Cleaning surfaces, floors, and equipment in institutional catering
Cleaning and disinfection in professional kitchens are central to hygiene in the food service industry . Using kitchen degreasers for thorough cleaning is a prerequisite for any disinfection process. Clean floors and surfaces are the foundation for effective disinfection, preventing contamination of food or food preparations. We offer a full range of professional kitchen cleaning products to guarantee thorough cleaning of all your stainless steel surfaces, as well as kitchen utensils and equipment such as fryers, sauté pans, ovens, etc.
Professional kitchen degreaser: selection and use
A degreaser usable in a professional kitchen environment must first and foremost meet the requirements of the directive relating to products and foodstuffs in contact with food .
In France, a 1973 decree mandates that all producers and processors of food for human and animal consumption ensure the cleanliness of surfaces and equipment that come into contact with food. To this end, only cleaning products whose ingredients have been approved either by an ANSES (French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety) opinion or by being included on the positive list established by the decree of September 8, 1999, as amended in 2013, are permitted. This regulation is specific to the French market.
How to choose your professional degreaser?
Maintaining a clean and hygienic professional kitchen, particularly one compliant with HACCP standards, is a priority to guarantee food safety and optimize equipment lifespan. One of the most important steps in this maintenance is degreasing. Indeed, germs thrive primarily on poorly cleaned surfaces... Where there is "food" for bacteria and other germs, there is significant growth . Therefore, the prerequisite for a germ-free surface is that it be perfectly clean.
This is where the use of a powerful and suitable professional degreaser becomes necessary!
Why go through this degreasing and cleaning phase?
First, as we saw earlier, it's a matter of hygiene and preventing contamination: Grease can promote the growth of bacteria and germs, beyond the risks to fresh food that will be prepared and served to customers or the public! By keeping surfaces clean and grease-free, we reduce the risk of food poisoning.
Extending the lifespan of your kitchen equipment and preserving its durability also requires meticulous maintenance. Grease residue can damage kitchen appliances . Regularly degreasing surfaces and equipment prolongs their lifespan.
Compliance with standards, and particularly HACCP regulations, requires a high level of hygiene . Using a suitable degreaser is therefore essential to meet these standards. Remember that if you are a private establishment open to the public , you can be inspected at any time by the DDPP ( Departmental Directorate for the Protection of Populations) or the DSV (Departmental Directorate of Veterinary Services), and that non-compliant hygiene can lead to temporary or permanent administrative closure as well as substantial fines.
Finally, a clean work environment fosters a sense of quality and commitment among your employees or agents. A clean, tidy, and well-organized kitchen contributes to well-being and ensures high-quality work.
Professional kitchen degreaser: powerful but intended for trained personnel only!
The use of professional degreasers should not be taken lightly, as the composition and therefore the use of a professional product requires appropriate knowledge and training.
Among degreasers, a distinction must be made between degreasers for cooked-on grease, which are mainly used on grills, ovens, cooker hoods, fryers, etc.
These degreasers for oven grills and fryers are traditionally cleaners with a fairly high pH and are very alkaline products.
In this section we have grouped together multi-surface kitchen degreasers that can be used for manual washing on floors and surfaces or with a central hygiene system .
These products have an alkaline pH, but lower than a degreasing product for carbonized grease.
They are also used either ready-to-use in the form of sprayers or diluted according to the degree of soiling and the surface to be treated.
The different types of kitchen degreasers
There are several categories of degreasers. It's therefore essential to carefully read the chemical base and formulation of your kitchen degreaser. Indeed, certain surfaces cannot withstand specific types of degreasers, and similarly, some degreasers require appropriate personal protective equipment (mask, gloves, or even coveralls).
Alkaline degreasers : Ideal for baked-on and stuck-on grease, they are often used on cooking surfaces. These are the most common type found in the kitchen. They are characterized by a high pH and often need to be diluted.
Chlorinated degreasers : Effective for disinfection, but their use should be limited due to their corrosive potential. Care must be taken with the surface being treated and especially with the agents used, as chlorine can produce fumes, particularly when mixed with other products.
Enzymatic degreasers : These use enzymes to break down fats, offering a gentler and more environmentally friendly solution. The enzymes essentially feed on the fats.
Kitchen degreaser and environmental issues?
The use of professional products such as kitchen degreasers also necessitates consideration of the environmental aspect. Brands like Diversey have developed formulations that take this environmental dimension into account through certifications such as the European Ecolabel, Ecocert, or the Nordic Swan.
Choosing products with these labels guarantees a more eco-responsible formulation and a product that presents fewer risks to workers.
Disinfection of floors, surfaces and equipment in the kitchen - Certibiocide
Cleaning with degreasing and detergent products leaves a surface clean. But what about disinfection? All disinfection necessarily involves a product belonging to the "Biocide" family . The sale and distribution of food-grade disinfectants, in particular, is now subject to the requirement for companies to have validated their competence with Ceribiocide certification .
It is therefore essential to first verify that the company selling and recommending these products holds this certification. Another important point to note is the requirement to disclose the biocidal activity of a product, which by its very nature must be used strictly for professional purposes.
Biocides are divided into 3 categories
Product type 1 (TP1): Human hygiene
The products in this category are biocidal products used for human hygiene, applied to or in contact with human skin, with the main purpose of disinfecting the skin.
Product type 2 (TP2): Disinfectants and algaecides not intended for direct application to humans or animals
Products used to disinfect surfaces, materials, equipment and furniture that are not used in direct contact with food or animal feed.
Product type 4 (TP4): Surfaces in contact with food and feed Products used to disinfect equipment, containers, eating utensils, surfaces or conduits used for the production, transport, storage or consumption of food or feed intended for human or animal consumption.
What is the difference between a degreaser and a disinfectant kitchen cleaner?
This is a legitimate question that users may ask, especially regarding floor and surface cleaning. Why perform two steps (degreasing and disinfecting) when I can do it once? The answer is directly related to how you use your kitchen and the amount of dirt generated.
To clearly distinguish between the two product lines:
The family of kitchen degreasers mainly includes very alkaline products intended to restore surfaces or floors, strip ovens, grills, fryers...etc.
Their composition allows them to treat carbonized or stubborn grease.
A food-grade disinfectant detergent will primarily be developed to meet a list of disinfection standards (dilution and contact time) . Its action will therefore focus on hygiene. However, these disinfectants are formulated with a detergent base that gives them cleaning and degreasing power. Their cleaning/degreasing action will never be as powerful as a degreaser, but it will meet the daily cleaning needs of lightly soiled floors and surfaces.
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