Study of Poultry Processing Characterizes Ergonomic Hazards, Peracetic Acid Exposures
A study funded by the United States Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) found that 81 percent of workers at poultry processing establishments were at increased risk of developing musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). The study included more than 1,000 workers at 11 establishments whose evisceration lines, where workers remove organs and clean carcasses, operated at speeds between 140 and 175 birds per minute.
Released in January, the study did not find an association between line speed and MSD risk. Instead, MSD risk was greater among workers who worked at a higher piece rate, regardless of line speed. Piece rate, a measure of the number of chicken parts handled per minute by a worker, can be lowered by increasing staffing levels, for example.
Regardless, the high rate of MSD risk indicates problems with poultry establishments’ risk mitigation practices, according to the study.
“A substantial proportion of workers who were surveyed reported experiencing moderate to severe levels of work-related pain, causing some to have difficulty maintaining the pace of their work or to consider quitting their job,” the study report reads. “Further, pain interfered with some workers’ activities outside of work and resulted in others taking time off from work.”
The study also assessed exposures to peracetic acid, or PAA, a chemical used as an antimicrobial processing aid in poultry establishments. Twenty-one percent of the 61 establishment-specific jobs for which PAA sampling was conducted had exposures that exceeded the ACGIH short-term exposure limit (STEL) of 0.4 ppm for 15 minutes.
PAA exposure has been associated with lacrimation, irritation of mucous and nasal membranes, and respiratory tract symptoms including wheezing, coughing, shortness of breath, and chest tightness. Research also suggests that workers exposed to PAA may develop occupational asthma.
OSHA does not have a permissible exposure limit for PAA, nor has NIOSH established a recommended exposure limit. According to the FSIS study, California OSHA proposed an eight-hour PEL of 0.15 ppm and NIOSH proposed an IDLH (immediately dangerous to life or health) value of 0.55 ppm. The National Research Council Acute Exposure Guideline Levels (AEGLs) specify ten-minute threshold levels of 0.17 ppm for non-disabling irritation and 0.5 ppm for disabling irritation.
The Poultry Processing Line Speed Evaluation Study is available from the FSIS website.
Related: Read more about peracetic acid’s uses and hazards as well as sampling considerations in The Synergist.
