As an exciting next step in our sustainability journey, Vikan will be replacing some petroleum-based raw materials with bio-based alternatives.

This final blog in the series emphasises the importance of pest prevention within a food site and the need for sanitary storage, handling, and transportation of food products.

Food safety regulations, standards, and guidance often require businesses to implement rigorous hygiene and food safety practices and maintain detailed records, often based on HACCP and GHP.

This blog emphasises the importance of developing, implementing, and maintaining the risk-based sanitation control programs and procedures necessary to ensure the production of safe high-quality foods.

We are excited to announce a new pilot program utilizing regenerated polypropylene by-product in our food-contact compliant tools.

Remco is changing our name to Vikan North America to better align with our parent company. Remco is proud to be a part of the Vikan family!

Part 4 of our series discusses effective ways of managing hygienic zones and environmental monitoring zones that ensure that cross-contamination risks can be prevented, eliminated, or significantly minimized.

Over 3,400 attendees worldwide from the regulatory, academic, industry, and professional advocacy sectors collaborated to advance the best-in-class science, technology, and policy updates on food safety and sanitation at IAFP 2024.

During our “Food Hygiene and Sanitation Updates for Key GFSI-Benchmarked Schemes” webinar, our resident experts shared how to maximize food safety through compliance with the hygiene and sanitation requirements of the most popular GFSI-benchmarked certification schemes.

In Part 3 of this series, we will focus on the importance of laying out an appropriate food processing environment and controlling the processes effectively to minimize the risk of product contamination.

Read on for 6 of our top questions and answers from our recent hygienic design webinar.

In this blog, we will explain why hygienic design matters when considering the selection and installation of food processing area equipment and facilities.

The safety and quality of food products rely greatly on the sanitation of the processor’s equipment and environment. Close to 18 years of data has shown that overall, 1-in-3 inspection violations in a facility may be directly related to insanitary equipment or environment.

Two of our primary areas of focus are aimed at minimising the amount of materials we use and lowering our CO2 emissions.

At less than a month away from 2024, we wanted to share some key highlights of 2023 from the food hygiene and sanitation industry sectors within North America in this blog.

We have developed the Vikan Hygiene Product Take-Back programme – a solution to remedy the environmental challenges associated with the disposal of multi-material cleaning tools.

During our Food Safety Culture webinar, industry experts discussed how simple techniques, such as the use of color-coding, helps employees practice food safety behaviors consistently and promotes a culture of producing safe and high-quality food.

The Virtual Site Survey concept helped to solve a daunting issue during the pandemic, but it also has another huge advantage—a possible reduction in our collective environmental footprint. This service, which doesn't require travel, is a great alternative to our in-person Site...

Drains can present specific challenges to the overall sanitation efforts within food sites, as they can act as collection sinks and harbourage points for contaminants such as microbial pathogens and biofilms from where they may grow and spread to other areas of the facilities...

At IAFP 2023, over 3,500 food safety professionals from about 58 countries came together to advance the best-in-class science, technology, and policy developments on food safety and sanitation through their participation.

At Vikan we have always focussed on the production of high quality, durable tools that provide our customers with good value for money. This durability can also be considered a great asset when it comes to sustainability.

We’re incredibly excited to announce the acquisition of WRD Wells-Australia and Wells Hygiene-New Zealand. With over 95 years of industry experience, and with 50 of those as our exclusive partner, Wells brings extensive knowledge and capability to the Vikan family.

During our “Foreign Body Prevention Strategies” webinar, industry experts discussed metal detection, x-ray inspection, and other foreign body controls. These are your top 10 questions, answered by our experts.

Hand washing is a basic, yet critical personal hygiene practice for preventing contamination and disease within food handling establishments. According to the CDC, about 89% of foodborne illness outbreaks occur due to inadequate hand washing by food workers.

We believe insights from different departments strengthens the Green Team, helping them to pinpoint opportunities for measurable action throughout the entire company.

The National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) recently presented Remco’s own Amit M. Kheradia with its prestigious dual certification credential, REHS/Registered Sanitarian.

During our Hygiene in Food Retail webinar, we took audience questions. Here are the top 6.

Becoming more green in an industry that requires virgin, non-recycled plastic is not a simple task. However, that does not mean that Vikan isn’t rising to the challenge.

During our “Hygiene in High-Risk Food Production: Keep it Clean and Chill” webinar, Deb Smith from Vikan and David Buckley from Diversey discussed the key food hygiene and sanitation challenges and solutions associated with high-risk food production facilities.

A question we get asked a LOT about is the use of sponges and scourers for cleaning and, like most things in the food industry, the answer should be based on risk assessment.

