Food grade trailers are used for transporting food products that are consumed by humans or animals. These are very important for your trucking or transportation business because transporting food safely is always a priority. In this article, we’ll cover everything you need to know about food grade trailers and tankers.
What Are Food Grade Trailers?
Food grade trailers are those which you basically use for transporting food products safely for human/animal consumption. These are used when you need to transport liquid and dry foods in bulk. These trailers play an important role to make sure that every consumer receives food products without any contamination.
As food safety is always the topmost priority, you must make sure your trailers follow the industry regulations strictly. It is very important to ensure you clean the food grade trailers perfectly so that they cause no contamination. The temperature needs to be controlled carefully and there should be no exposure to moisture. Companies usually keep detailed records and do thorough testing to ensure human safety.
Different Types of Food Grade Trailers
Hauling food is very tricky as every trailer is not equipped to carry all types of food. You can use common dry vans to haul packaged and finalized food products if they don’t need special care. However, for liquids, grains, perishables, and temperature-sensitive goods, you need special types of food grade trailers or tankers.
Food Grade Tankers
Food grade tankers are mostly used for the safe transportation of the consumable liquid food products. These tankers will deliver your bulk liquid items from production centers to the factories safely for the final processing. When the final processing and packaging is done, the goods are ready for retail sale. You can use these tankers for moving liquid items like:
- Milk
- Dairy products
- Juices
- Oils
- Alcohols
- Vinegar
- Syrup
Stainless steel is the most commonly used material for the food grade tanks. The material is easy to clean, durable, and resistant to corrosion. So if you are concerned about contamination, stainless steel can be your reliable and go-to choice. Aluminum can also be an option if you need something lightweight and resistant to corrosion. Fiberglass-reinforced plastic (FRP) and carbon steel can also be your options though they are not very common.
Capacity of the food grade tankers may vary depending on their size and architecture. Larger tankers can hold up to 7000-10,000 gallons of liquids and smaller tankers generally hold between 2000-5000 gallons.
Dry Bulk Trailers
You can use dry bulk trailers for transporting large amounts of dry food items safely, preventing any kind of contamination. As they don’t carry any harmful or dangerous goods, they’re also called non-code tankers. These trailers carry all kind of dry food materials such as:
- Grains
- Cereals
- Salt
- Sugar
- Powdered milk
- Cocoa
- Animal feed
Capacities of the dry bulk trailers usually vary according to their size and structure. Smaller trailers can carry around 550 cubic feet while larger ones have capacities ranging from 1000 to 2800 cubic feet.
Refrigerated Trailers or Reefers
You might choose refrigerated trailers, also known as reefers, to transport your temperature-sensitive perishable goods. Reefer trucks are designed with an advanced cooling system to help you maintain your desired temperature for the cargo.
These trailers are equipped with a refrigeration system so that food items can be stored in the right temperature. Various components include compressor, condenser, evaporator, fans, control unit, and insulation. You must make sure that your trailer’s components and equipment are functioning perfectly. Otherwise, there’s a good chance of your cargo being spoiled.
Reefer trailers usually carry perishable goods such as:
- Fruit
- Vegetables
- Meat
- Dairy
- Frozen food
- Medicines
Key Features and Safety Standards of Food Grade Trailers
In the following subsections, we’ll go over the materials and construction of food grade trailers and tankers. We’ll also let you know what sanitation standards you need to follow for public safety. Lastly, you’ll get to know how to prepare your trailer for liquid and climate-sensitive food.
Materials and Construction
What type of trailer you can use to carry food mostly depends on whether it’s dry, packaged, liquid, or frozen. For dry or packaged food that’s not temperature-sensitive, you can just use a dry van or semi-trailer. You can use enclosed trailers made with aluminum, stainless steel, or food grade plastic. You should not use trailers with wooden interiors because nails or wooden parts can often damage your goods.
Liquids like milk or juice can be carried in tankers with stainless steel, aluminum or food grade plastic interior. You need to haul frozen or climate-sensitive food in temperature-controlled or refrigerated trailers like reefers. For all kinds of food, you need to make sure there’s no moisture in the trailer. You should always keep the Inside of the trailer clean and humidity-free.
No matter what type of food you haul, you must always make sure the interior is constructed with non-reactive material. The materials you choose must be durable and easy to clean. Your trailer should not have a translucent roof like a conestoga because the sun’s heat might damage the food inside. You can use steel, aluminum, or even a kevlar roof for your food grade trailer.
Safety and Sanitation Standards
While transporting food, you’ll find that every food shipper around the world has their own guidelines regarding safety and sanitation. On top of that, you might find several administrative, national, state-wide, or local rules and regulations. Food shippers and authorities will generally inspect the trailer and its history before you can haul food in it.
You may also need local or authoritative certificates to prove that you and your trailer are eligible to haul food. These authorities or shippers always put the safety of the food before its quality. The logic behind that is: you can safely eat a melted chocolate bar but you can’t eat a contaminated one. So, you must make sure that your food grade trailer won’t contaminate the food products.
Your trailer must be thoroughly cleaned before and after the haul. You also have to make sure that there’s no moisture or allergens in your truck, trailer, or tanker. You must also make sure that no garbage, hazardous material, or hazardous waste was not carried before the food haul. Safety during loading and unloading is also very important. Some authorities even require you to go through special training to carry food products.
