Flour Dust Advice
Controlling flour dust - an ongoing issue
Flour dust exposure continues to be a significant concern for bakers, posing serious health risks, including occupational asthma. According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), flour and grain dust are among the most frequently cited causes of occupational asthma by chest physicians. Occupations such as 'bakers and flour confectioners' have the highest rates of new cases, alongside isocyanates and car paint technicians.
From 2010 to 2019, the average rate of new reported cases of occupational asthma among bakers was 35.5 per 100,000 per year, starkly higher than the overall occupational asthma incidence of 0.56 per 100,000. However, this figure underestimates the actual incidence as it only includes cases referred to consultants and subsequently reported. (HSE (2023) ‘Work-related asthma statistics’)
Calls to the Craft Bakers Association (CBA) helpline indicate frequent service of improvement notices and 'fees for intervention' (FFI). These fees, which increased to £174 per hour in April 2024, can result in invoices exceeding £1,000 when material breaches are identified. In 2023 alone, 67 enforcement notices were served by the HSE to bakeries producing bread, fresh pastry goods, and cakes (Public register of enforcement)