Food Processing Machine Cleaning and Sanitation SWMS

Suits food and beverage manufacturers, commercial kitchens, butchers, bakeries and contract cleaning teams who clean food processing machines. It covers planning the clean, lock-out, stripping down, chemical mixing and application, high-pressure hot water washdown, wet floors, cleaning inside mixers and tanks, rinsing and returning the machine to service.

Cleaning food processing machinery is not high risk construction work by itself, so a SWMS is legally required under WHS Regulation s 299 only if the cleaning is part of high risk construction work (s 291); otherwise this document works as a written safe work procedure and task risk assessment that records the isolation and chemical controls. Use a separate SWMS for general hazardous chemical work.

New to SWMS? Read What Is A Safe Work Method Statement?

What Is Covered In Our Food Processing Machine Cleaning and Sanitation SWMS?

After the standard pre-start checks, the job steps run from “Plan the clean and prepare the area” to “Clean up, store chemicals and finish”. The hazards and controls include:

• Machines starting during cleaning and stored energy
• Pinch points, rollers, blades and augers
• Caustic and acid chemical burns
• Toxic gas from mixing incompatible products
• Hot water and steam scalds
• High-pressure jet and injection injuries
• Water reaching electrical equipment
• Slips and falls on wet floors
• Entry into mixers, tanks and hoppers
• Chemical residue on food contact surfaces
• Manual handling of guards and heavy parts
• Noise during washdown

High Risk Construction Work

None of the high risk construction work items (WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 291) are pre-ticked, because this job is not high risk construction work by itself. Tick any that apply on your site.

Licences, Training and Competency

• Cleaning staff trained and verified competent in the site’s cleaning procedure for each machine they clean
• Training in the site’s isolation (lock-out) procedure; each cleaner holds a personal lock and tag
• Training in the SDS, safe mixing and first aid for each cleaning and sanitising chemical
• Competent person to complete the confined space risk assessment and entry permit for any entry into a tank, mixer or hopper
• Licensed electrician for any electrical repair beyond switching off and locking out
• First aider on shift briefed on chemical burns, scalds and jet injuries
• Site induction, including the food safety and hygiene rules

Legislation and Codes of Practice Referenced

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)
• Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Labelling of Workplace Hazardous Chemicals Code of Practice 2021
• Confined Spaces Code of Practice 2021
• Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Noise and Preventing Hearing Loss at Work Code of Practice 2021
• Managing the Work Environment and Facilities Code of Practice 2021
• First Aid in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks Code of Practice 2021
• Work Health and Safety Consultation, Co-operation and Co-ordination Code of Practice 2021
• Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld)
• Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld): safety switches and tag-and-test duties where manufacturing work (which includes the sorting, processing and packing of food products) is the primary work at the workplace (ss 133 and 134)
• Electrical Safety Code of Practice 2021 – Managing electrical risks in the workplace

What You Get

• An editable Microsoft Word document (14 A4 landscape pages). Type your business, client and job details once and they fill in on every page, with a space for your logo
• 10 job steps for this work, each with its hazards, controls, initial and residual risk scores and the person responsible
• PPE listed for this job: chemical-resistant gloves rated for the chemicals on the SDS, long enough to cover the wrists; splash goggles and a face shield when mixing, dosing, spraying or washing down
• Emergency arrangements for: chemical in eyes or on skin, person caught in a machine and unexpected gas or fumes from mixed chemicals
• Plus the parts every Work Safety QLD SWMS shares, from the s 291 checklist to the worker sign-on sheet (see the layout in our free SWMS template)

Adjust it for your site, plant and crew, and talk it through with your workers before work starts. Please make sure you read our Disclaimer before downloading this SWMS.

Checked against the Queensland laws and codes of practice listed above. Last reviewed October 2026.