2022 might have been labeled as the year of a triple whammy. The continuing COVID-19 pandemic (though waning down in certain regions and countries), the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and ensuing climate change characterized by floods, hurricanes, and elevated temperatures – all...

As a product specialist and a hygiene expert, I’m often asked to go into food processing facilities to help suggest tools or best practices, which is made easier by use of the Microsoft HoloLens.

Following our “Dry Cleaning: Is Water Friend or Foe in Food Safety and Sanitation?” webinar, Deb Smith from Vikan and Karl Thorson from General Mills received over 130 questions. These are their top 9 Q&As.

Remco is pleased to announce that the Virtual Site Survey pioneered by Vikan won the Best New Product/Service from SOFHT. Virtual Site Surveys have received positive feedback from Remco's customers in the U.S. and Canada, as well as from Vikan's international customers.

New health and safety considerations, accelerated digitisation, technological advances, and new ways of working—the pandemic created many challenges over the last couple of years. With customer service being a top priority at Vikan, we felt this survey would prove helpful.

In the biofilms and drain cleaning webinar, we had so many great questions from our audience that we weren’t able to answer them all at the time. Below is a list of the top 8 questions answered by our Vikan and ACO Drainage hygiene experts.

Cronobacter is a ubiquitous bacterium found naturally within the environment that can also survive in low-moisture foods. The unusual ability of Cronobacter to survive in these foods makes it a pathogen of concern in dry food production.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the U.S. Steel City, hosted the IAFP 2022 Conference from July 31st to August 3rd. Around 3,000 food safety professionals from across the globe, representing regulatory, academia, industry, and advocacy, assembled in solidarity to advance the best-in-...

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced the USDA’s new comprehensive framework in early June 2022. The framework aims to strengthen the food supply chain and transform food systems to be fairer, more competitive, and more resilient, and its announcement comes on th...

The FDA emphasizes the importance of food safety culture and the Foodborne Outbreak Response Improvement Plan

Remco and Vikan hygiene experts answer the top 5 audience questions from our 5S and food safety webinar.

In this, our final Blog in the series, we’ll look at the EU and U.S. food safety and hygiene regulatory requirements, key industry and global standard requirements, and the best sanitation practices that support a manual cleaning operation.

In part five, we are going to briefly focus on understanding the relevant departments involved during the cleaning and sanitation process within a food facility.

In part four, we will explain the basics of how to identify the locations or areas that require cleaning, and how to determine how often they’ll need cleaning. These steps are very important for the establishment of the consistently sanitary environment required for safe food...

In this third part of our six-part Blog on cleaning, we address the key question: how is the manual cleaning process typically implemented?

In numerous instances, manual cleaning offers the best practical option for cleaning, especially when it comes to cleaning of complex equipment.

This blog series will go over the various ins and outs of manual cleaning and why it is necessary for the safe production of food.

What foods do you associate with Salmonella? Most likely your answer will be raw meat and eggs, not flour or nuts. Nevertheless, Salmonella is a very resistant bacterium and can survive in all kinds of foods.

One of the great things about working for an organisation like Vikan is that I get to support the food industry and advance food safety through many different avenues. I was involved with a CampdenBRI member-funded research project to update guidelines.

This blog post focuses on how you avoid the worst potential pitfalls of a new colour-coding system.

Do you know how important the mechanical action applied during cleaning is in removing biofilms? If you don’t already know, you’ll find the answer here.

Here are some of the key things to be aware of when you’re planning to colour code.

Advice to hotels, restaurants and catering (HoReCa) establishments on hygiene measures prior to re-opening.

The global COVID-19 pandemic is having an impact on us all. To ensure the continued provision of key products and services at this time, governments around the world have identified ‘key workers’ whose activities are critical to the COVID-19 response.

The Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) brings together key actors of the food industry to collaboratively drive continuous improvement in food safety management systems around the world.

Food handling utensils like buckets, scoops, scrapers, and shovels play an essential role in food processing environments. As food contact surfaces themselves, food handling utensils should possess characteristics that enhance food safety rather than create additional risks.

Why should your cleaning tools and utensils be color coded? It is a question we’re often asked, even though it makes sense to many. Here is how we answer the question.

This blog post provides information on selection and maintenance of food industry cleaning tools and utensils, with regard to minimising the risk of product contamination by foreign bodies.

Customer satisfaction is a top priority at Vikan, and every couple of years we put ourselves to the test by asking our customers how they think we’re doing.

Easy to clean Vikan Ultra Safe Technology products have delivered an outstanding cleaning standard for a large UK deli and meats manufacturer.

