TruckandTrackSummer2020

www.truckandtrack.com Summer 2020 Truck and Track 59 DANGEROUS GOODS During these days of pestilence, with Covid-19 in our midst, supply chains have to factor in reducing volumes of dangerous goods requiring transportation, due to a fall in demand for these products in UK and global manufacturing industries. Conversely, there has been an increase in foodstuffs requiring transportation/storage, together with uplifts of associated cleaning, hygiene and pest control chemicals essential for the robust operation of food manufacturing, processing and packaging plants. These sites require regular deliveries of janitorial chemicals, fumigation products, anti-oxidants, rodent and pest control chemicals (such as UN1397 Aluminium Phosphide,Class4.3inpelletformtocontrolrodentinfestation). Then there’s the growing volumes of hand sanitisers that, in bulk, fall within the DG framework. It should be noted there are foodstuffs that actually fall under ADR/ IMDG rules for carriage, such as potable spirits, concentrated food colourants, flavourings and additives/preservatives/anti-oxidants – and this also includes animal feed/ nutrition. Remember, fishmeal and other selected animal feeds can also fall within the ADR/IMDG framework. Dried fishmeal ( trivially termed ‘Krill’ ) has its own UN Number and Classification within ADR. Krill are invertebrates related to shrimp, and eaten by whales and fish in the oceans. Over 250,000 tonnes of Krill are transported around the world annually, as it is a constituent of fish food for aquariums, fish bait for anglers, production of Essential Fish Oils, such as Omega-3 and additives in pet food, animal feed and organic fertilisers. Dried Krill does have some chemical properties divergent to regular fishmeal such as a higher fat content and Ethoxyquin. Traditional fishmeal is either UN 2216 (Class 9 Environmental Hazard) or UN 1374 (Class 4.2 Spontaneously Combustible), but Krill has been mistakenly classed (by some) as UN 2216, class 9when the hazard is actually 4.2 so Krill finally gets its own specific UN number 3497 with packing groups II or III and class 4.2 Spontaneously Combustible to prevent errors in using UN 2216 which only references the environmental hazard. Staying with the marine theme, I recall being stationed as an Industrial Chemist/Chemicals Inspector in the Middle East in the 1980s. I noticed that it was common practice for an ocean going vessel to be loaded with vegetable oil/edible oils in the Far East, travel by sea to Europe, discharge the cargo, tank clean and then be back-loaded with Chemicals (such as Sodium Hydroxide, Styrene, Mono-Tertiary-Butyl-Ether, Ethylene Dichloride, Styrene, Naphtha, Industrial/Crude Alcohol etc) in the Middle East, and then travel by sea back to the Far East to discharge the Chemicals in the developing economies of India, China, Indonesia, Malaysia etc, then tank clean, and back-load with edible oils (from that region) and head back by sea to Europe. The cycle continues as sea vessels discharge Edible Oils in Europe, reload after tank cleaning in the Middle East with Chemicals destined for the Far East etc. As Chemical surveyors/analysts we monitored quantity and quality of the cargo. This entailed inspecting tanks, hose reels, pipelines as well as we could, even carrying out ‘wall-wash’ tests on tank linings for evidence of contamination, and even ‘first-footing’ (e.g. pumping a ‘foot’ of product, in the tanks, and analysing the product for contamination – a check if any residual ‘last cargo’ was hidden in the pumps, sumps and pipelines). The efficacy in this process in terms of detection of cargo contamination could be variable. This process has been tightened up significantly since, with many vessels having dedicated tanks, pumps and lines for food cargo. Initially, hauliers and shipping companies, with pressure from consignors, had lists of ‘banned previous cargoes’ supplied, but each consignor had variance in their lists of suitable and unsuitable previous cargoes, as well as recommendations for tank cleaning. Regulations at the turn of the decade started tightening up, which many attributed to the 1981 Spanish Toxic Oil Scandal , which resulted in many people taken seriously ill with over 600 fatalities. The cause was traced to the consumption of Colza oil that had been intended for industrial rather than fooduse. It hadbeen imported as cheap industrial oil and refined in Seville, where it was sold as “olive oil” by street vendors at weekly street markets and was used on salads and for cooking. The commonly accepted hypothesis stated that toxic compounds derived during the refinement process, used to remove the aniline and to denature oils intended for industrial use, were responsible. Others conjectured that the poisonings were a result of organophosphate contamination, and/or cross contamination with toxic chemicals. Either way, food regulators were alarmed that chemical contaminants could enter the food chain. National and International regulators, as well as organisations such as The Federation of Oils, Seeds and Fats Associations (www.fosfa.org) a nd The Seed Crushers and Oil Processors Association (www.scopa.org.uk), be came involved with codes of practice and enforcement of updated/augmented regulations to ensure the risk of contamination was reduced considerably. That’s why you see many road barrels clearly marked “For Food Use Only”. SCOPA members are committed to ensuring the highest possible standardsofsafety,hygieneandqualityoftheoilsandfatstheysupply to the food industry. By using a SCOPA-registered Haulier, companies can be confident that each tanker is dedicated to foodstuffs only; meets a strict set of key criteria; that the driver is conversant with the SCOPA Code of Practice for the Transport of Edible Oils and Fats and that a full and accurate record is kept of every load transported in each SCOPA-registered tanker in the SCOPA log book. Supply Chain Planning in these challenging times by Ali Karim Ali Karim In this issue, our Dangerous Goods Columnist, Ali KarimFRSC FCILT, looks into the carriage of foodstuffs and chemicals for food production/processing plants and the issues raised for supply chain planning to prevent cross-contamination of FoodMaterial with ADR/IMDGHazardous Goods. TAILOR MADE VEHICLE & TRAILER SOLUTIONS 01543 420 121 www.deker.co.uk