BS EN 12331:2021 Food Processing Machinery. Mincing Machines. Safety and Hygiene Requirements

Standard Number: BS EN 12331:2021

Pages: 58

Released: 2021-08-18

ISBN: 978 0 539 00047 4

Name: Food Processing Machinery. Mincing Machines. Safety and Hygiene Requirements

Status: Standard

Overview

Ensure the highest standards of safety and hygiene in your food processing operations with the BS EN 12331:2021 standard. This comprehensive document provides detailed requirements for mincing machines used in food processing, ensuring that they meet stringent safety and hygiene criteria. Released on August 18, 2021, this 58-page standard is an essential resource for manufacturers, operators, and safety inspectors in the food processing industry.

Key Features

• Comprehensive Coverage: The standard covers all aspects of safety and hygiene for mincing machines, ensuring that every potential risk is addressed.
• Up-to-Date Information: Released in 2021, this standard reflects the latest advancements and regulatory requirements in food processing machinery.
• Detailed Requirements: With 58 pages of in-depth information, the standard provides clear and precise guidelines for compliance.
• ISBN: 978 0 539 00047 4, ensuring easy reference and cataloging.

Why Choose BS EN 12331:2021?

Adhering to the BS EN 12331:2021 standard ensures that your mincing machines are not only safe to operate but also maintain the highest levels of hygiene. This is crucial in the food processing industry, where contamination and safety risks can have severe consequences. By following this standard, you can:

• Protect Your Workforce: Minimize the risk of accidents and injuries by ensuring that your machinery meets the latest safety requirements.
• Ensure Product Quality: Maintain high hygiene standards to prevent contamination and ensure the quality of your food products.
• Comply with Regulations: Meet the legal requirements and industry standards, avoiding potential fines and legal issues.
• Enhance Reputation: Demonstrate your commitment to safety and quality, enhancing your reputation with customers and stakeholders.

Who Should Use This Standard?

The BS EN 12331:2021 standard is designed for a wide range of professionals in the food processing industry, including:

• Manufacturers: Ensure that your mincing machines are designed and built to meet the highest safety and hygiene standards.
• Operators: Understand the safety and hygiene requirements to operate mincing machines safely and effectively.
• Safety Inspectors: Use the standard as a reference to assess the compliance of mincing machines in food processing facilities.
• Quality Assurance Teams: Implement the guidelines to maintain high standards of hygiene and product quality.

Detailed Content

The BS EN 12331:2021 standard provides detailed information on various aspects of mincing machine safety and hygiene, including:

• Design and Construction: Guidelines for the design and construction of mincing machines to ensure safety and hygiene.
• Operational Safety: Requirements for the safe operation of mincing machines, including protective measures and emergency procedures.
• Hygiene Requirements: Standards for maintaining hygiene during the use and cleaning of mincing machines.
• Maintenance and Inspection: Procedures for the regular maintenance and inspection of mincing machines to ensure ongoing compliance.
• Risk Assessment: Methods for assessing and mitigating risks associated with the use of mincing machines.

Conclusion

Investing in the BS EN 12331:2021 standard is a crucial step for any organization involved in food processing. By adhering to this standard, you can ensure that your mincing machines are safe, hygienic, and compliant with the latest industry regulations. This not only protects your workforce and ensures product quality but also enhances your reputation and helps you avoid legal issues. Make the BS EN 12331:2021 standard an integral part of your safety and hygiene practices today.

BS EN 12331:2021

This standard BS EN 12331:2021 Food processing machinery. Mincing machines. Safety and hygiene requirements is classified in these ICS categories:

• 67.260 Plants and equipment for the food industry

This document specifies requirements for the design and manufacture of mincing machines (see Figure 1). The mincing machines (hereinafter referred to as machine) covered by this document are used for size reduction of fresh or frozen meat, meat products and fish (hereinafter referred to as product) by cutting in a set of cutting tools. Household machines are not included in this document. Filling mincers are covered by EN 12463 “Food processing machinery — Filling machines and auxiliary machines — Safety and hygiene requirements”. This document applies only to machines that are manufactured after the date of issue of this document. This document covers: a) professional machines (see Figure 1 a) used for on-demand preparation in shops and/or restaurants characterized by all of the following features (if any of the features is missing the machine is considered an industrial machine): 1) designed as a table-top machine; 2) having a feed tray; 3) the product is only fed manually; 4) is only operated from the ground; 5) is operated by no more than one operator; 6) with full visibility and full accessibility of the entire machine from the operator workstation; 7) having hole plate diameter ≤ 106 mm; 8) a worm casing set which is removable without using any tools; 9) the weight of the worm casing set ≤ 15 kg; NOTE The table-top machine can be equipped with a frame or base, so no separate table is needed. b) industrial machines (see Figure 1 b) used for industrial mass production, and which cannot be characterized as a professional machine. This document does not describe the specific requirements for the control of machines with foot switch. This document does not describe the specific requirements for additional mixing screws in the feed intake hopper which are covered by EN 13570:2005+A1:2010 “Food processing machinery — Mixing machines — Safety and hygiene requirements”. Figure 1 - Examples of machines This document covers the following types of machines: - machine with feed tray, feed intake and pusher (see Figure 3); - machine with feed tray, feed intake, restrictor plate and pusher (see Figure 4); - machine with feed intake hopper, protective cover and feeding screw (see Figure 6); - machine with feed intake hopper, with or without protective cover, feeding screw, with loading device (continuously or discontinuously). Machines comprise a machine base, a worm casing with a worm, a feed tray (with feed intake) or a feed intake hopper, a set of cutting tools, a lock nut, a drive motor. They will also have various safeguarding devices as examples in Clause 4. Machines can be equipped e.g. with: - an extraction claw; - an ejector or extractor; - a protective hood over the discharge outlet; - a protective cover over the inlet opening of the feed intake hopper; - a transport carriage for the lock nut, the set of cutting tools, the worm and the feeding screw; - a lifting device for the lock nut, the set of cutting tools, the worm and the feeding screw; - a loading device. The product is fed manually or with a loading device into the machine. The product is fed to the worm either by a pusher or a feeding screw and reduced in size by a set of cutting tools. This document specifies all significant hazards, hazardous situations and events relevant to machines, when they are used as intended and under conditions of misuse which are reasonably foreseeable by the manufacturer (see Annex D). This document specifies the hazards which can arise during commissioning, operation, cleaning, use, maintenance and decommissioning of the machine.