According to research from Ohio State University, the cost of foodborne illness in the U.S. including lost productivity, medical costs and economic losses may be as high as $93.2 billion[1].The impact of a sanitation breach in the food processing environment is certainly devastating to consumers, and could be financially catastrophic to producers given that the average direct cost of a food company recall is $10 million[2].

Meanwhile, COVID-19 highlights a new dimension to the challenge of food safety. With restaurants closed and consumers eating more meals at home, many food processors have had to convert production lines to accommodate more retail demand. In Mid-March of 2020, sales for fresh and frozen meat were up 77% from 2019; deli meat increased 40%. Liquid milk saw 32% growth and popcorn and pretzels jumped 47%. If food hygiene is a stress point under normal conditions, the pressure is intensified when production lines run at capacity to keep store shelves filled.

Food safety programs rely heavily on human factors but there are things humans can’t do. People can’t spot microbes with the naked eye or prevent the chemical breakdown of surfaces. Increasingly, companies turn to innovative technologies to support the heavy demands of food hygiene.

At Habasit, we continue to find ways to engineer food safety into our conveyor belt systems. For example, ourHabasit Cleandrive line特征特殊的聚氨酯配方，提供出色的微生物和热水水解抗性。

In the past few weeks, we introduced the Habasit Cleandrive lug drive, the third drive system in the Habasit Cleandrive product suite. Delicate foods require additional sanitation steps in the production process; the design of our lug drive (which is USDA certified for meat, poultry and dairy processing) takes hygiene up a notch in so many ways.

A more sanitary surface

标准单片带材料吸引饲料在皮带表面上的真菌和细菌。除了将食物置于风险之外，这种“饲料”就会导致裂缝和其他降低问题，使污染循环进行。水对这些皮带构成了类似的威胁，创造了化学分解，使脊和裂隙雕刻到不可能清洁的表面。

通过首先抵抗微生物和水解，Habasit Cleandrive Lug Drive为食品加工器提供了最多的卫生表面，无论温度如何。它还为食品检查员提供了更高水平的保证。

Smooth scraping

Food processors have to contend with the Catch-22 of belt scraping. Food particles and debris not only add contamination risk, but also mechanical risk, as these bits can lead to sprocket disengagement and other maintenance issues. But here’s the rub: Scraping in itself can increase the hygiene headache. Traditional monolithic belts tend to have pronounced sink marks over drive bars and lugs, making it difficult to get a consistently snug scrape across the surface.

我们的专有制造过程解决了问题。单片居住清洁凸耳驱动器从单一优质TPU材料挤出。结果：一种极其光滑的无腔表面，可优化刮削效率。

Less stretch leads to higher hygiene

Microbes and water aren’t the only sources of belt degradation and safety risk. Belt elongation does a number on belt surfaces, forming cracks and holes that store bacteria and impair cleaning. To prevent excessive stretching, we reinforced the Habasit Cleandrive lug drive with Aramid cords for an added layer of stability. This extra reinforcement also eliminates the need to install support shoes or limiters to promote sprocket engagement. That means fewer unhygienic components to worry about.

As a side benefit, reduced belt degradation and stretching leads to longer belt life in some applications. With fewer belt replacements, you can lessen the contamination risk of handling, and reduce costs too.

涉及食品安全时，乘坐吹手系统的质量和性能。Habasit Cleandrive Lug Drive为您提供最卫生皮带驱动器的信心。在此处查看我们的视频在这里的Habasit Cleanwrive Suite：

资源：
[1]Ohio State University College of Food, Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, High Cost of Foodborne Illness: New Study Provides State-by-State Breakdown, June 3, 2015
[2]食品安全杂志，“召回：食品行业对盈利威胁最大，”2012年10月
[3] FoodProcessing.com，“冠状病毒如何影响食品加工，”2012年3月31日