Sec. 3.19. Construction and repair of containers and equipment—Item 11p

(a) All multiuse containers and equipment with which milk, milk products, whey, and condensed and dry milk products come into contact shall be of smooth, impervious, corrosion-resistant and nontoxic material.

(b) All milk, milk products, whey, and condensed and dry milk product-contact surfaces of multiuse containers and equipment shall consist of:

(1) stainless steel of the AISI (American Iron and Steel Institute) 300 series;

(2) equally corrosion-resistant metal which is nontoxic and nonabsorbent;

(3) heat-resistant glass; or

(4) plastic or rubber and rubberlike materials which are relatively inert, resistant to scratching, scoring, decomposition, crazing, chipping and distortion under normal use conditions, which are nontoxic, fat-resistant, relatively nonabsorbent, and do not impart flavor or odor to the product, and which maintain their original properties under repeated use conditions.

(c) All joints in containers, equipment and utensils shall be flush and finished as smooth as adjoining surfaces. The surface, if vitreous, shall be continuous. Tile floors shall not be used in dryers. Joints on equipment coming in contact with dry products only or used for hot-air piping may be sealed by other acceptable means. Where a rotating shaft is inserted through a surface with which milk, milk products, whey, and condensed and dry milk products come into contact, the joint between the moving and stationary surfaces shall be close-fitting. Grease and oil from gears, bearings and cables shall be isolated from milk, milk products, whey, and condensed and dry milk products. Where a thermometer or temperature sensing element is inserted through a surface with which milk, milk products, whey, and condensed whey or milk products come into contact, a pressure-tight seal shall be provided between the product and all threads and crevices.

(d) All openings in covers of tanks, vats, separators and similar equipment shall be protected by raised edges, or otherwise, to prevent the entrance of surface drainage. Condensation-diverting aprons shall be provided as close to the tank or vat as possible on all pipes, thermometers or temperature sensing elements, and other equipment extending into a tank, bowl, vat or distributor, unless a watertight joint is provided.

(e) All surfaces with which milk, milk products, whey, and condensed and dry milk products come into contact, except pneumatic ducts and cyclonic or air separator collectors, shall be easily accessible or demountable for manual cleaning or designed for mechanical cleaning. All product-contact surfaces shall be readily accessible for inspection and shall be self-draining. Wing nuts, bayonet locks and similar devices shall be used whenever possible to promote easy disassembly.

(f) No threads shall be used in contact with milk, milk products, whey, condensed whey or milk products except where needed for functional and safety reasons, such as in clarifiers, pumps and separators. Such threads shall be of a sanitary type, except those used on high-pressure lines between the high-pressure pump and the dryer nozzle.

(g) All multiuse containers and other equipment shall have rounded corners, be in good repair and free from breaks, crevices and corrosion. Milk cans shall have umbrella-type covers.

(h) Strainers, if used, shall be of perforated metal design, and constructed so as to utilize single-service strainer media. Multiple-use woven material shall not be used for straining milk, provided that, when required for functional reasons inherent to the production of certain products, such as buttermilk, whey, dry whey and dry milk products, woven material may be used where it is impractical to use perforated metal. Woven material parts shall be mechanically cleaned by such methods that thoroughly clean the woven material and do not contaminate the product.

(i) Sifters for dry products shall be constructed so as to utilize single-service or multiservice strainer media conforming with paragraph (b)(4) of this section if plastic material, or paragraph (b)(1) if woven stainless steel wire, or be constructed of cotton, linen, silk or synthetic fibers which are nontoxic, relatively insoluble, easily cleanable and do not impart a flavor to the product. Tailings shall be continuously discharged from sifters through dust-tight connections to an enclosed container. Tailing shall not be used for human consumption.

(j) All single-service containers, closures, gaskets and other articles with which milk, milk products, whey, condensed and dry milk products come into contact shall be nontoxic. Articles intended for single-service use shall not be reused.

(k) All paper, plastics, foil, adhesives and other container components shall be free from deleterious substances and shall comply with the requirements of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, as amended.

Notation

3-A Sanitary Standards for dairy equipment are promulgated jointly by the Sanitary Standards Subcommittee of the Dairy Industry Committee, the Committee on Sanitary Procedure of the International Association of Milk, Food and Environmental Sanitarians, Inc., and the Dairy and Lipid Products Branch, Division of Food Technology, Bureau of Foods, Food and Drug Administration, Public Health Service, Department of Health and Human Services. Equipment manufactured in conformity with 3-A Sanitary Standards complies with the sanitary design and construction standards of this Part.