Liquid Hauling and Temperature Control
To carry liquid food, you must use a tanker trailer that meets the safety standards. For hauling liquids, you need to thoroughly clean your tanker trailer using a pump or an air compressor. Use both for sticky liquids like honey. You’ll also need to use the same equipment to fill the liquid tanker. The pump or air compressor also needs to be properly cleaned before and after use. You can’t use air compressors to clean flammable liquids like alcohol.
Hauling temperature-sensitive products needs more safety procedures. You need to use refrigerated trailers or reefers to haul food that are frozen or need climate control. Maintaining the optimal temperature is a must. That’s because the food or liquid may solidify in a colder temperature or expand in a hotter temperature. Some food may need the reefer to be pre-cooled so that the food’s temperature remains optimal at all times.
Benefits of Using Food Grade Trailers
Below we’ve pointed out a few benefits of using a food grade trailer for your freight business.
- You can ensure the safety and quality of the food you haul
- You reduce the risk of contaminating the cargo
- You can carry liquids, grains, packaged and refrigerated food
- You can prevent the cargo from damage
- You reduce the risk of legal issues by maintaining standards
- You protect the food from external elements
Challenges and Considerations
There are some downsides of using food grade trailers, too. Let’s take a look at them.
- Buying reefers or tankers is more expensive, so you may need initial investment
- Renting food grade trailers and liquid tanker is also more expensive
- Regular cleaning and maintenance requires time and money
- Proper documentation and record-keeping can be tough
- You might need special training
Best Practices for Using Food Grade Trailers
In this section, you’ll learn how to choose the trailer type depending on what food you are carrying. We’ll also give you some tips to maintain the integrity of your food grade trailer. We’ll also talk about training and certifications you might need to get if you want to haul food items.
Selecting the Right Trailer
Below are the types of trailers you should use for different types of food.
- Dry Vans: You can use these food grade trailers to haul finished and packaged products. These may include dry food items, canned goods, packaged milk or other liquids, etc.
- Reefer Trailers: These are for temperature-sensitive food and perishables. Vegetables, fruits, cheese, dairy, frozen food, raw meat and fish, etc. need to be transported in reefers.
- Dry Bulk Tankers: You should use these tanker trailers for dry and grainy food that are not packaged. The list includes flour, sugar, cereal, salt, powdered milk, and any other powdered items.
- Food Grade Tankers: These are specifically used for liquid items that are not packaged. You can use tankers to haul milk, juice, oil, alcohol, honey, syrups and other liquid food.
Maintenance and Cleaning
We’ve already discussed the safety and sanitary standards you need to maintain to haul food in your trailer. Here are a few tips that’ll help you maintain the integrity of your food grade trailer:
- Always clean and sanitize the interior before and after every food haul.
- Use specialized cleaning equipment, conduct regular testing and keep detailed records.
- If you need to rent, check the cleaning records at the trucking company.
- Try not to haul other cargo in your food trailers or tanker.
- Under no circumstances should you haul hazmat or garbage in your food trailer.
- Always make sure that your trailer has no damage.
- Make sure your reefer’s insulation and refrigeration equipment are functioning perfectly.
- Always adhere to local and national food hauling standards.
Training for Drivers and Staff
If you want to haul food, some jurisdictions will require you and your staff to go through special training. Make sure you know the local and national rules and regulations regarding food transportation. If necessary, take proper training and get certifications from authorized institutions. Carry these certifications on your person in case you need to prove that you’re authorized to operate food grade trailers.
How to Protect Your Food Cargo from Contamination
As already mentioned, moisture can be a big downside for your food trailer. Even the smallest trace of moisture can give birth to contaminants like mold or bacteria. Aside from cleaning and sanitization, you should also perform contamination tests. This will ensure your food grade trailer is absolutely ready for business.
Contamination Tests: Direct and Rinse Sampling
These are two methods that you can use to test whether the trailer has cross-contamination or not.
In direct sampling, swabs, wipes, or similar methods are used to analyze and check for unwanted microorganisms. These organisms include fungi, viruses, bacteria, mold, and other biological toxins. This testing is usually done on a nonporous and small surface. So, the test covers just a small portion of your trailer. This leaves a chance to miss the actual contaminated part.
In rinse sampling, your whole trailer is sprayed with a liquid for testing. It covers every part of the internal equipment and surface so that no spot gets missed. The rinse solution or liquid is later collected and tested for cross-contamination. This is a good process as it makes sure that the full interior of your trailer is tested. However, if the contaminant is insoluble in the liquid, the results can be inconclusive.
Conclusion
With all this knowledge about food grade trailers and tankers, you should now be able to make informed decisions. This will help you to run your transportation business efficiently without legal issues. You’ll also be able to maintain the integrity and quality of your goods when you haul food.
FAQ
How do I know if my rented trailer is food grade or not?
Always look for certifications and maintenance records before you rent a food grade trailer. Also make sure that no hazardous or contagious material was hauled in the container.
Can I use chemical tankers to haul food?
No, you should never haul food in a tanker that has been used for transporting chemicals. If you have no choice, make sure it’s properly cleaned and sanitized according to food hauling regulations.
Is running a food freight profitable?
Yes. Even though hauling food can be expensive, the profit margin is also higher.
What is the most important aspect of food hauling?
Food safety always comes first. You must make sure your trailer is in perfect shape and has no contamination.
Are there any rules and regulations regarding food-grade trailers?
Every jurisdiction and food shipper has different sets of rules and regulations. Make sure that your trailer and its equipment are fully compliant with local or national laws and regulations. Get specialized training or certificates if local authorities have rules regarding that aspect.
