Combustible Dust and DSEAR: Explosion Safety in Food Factories

Why this matters in UK food manufacturing Many everyday food ingredients burn explosively as a fine dust cloud: flour, sugar, starch, cocoa, milk powder, cereals and spices. Silos, mills, sifters, dust collectors, spray dryers and bucket elevators can all contain explosive dust clouds. A small first explosion inside equipment can lift settled dust from beams and ledges, creating a much larger second explosion across the building. DSEAR places clear duties on employers, and most of the controls are engineering ones. In plain English A sack of flour will not explode. Flour blown into a cloud, in an enclosed space, with a spark or hot surface, can. Keep dust inside the equipment, keep it off the ledges, and keep ignition sources away from where dust clouds can form. 1. Know the legal framework Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations 2002 (DSEAR): assess the risk, eliminate or reduce it, classify hazardous areas into zones, and use suitable equipment in them.Equipment and Protective Systems Intended for Use in Potentially Explosive Atmospheres Regulations 2016: equipment for zoned areas must be suitably certified (UKCA Ex…