ‘clean up’ and modernise their approach to ensuring food safety and product quality by implementing holistic systems such as HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points).
In 2000, with a vision of ‘Safe food for consumers everywhere,’ several of the world’s leading food companies and retailers created the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI)2
these common elements. One example is found in the GFSI approved audit scheme, BRC, specifically section 4.7.6 which states: “Material used for equipment and plant maintenance and that pose a risk to direct or indirect contact with raw materials, intermediate and finished product, such as lubricating oil, shall be food grade and of a known allergen status.”3
to find collaborative solutions
to collective concerns, including food safety risks. One primary aim of the GFSI collaboration is to build trust throughout the complex food supply chain, while minimizing the cost and burden of audit duplication for processors and packagers. This is accomplished by collectively identifying and benchmarking acceptable international food safety schemes such as the (British Retail Consortium) BRC, International Food Standard (IFS) and Safe Quality Food (SQF). The concept of ‘Once Certified, Recognised Everywhere’ has been embraced by food producers over the past 15 years and has effectively established equivalency between food safety certification programmes, whilst allowing for flexibility and choice in the marketplace.
As part of this ongoing effort, GFSI has convened Technical Working Groups (TWGs) to define key elements – such as lubricants – that are used throughout the entire food supply chain and to implement measures to reduce risks associated with
For many years in the United States, the review and authorisation of food grade lubricants and other ‘incidental’ food contact chemicals was administered by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Manufacturers of lubricants and other products for use in meat and poultry operations would petition USDA for approval after demonstrating the product formulation and label met acceptable regulatory criteria. In 1998, the USDA discontinued its authorisation program and the lubricant industry began discussing alternate approaches for product approval. NSF International worked closely with the USDA and other stakeholders including representatives from the food industry and lubricant manufacturers to adopt the framework from the USDA and in 1999 launched an independent, voluntary third-party review and registration program. In 2001 NSF published the first edition of the NSF WhiteBookTM 4, and today the list of NSF registered products exceeds 18,000 unique tradenames from product manufacturers around the world.
Requirements for ingredients used in formulating lubricants are based on regulatory requirements established in 21CFR (US FDA Code of Federal Regulations) and are determined based on how the Continued on page 16
LUBE MAGAZINE NO.145 JUNE 2018 15
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