Food industry customers often ask us about the best way to clean up glass breakages and the resulting debris. Fortunately, Vikan has experienced Customer Service and Technical Sales Teams, and a dedicated Hygiene Team ready to help you with good practical advice about this.

Cross-plant colour coding for hygiene equipment boosts effectiveness in four Refresco beverage bottling plants in Germany.

How to minimise allergen cross-contamination using colour-coded equipment and colour-coded site segregation.

Vikan Declarations of Compliance(DoC) are your guarantee that Vikan plastic cleaning equipment and food handling tools contain no toxic substances that could contaminate food. Vikan DoCs are clear, easy to read and always up to date.

Get valuable insights from Dr. Phil Voysey to where to look for listeria in a food production and how to prevent cleaning tools from cross contaminating. Learn more about listeria and read Dr. Phil Voysey’s blog post here.

Ever wondered what the Vikan name means, and where it comes from? Here’s the answer

What’s in a brush? Well, it’s a question we take very seriously – and quite literally. As a matter of fact, you can trace the entire 125-year history of our company by examining the materials that comprise the products we make.

In his memoir, Life and Works, Vikan founder A.P. Pedersen recounts a number of experiences from the company’s earliest days and reflects upon these as an older man looking back on his life. Some of the stories he tells seem to have a special resonance for us at Vikan. They ha...

There is no doubt that Vikan’s 125 years of growth – and the company’s current position as global market leader – are closely linked to technology.

If you produce chilled, ready-to-eat foods, you’ll need to know where you have to clean to avoid food contamination. This post details the most common Listeria hideouts – and how to clean for this dangerous bacteria.

Today, the best way to make your investment in Vikan profitable is to have a customised site survey carried out. In sectors with high hygiene requirements, such as food preparation environments, the inspection of cleaning equipment is essential in any effective hygiene man...

At the centre of our work with food safety and hygiene is our dedicated Hygiene Department. Find out what they can do for you!

During our travels and many site visits, we are often asked: “What makes Vikan different from our competitors?” Well, the short answer is our company’s purpose.

Don’t rush. Take a breath and start paying careful attention to the buckets in used in the food and beverage sector.

When it comes to cleaning walls in your factory, forget hiring a cherry picker and scrubbing with hand cloths, Vikan have a solution which will remove dirt easily and effectively in a short space of time.

Read Vikan’s recommendations on how to avoid this frustrating problem.

Vikan's UST brushware reduces bristle loss and helps protect your business from foreign body complaints – read more.

Storage of cleaning equipment is a hot topic within the food industry and quite rightly so! What are the best options available for you?

Finding the right Vikan squeegee for the right job helps you raise hygiene standards as well as boosting your employees’ job satisfaction.

What information is mandatory in a Declaration of Compliance (DoC)? The nine items you need in a DoC.

Here at Vikan providing the best customer service and customer experience is at the heart of everything that we do. We don’t want our distributors or end users feeling like their Vikan bucket is half empty due to a disappointing experience with us. We strive for that bucket to...

Safe Quality Food (SQF) is a GFSI-benchmarked food safety and quality management system standard. As a globally recognized certification program that covers the food supply chain (from primary production to food service), it is a popular standard in the U.S. and Canada.

For customers with food allergies, the simple pleasure of consuming a confection could have disastrous effects. Individuals with food allergies can rapidly develop symptoms of fever, vomiting, asthma, skin rashes, and hives, or they may even enter mild-to-severe anaphylactic s...

Ten years ago, on January 4th, President Obama signed into law the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). This act enables the FDA to better protect public health by focusing more on preventing food safety problems rather than simply reacting to them.

Vikan has proudly provided tools and guidance to help food manufacturers mitigate the risk of Covid-19 in production facilities while maintaining their high food safety and quality standards and are now playing a critical role in the distribution of Covid vaccines across the U.S.

Cleaning equipment can become vectors of cross-contamination in plants if tools are inappropriately selected, used, cleaned, stored, or maintained.

Vikan NA is proud to have participated in the USDA-FSIS virtual public meeting on Salmonella. The forum discussed the agency’s Salmonella reduction efforts.

Food processing regularly involves frying, roasting, pasteurization, and sterilization—all of which require varying degrees of heat. These hot surfaces call for tools that can withstand high temperatures to clean or handle food products.

On July 13, the FDA unveiled its master plan for creating a more digital, traceable, and safer food network system that should help bend the curve of foodborne illnesses in the U.S. Frank Yiannas

COVID-19^1,2 is the disease associated with a new strain of coronavirus that was discovered in 2019. This is a look at how it may affect the food industry.

