Choosing protective clothing in agriculture

There’s a lot of protective clothing used in the agricultural industry. This clothing provides protection to both the products and the personnel that comes in contact with all sorts of fruit and vegetables. In order to choose the right disposable clothing for the job you first need to make an assessment of the priorities. If all requirements are in focus, the right choices can be made. The general priorities in this sector usually entail cost, protection and hygiene. The last aspect will not only benefit the employees but also influence the profit potential of the company.

More information can be found on www.thaly.nl.

The various types of clothing
There are several basic types of protective clothing used in the agricultural sector. These are the most widely used types of disposable clothing:

Gloves and shoe covers
Although gloves can protect the employee they can also protect the products. By adhering to the current rules and regulations concerning hygiene in the food processing industry you can avoid cross contamination and premature decay of fresh fruit and produce. At the same time the personnel is protected from elements like poison and waste products. While choosing protective gloves, take the use of sharp objects like scissors and knives into consideration, some gloves have better resistance to abrasions than others.

Hair nets and mouth guards
These types of protective clothing are mainly for the protection of the products. People lose many hairs during the course of the day, keep them out of your food products. Mouth guards protect delicate products from gases and bacteria. The user is also protected, do realize most mouth guards do not protect adequately against harmful chemicals and hazardous gases.

Overalls and laboratory coats
Always choose non-woven materials for these types of protective clothing. Non-woven materials do not exhibit pilling so the environment remains clean and dust free. Although overalls offer protection against dust, filth and waste products for the employee keep in mind most disposable products are not water resistant.

How to calculate the costs
Cheaper materials are not always cheaper in use. Take disposable gloves for instance. If you would choose cheap Vinyl gloves that tear quickly you’d use a lot of gloves in a working day if these gloves are required at all times. In that case more expensive yet more durable Nitril gloves would be more cost effective. Furthermore, some gloves are sold by the pair, there are also gloves for both right handed and left handed use. So if one wears out you will not need to replace a pair.

On the other side of the equation you don’t always need the expensive product. If a disposable glove is used for a couple of minutes at a time for general purposes, by all means use a cheaper alternative. You can buy in bulk and try to save money, yet a more tailored approach can save you considerable amounts of money in the long run. You will get the best deal if you create a specific list of requirements and present those to the supplier. They will offer you a custom solution that fits...like a glove.

For more information:
www.thaly.nl