Professional cleaning of transport containers

International ENFIT Cleaning standard

International ENFIT cleaning standards ensure the high-quality cleaning of transport units. As a rule, transport containers are cleaned professionally in authorized and certified cleaning stations depending on the last load. With the cleaning, the transport container should be brought into a state that does not have any negative effects on the next load. The transport containers that are cleaned include: tankers, silo vehicles, tank containers, tank wagons, IBCs, refrigerated and box vehicles, reefer containers, agricultural and animal transporters, crates, boxes, pallets and trolleys.

While chemical products are not only clean, but also product safety, especially hazardous goods, is a priority, when it comes to transport containers for food or feed, compliance with food or feed hygiene and the prevention of cross-contamination are the primary concerns. Cross-contamination can result in significant costs that can quickly run into the millions if a product is recalled. See also the European regulations on food safety and hygiene, EU-VO 178-2002, EU-VO 852-2004 and EU-VO 882-2004.

Requirements of the industry

It is extremely important for the loading industry to know the cleaning processes used and to know how the cleanliness or hygiene of a transport container is checked and documented. When cleaning food and feed transport containers, the ENFIT cleaning programs should be used. When using the ENFIT cleaning program, the industry receives a complete overview of the specific process flow, the duration of the cleaning, the cleaning agents used and the temperatures used.

From the point of view of the industry, it should already be precisely defined when the order is placed with the logistician/transporter, according to which standard the cleaning should be carried out. This is the only way to ensure that transport hygiene can be safely maintained.

It is recommended that the cleaning result is checked and documented. There are different test methods for this. We recommend our members the hygiene test with the CleanCard PRO. See also the details in the ENFIT Guideline.