As food and plant safety remain a top priority for all food manufacturers, the protein market has been under particular scrutiny with plants trying to balance the very difficult task of ensuring customer and worker safety as well as providing food for families worldwide. Adhesive Squares™ has found a unique home in the protein market for ensuring cases remain sealed and free of contamination during the shipping journey to the customer.
Customers in the protein market occasionally encounter pop-opens in case sealing for several reasons. This is critical for food safety, one of the reasons USDA inspectors are onsite. A primary reason for pop-opens is the variation in the size of the protein being packed. Meat and poultry can “grow” in terms of the amount being packed depending on when it’s received into the processing facility! It’s cost prohibitive to inventory different size corrugated cases and would be difficult regardless to know when to start inserting a different size case into production and encounter downtime for set up. As a result, pop-opens can occur once larger amounts of protein are being packed in the standard case.
RS Industrial, Inc. has developed a unique solution through its Adhesive Squares™ product line to help food processors when this occurs. It’s an adhesive film delivered via release liner either in a continuous form or segmented to a specific application size through perforations. This Adhesive Square™ product is one that has been used in operating rooms as part of surgical drapes and camera covers. Recently it was used in making PPE face shields. This product has been third party tested for Prop 65 chemicals, approved for indirect food and skin contact, according to FDA 21 CFR 175.105 and ISO 10993-10, respectively. Most case sealing operations use hot melt adhesives. When rework is required, most processors don’t want to use an external tape with a film carrier to apply to the outside of the case due to aesthetics. They want the box to appear the same as it does coming off the line normally. Some processors use hot melt glue guns to rework for this reason. The problem is you need an electrical power source, you are applying hot adhesive by hand which could result in employees being burned, and lastly you have very limited control over the amount applied and the temperature it was applied at leading to inconsistent bond. The guns have a limited life in the rigors of a production environment especially when laid on their sides.
Adhesive Squares™ deliver a consistent application amount and method of applying every time helping to ensure quality. The product is a safer alternative in that there is no heat and no need for a power source. Without being tied to an outlet flexibility is gained in where rework can be done, particularly helpful where plant space is at a premium. The product has been used successfully in the field now for a number of years including by a large global processor.
Additionally, if you are looking to enhance Food Safety with traditional hot melt adhesives RS Industrial has a line of hot melt adhesives available which are manufactured in an FSSC 22000 plant. This means the plants where the hot melt adhesive is produced follow most of the same guidelines you must in your own food plant, including what’s worn. It becomes another bit of insurance in “closing the loop” in safely delivery food to consumers.
Learn more about Adhesive Squares™, food safe hot melt adhesives and RS Industrial, Inc. on our website, or contact us at info@rsindustrial.com, or 1-800-844-1748. Our people will get to work for you attempting to live out our Mission of “Faithfully delivering solutions for the world’s sticky situations.”