Vehicles have different needs than factories or restaurants when it comes to cleaning. Car paint requires brushes to be soft and yet able to tackle tough grime. Windows need squeegees that are curved to handle the glass of different sizes.

The CFIA enforces the Safe Food for Canadians regulations to establish a modern legislative framework that is aligned with internationally recognized standards.

According to the CDC, an estimated 1.2 million Americans a year get sick from Salmonella infections. Of these, around 23,000 are hospitalized and approximately 450 people die.

Vikan recently asked its business development managers to take the SQF practitioner qualification exam, after many hours of training spread across several months.

Listeria is a very common bacterium that adapts well in many environments. It is found in soil, water, animal guts, and on raw foods, and it can easily be introduced into and spread throughout food production facilities.

Finding the right brush is easier when you understand how bristle stiffness, brush type, and bristle/block attachment play in how a brush functions.

Maintaining hygienic standards is easier when employees have access to the right tools for the job, including the proper brooms. The staff in charge of cleaning will be better able to carry out cleaning tasks with tools that are fit-for-purpose.

Handwashing in the food industry is one of the first lines of defense in food safety. Along with being a consumer health risk, inadequate personal hygiene can lead to costly and reputation-destroying recalls.

We competed as a finalist in two of seven categories at the 2017 Process Expo’s Innovation Showcase with our new Color-Coded Lobby Dustpan Set.

Food production facilities that use color coding to establish zones of control should ensure that visually impaired employees, including those with colorblindness, are not overlooked.

HACCP and HARPC share more than just four letters. They’re both food safety standards based on prevention, but they do differ on execution.

The FDA’s final rule on the sanitary transportation of food went into effect June 6, 2016. Though larger carriers, shippers, and receivers should have their compliance plans in place, smaller companies (fewer than 500 employees and less than $27.5 million in annual receipts) s...

The goal of any good sanitation plan is to minimize cross-contamination and cross-contact through better hygiene and cleaning practices. But—what happens when workers can’t feasibly reach that tall ceiling fixture or get a brush to follow the curves of a spiraling pipe?

Sort, straighten, shine, standardize, and sustain. These five principles comprise the 5S lean manufacturing method that originated in Japan. While 5S can help any organization, the principles contained in the alliterative method should especially appeal to those in food proces...

Remco Products presents Food Industry Counsel’s FDA Inspection Checklist as a part of our commitment to bringing our audience the best information in the food industry.

New cleaning tools—especially those sealed in plastic pouches like the ones from Vikan and Remco—often look like they’re ready for use right out of the bag.

Food contact surfaces like cleaning and material handling tools must comply with the FDA’s rules about what they can contain and how they must be designed.

In the food processing industry, like many factory-based jobs, employee turnover is high. When you’re seeing a turnover rate of about 35% yearly, how do you train your staff to follow important safety plans?

Whether you’re a plant safety officer or a salesperson at a distribution company, here’s what you need to know to gain organizational buy-in.

Non-sparking and anti-static tools both have a common purpose—preventing fires or explosions in production facilities where flammable materials present a concern.

Corporate standardization is an effective tool for streamlining sanitation programs across multiple production facilities.

In many of my visits to food production plants, I see outstanding food safety procedures that can be shared as best practices. One of the easiest and most beneficial best practices to adopt is proper storage of food contact and cleaning tools.

Assuring quality of a manufactured product requires certain procedures and standards. In many industries, these procedures and standards are often referred to as Good Manufacturing Practices, or GMPs.

Food processing facilities turn out many products that nourish and feed our human communities; however, they also provide an attractive environment to encourage the growth of potentially harmful microbiological communities. How does your operation address these risks?

With the proper communication plan in place, your color-coding system has the best chance for successful adoption, helping you mitigate the risk of cross-contamination.

The environment in a food processing facility can be a chaotic place. This is compounded when you bring multiple languages into the mix. Trying to keep everything organized and streamlined can at times be a daunting task.

If your business is food processing, you are no stranger to government rules, regulations, and auditors. Complying with federal food safety regulations is crucial to the success—or even existence—of your operation.

While the FDA does not currently have any standard set rules to follow when it comes to implementing a color-coding program, there are some common best practices that you can follow to get the most out of color-coding the facility.

For food processing facilities, ensuring compliance with food safety regulations set forth by the FDA and other relevant authorities is a critical component of operational success.

Data sheet about chemical resistance.

All types of food processing facilities can benefit from a color-coding program. Not only does it help prevent contamination from pathogens, allergens and foreign contaminants, color coding has a variety of other uses.