∑ should be designedand constructed suchthat theycan easilybe cleanedand
disinfected;
∑ should be keptcleanand wellmaintained;
∑ are not to be usedfor othermaterials thanfoodsthat could contaminatefood
transports;^3
∑ should be marked`for foodonly';
∑ should separate foods (and other loads) sufficiently to avoid cross-
contamination during combinedtransport;
∑ should be cleanedsufficientlyin betweendifferentloads,to avoidcross-
contamination.
This law doesnot contain any specificinstructionson temperature and hygiene
management. It doesobligetransport operatorsto establisha certified Hazard
AnalysisCritical Control Point(HACCP) schemeto minimise the foodsafety
risks,or to adoptthe hygienecodeof the Dutchtransportboard(Transporten
LogistiekNederland).^4 The majorityadopted the hygienecode.The groupof
transport operators withtheirown HACCP schemesgrowssteadily.The hygiene
codeis a largedocumentthat covers all typesof transportation and foodsand is
consequently not clear and precise. It does contain lists of required and
recommended transport temperatures for foodstuffs, the preferred stacking
arrangementsfor palletsin truckswithout interfering withthe circulationof
chilled air, drafts for cleaning plans,etc. The HACCP schemesof individual
transport operatorscontaincleardailyworking routinesthat statehowoften
unitsof transport equilibriumare cleaned,howthey are cleaned,howthe
effectivenessof the cleaning operation is monitored,at which temperatures the
foodsare transported and howthesetemperaturesare monitoredand controlled.
Boththe hygienecodeand the HACCP schemes of individualtransport
companiesare not publicly available as literature. Consequently, it is not
possible for interestedthirdparties to verifyif a certaintransportcompanyreally
puts effortinto hygiene.Retailersand foodcompanies that ordertransportation
generally havefull insightin the hygiene schemes that the operator follows.
Consumersand independent researchersdo not haveaccess to theseschemes.
They are informedthat a transportoperatoris ISO certified or followsthe BRC
standard,but this doesnot give informationon how cleanthe truckactuallyis. In
orderto gain moreconfidence fromthe generalpublic by showingthat transport
operators reallyact on foodsafety,it would be wiseto be moreopenon these
hygiene issues. For instance, as a first step transport companies could describe
on theirwebsiteshowoftenand welltrucks are beingcleaned.^5
25.4 Examples
De GreefWoudenberg BV, a transport company in the middleof The Netherlands,
is puttingmucheffortin maintaininga highlevelof hygienein its transportation
activities.The majorityof the productstransportedare completeroundDutch
cheeses and packed fresh meat produce. Occasionally hung carcasses are
398 Handbookof hygiene controlin the foodindustry