Strict legal regulations on the one hand, high expectations regarding appearance and wearing comfort on the other hand: modern hygienic clothing in the meat processing industry must meet a number of different demands today. The standards relating to hygienic clothing are clearly defined. Employees must ensure that the hygienic clothing used fulfils the requirements set for the company and the relevant job. But the wearer also makes demands of the clothing that accompanies him/her every day - it not only has to promote a positive optical look, but must also be comfortable to wear.

Statutory hygiene regulations
Guidelines such as the HACCP* or the German DIN 10524* describe the role of textiles in personal hygiene. Both sets of regulations warn explicitly of the "detrimental influence on food" through inappropriate working clothing. The texts provide processors of food products with a clear list of facts which they must pay attention to when procuring and caring for working clothing. These facts relate to the fields of fabric, wearing comfort, cut, closures, pockets and emblems.
Accordingly, working clothing in areas with a high and extremely high hygiene risk must not have any external pockets in order to avoid contamination. An exception: pockets necessary for the working process are permitted but must be closable with flaps. This also applies to all internal pockets accessible from outside. Coats (gowns) should reach to the knees. Cuffs of adjustable width are recommended. Press studs are considered as considerably more hygiene than stretch bands. As a coat closure a covered press stud strip is suitable.

Antimicrobial features
However DIN 10524 also requires that the fabrics (outer material) exhibit an adequate barrier effect against bacteria. This is usually achieved through appropriate processing of the materials - the weave. A tried and tested method in practice. Nowadays there also exist methods whereby working clothing is made antimicrobial by adding chemical substances. To this end there are two methods available today, which follow very different approaches. Whereas some suppliers of hygienic clothing saturate or coat their products with a biocide, a second group supports the use of fabrics into which a thread with a silver-based biocide is incorporated during spinning.
In the view of experts it is still not clear whether these materials are subject to marking requirements. Opinions relating to washability are much clearer. Whereas, according to some specialist views, biocides applied to the fabric can wash out and therefore lose their effect, the antimicrobial effect of woven-in silver ions is evidently retained in the longer term. In addition these fabrics exhibit a certain odour-inhibiting effect against perspiration and body vapours. Whether this will prove to be an advantage in food-processing companies too appears doubtful to other experts. After all, clothing may have to be changed several times a day anyway.

Hygiene after every wash
"In our view antimicrobial clothing in the food-processing industry makes no sense" says Dirk Hischemöller, managing director for sales and marketing at DBL - Deutsche Berufskleider-Leasing GmbH. On the one hand this process makes working clothing more expensive, and on the other hand hygiene is guaranteed through the stipulated change of clothing. His association therefore continues to back optimally produced working clothing that meets the requirements of DIN 10524. "Like our hygiene collection Euroclean, recommended by the Federal Association of Food Inspectors (BVLK)".
But the legislation not only requires the observance of the hygiene regulations in the case of new products. The storage, transportation and washing of hygiene clothing must take place according to strict standards. Ultimately, after the laundering process the clothing of the employees must again meet the high hygiene standard. Incorrect care quickly and almost completely ruins the effect as well as the comfort of modern hygiene clothing. For this reason the employers must ensure the clothing used is correctly washed and cared for. A task which reveals its limitations if the employees wash their clothes in the washing machine at home.

Professional care
Only professional care preserves the required features and thereby the safety of the wearer and the foods being processed over a longer period of time. Impermissible washing procedures - e.g. excess temperature, incorrect washing agent or improper drying - change the fabric structure, damages the materials and quickly eliminates the colours, the wearing properties or the effect explicitly required by legislation. Then there is the question of contamination. "If an employee puts clothing from hygienically critical areas in with his/her household washing there are two risks" says Dirk Hischemöller. "Germs are either transmitted from work into the domestic washing basket. Or household germs are taken to work via the working clothing".
In any event, if something goes wrong the entrepreneur cannot prove that the hygienic clothing has been washed properly and came into the company in hygienically perfect condition. Here, in most cases only cooperation with a professional service provider can help. Approved regulations such as, for example, RABC* and RAL* or European standard 14065* ensure that within the care process the microbiological contamination of clothing is avoided or a predetermined level is not exceeded.
"Both RABC and RAL describe the role of textiles in personal hygiene", explains Dirk Hischemöller. They provide clear recommendations for the storage and care of work clothing. "Thus, worn work clothing must not be stored with clean clothing as the bacteria could be transmitted from the soiled to the clean clothes and thereby constitute a source of contamination in the kitchen area ". Other risk sources: dirty clothing must not be stored up, but must be cleaned as soon as possible, as the bacteria present reproduce very quickly. In the end they can cause illness in humans.

Wearing comfort
A further important aspect of hygienic clothing is wearing comfort. Only if it meets the expectations of the employees is it also reliably worn. When developing modern collections, the producers therefore place special value on the cut and fabric composition - in addition to observing the strict hygiene regulations. In this way they achieve an optimum wearing feel - and this increases the acceptance of the work clothing. "Wearing comfort contributes to a feeling of well-being while working, the cleanliness illustrates the hygienic condition of the work clothing. The clothing should be white or light-coloured, it should also be colour-fast, boil and ironing-proof, in order to meet the basic hygiene requirements in the long term. Here the material is also of decisive importance. Cotton or a cotton-polyester mix is hard-wearing and pleasant to wear".
It is not only the cut and material that are important in the selection of the optimum working clothing - functional details improve wearing comfort and should be optimally matched to the requirements of everyday work. This can include the way in which the closures are produced, the design of straps, fix lock clips, folds allowing room for manoeuvre, ventilation openings or pockets designed in keeping with the standards.

Corporate fashion
In the case of working clothing for employees in direct contact with the customer, the topic of corporate fashion is of vital importance today. Through its colours, embroidery and printing of the logo it is specially orientated to the company's corporate design. Individual working clothing increases the identification of the employee with his/her team and the company as a whole. In addition it underlines the professionalism of the employee in customer contact and emphasises direct association with the company in question.
In meat production this topic is only of limited importance, but is replaced with division-specific individualisation of work clothing. Here similar criteria apply - appropriately designed working clothing with colour-differentiated trousers, jackets and headgear not only associates employees with particular divisions or tasks and thereby prevents "employee migration", but is also of great importance in hygienically sensitive areas as the transmission of germs and microorganism adhering to clothing can be prevented. Corporate fashion can also identify differences in the company and/or employee hierarchy. An additional benefit: through different coloured clothing every day, it can be seen at a glance whether every employee has changed his/her clothing for fresh clothing.

Reducing costs
Leasing - a sensible alternative for more and more companies requiring hygienic clothing, as in addition to the already described safety through always using properly laundered working clothing, companies such as the DBL Group offer additional advantages. Dirk Hischemöller explains: "The customer enjoys multiple benefits through our services. First of all we provide specialist advisors when selecting job-specific clothing. Then he saves the sometimes high, one-off investment in professional clothing. On the other hand our regular service ensures the cleanliness, hygiene and attractive looks of the working clothing. And this without organisational costs for the client, no laundry, no store". Every employee always has cleanly laundered working clothing available to change into - even in the event of size changes, employee changes or seasonal workers. The company is also relieved of all organisational tasks relating to the working clothing.

*HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis of Critical Control Point System.
*Since May 2004, standard DIN 10524 "Working clothing in food enterprises" has bindingly defined the hygiene requirements relating to working clothing in the food sector as well specifications for wearing comfort.
*RABC (Risk Analysis and Biocontamination Control System)
*RAL German Institute of Product Safety and Marking e.V., the abbreviation RAL originally stood for "Imperial Committee for Delivery Conditions"

Quelle: DBL