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VINYL GLOVES FOR A SAFER FOOD SERVICE

Vinyl gloves for a safer food service

Robin Stone
Moes

Table of Contents
I.

Executive Summary........3

II.

Introduction.........4

III.

Food Safety Challenges.......................5

IV.

Benefits of using disposable vinyl gloves...6

V.

Closing Thoughts8

VI.

References...9

Executive Summary
Safety is one of our top priorities as a company. Not only for us as employees, but for the
customer. As one of the primary handlers of their food, we need to be sure that their food is
safe from beginning of preparation to delivery. We pride ourselves and set a high standard for
safety for all of our stakeholders. And currently, I believe we as a company are not fully living
up to that standard.
The polyethylene hand gloves we use when cutting, cooking, and handling the customers
food are simply not of high quality. The gloves break easily, offer no heat resistance, and have,
on occasion, wound up in customers food.
I believe the solution to our problem is vinyl gloves. They offer better protection since they are
heat resistant and more durable than polyethylene gloves. Although they are more expensive than
polyethylene gloves, vinyl gloves are less likely to break and will therefore last longer,
mitigating the cost. The bottom line is, we need to make the switch sooner rather than later.

Introduction
At Moes Southwest Grill, we give top priority to safety and hygiene. As of late, we have been
received complaints from customer regarding pieces of gloves found in their food. As we use
disposable polyethylene gloves for food service, it has been observed that the gloves melt and
tear apart as a result of heat while cooking the food. This is because the polyethylene gloves
are low in cost and density, and they are not resistant to heat. This causes workers to touch the
food with their bare hands which has a potential of food contamination.
To fix this problem, disposable polyethylene gloves must be replaced by vinyl gloves. Vinyl
gloves are not only heat resistant but are also made of a material safe to human body. They are
unbreakable with strong tensile strength. The vinyl gloves are inexpensive and hence will not
add cost. This solution will definitely help us to limit the complaints from customers and avoid
food contamination problem. A comparative study shows the disadvantages of polyethylene
gloves (See Table 1).
Table 1. Gloves for food services.i

Food Safety Challenges:

Food contamination: Among the many precautionary measures that Moes takes to prevent food
contamination, the use of gloves is made compulsory for food preparation. At Moes, an usual
complain from customers is regarding the portions of glove they find in their food. In a
restaurant like Moes where heating equipment, such as presses, are used to prepare every
product, the gloves that a food service worker uses are subjected to high temperatures. This
exposure to heat dictates that the gloves be heat-resistant.
Disposable gloves are conventionally manufactured from a mixture of polymers, typically a low
density polyethylene and high density polyethylene, because of the low cost of the materials, the
inertness of the materials to a wide range of chemicals, and the flexibility of the gloves over a
wide range of temperatures.ii Food service industry usually uses the low density polyethylene
gloves. These gloves are susceptible to heat, causing the glove to tear apart. The thin material of
the glove and the transparency makes it hard for workers to notice glove portions that
accidentally fall in the food. Workers also continue preparing food with tiny portions of their
gloves torn apart. This causes food to come in direct contact of the workers bare hands. Moes
must shift to high density polyethylene or vinyl gloves to prevent contamination.

Benefits of Using Disposable Vinyl Gloves

A number of significant benefits emerge when disposable vinyl gloves are used in food service
and handling, including:

The material of vinyl is safe to human body. The food-handling gloves in restaurants was
intended to cut down on food-borne illnesses. According to Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, there are millions of Americans who are sick because of illness transmitted by food
workers hand every year. Lightly powdered, heavy weight (3.5 to 6.5 mils thickness)
disposable vinyl gloves are perfect for food service and food handling which last longer than
ordinary disposable gloves. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has reviewed the safety
of vinyl toys, and the F.D.A. has reviewed the safety of vinyl medical devices, and both agencies
have found little to no concern with the vast majority of vinyl products theyve reviewed. I think
that probably says a lot about the safety of vinyl gloves. Allen Blakey who is a spokesman for
the Vinyl Institute said. As a matter of fact, vinyl gloves are produced from materials which fully
comply with FDA Rule 177.1950 for food contact and FDA Rule 110.10 GMP for food
handling. Meanwhile, they are compliant with FFDCA standards for use in foodservice.

Latex-free eliminates allergy concerns. Today, most gloves in the market are made of latex
which is a component of natural rubber. However, allergic reactions may be caused by particles
of latex not only among workers, who wear the gloves in restaurants, but also among customers
who eat food prepared by them. While wearing disposal vinyl gloves, people do not need to
worry about allergy because of they are latex free. The raw material of disposal vinyl gloves
does not contain the ingredients of plasticizer, esters and silicone oil, so they have the feature of
strong chemical resistanceiii.

Greater dexterity and comfort. User will not feel uncomfortable for long-time wearing. The
gloves are unbreakable and resistant to puncture with strong tensile strength. They provide snug
fit capabilities and good degree of dexterityiv.

Provides high heat Resistance. Vinyl are more resistant to ozone and oil than natural rubber
latex (NRL) so that they can be used around heat sources without risk of meltingiv. The heat
resistance of vinyl gloves is far greater than those of polyethylene gloves (see Table 2).
Table 2. Gloves status when new and durability with use or after being sanitized.v

Low cost. As shown in the graphic, the performances of disposable vinyl gloves are not the best
among various material gloves. Another strength for vinyl gloves is low cost, which ensures the
wide use in restaurants and food service industry. The high ratio of cost/performance guarantees
lower expenditure and better service. Although nitrile gloves and PU gloves have better
performance on some aspects, their cost are much higher than disposable vinyl gloves. As a
result, vinyl gloves provides good service with much lower cost, which is most suitable for food
preparation. An industry based comparison shows the cost effectiveness of vinyl gloves (see
Table 3).
Table 3. Comparison guide for glove types used in food processing/service facilities.vi

Closing Thoughts
Considering the benefits which shows how disposable polythene gloves could pose
problems in food service, it is advised that they should be replaced with disposable vinyl
gloves. Vinyl has been considered safe by the Consumer Product Safety Commission and
the F.D.A. The material used in vinyl gloves production complies with FDA rules for food
contact and handling. Also the low cost of vinyl gloves can be considered as deciding factor
over disposable polythene gloves. If the organization chooses to continue with disposable
polythene gloves, it is recommended that food handlers dispose gloves at regular intervals.

References:

WebstaurantStore. Disposable Gloves. WebstaurantStore.com. Retrieved from

http://www.webstaurantstore.com/guide/514/disposable-gloves.html

ii

Inteplast group, ltd.; agency reviews patent application approval request for "disposable gloves and glove material
compositions including a coloring agent". (2013). Food Weekly News, 46. Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com/docview/1323098085?accountid=10920

iii

Dongguan Jiachuang Purification Technology Co.,Ltd (2013). Comparative Analysis of PVC gloves and other
disposable gloves. Retrieved from http://www.dgjc168.com/zh-tw/dgjc168_Article_426603.html

iv

LIU Xue (2012). Energy Saving of PVC Gloves Industry. Shandong Chemical Industry. Retrieved from
http://www.cqvip.com/read/read.aspx?id=41502360

Barry Michaels (2004). Understanding the glove risk paradigm: Part II. Food Safety Magazine. Retrieved from
http://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/magazine-archive1/augustseptember-2004/understanding-the-glove-riskparadigm-part-ii/

vi

Barry Michaels (2004). Understanding the glove risk paradigm: Part II. Food Safety Magazine. Retrieved from
http://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/magazine-archive1/augustseptember-2004/understanding-the-glove-riskparadigm-part-ii/