Occupational health topics

Every year, in food and drink manufacture, around 19,000 workers (nearly 5% of the workforce) suffer from ill health caused or made worse by work. The risk of suffering occupational ill health is around twice that of sustaining an injury reportable to HSE. 

Almost 60% of occupational ill health involves musculoskeletal injury such as back injury from repetitive lifting or work-related upper limb disorders (WRULDs) from repetitive tasks. Work-related stress, which is often cited as a cause of mental ill health, is another major issue causing almost 30% of ill health. Occupational asthma and rhinitis, related mainly to exposure to flour and bakery dusts, causes around 8% of ill health followed by occupational dermatitis (4%) and noise-induced hearing loss (1%). 

Occupational rehabilitation, sometimes known as sickness absence and return to work, has become an essential part of running an efficient business to ensure sickness absence is managed and return to work times reduced.

Main causes of occupational ill health in food/drink manufacture

Percentages for ill health categories

Link URLs in this page

  1. Food & drink manufacturehttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/index.htm
  2. Common risks - in food and drink manufacturing industrieshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/industries.htm
  3. Meat, poultry and fishhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/slaughter.htm
  4. Milling, animal feedshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/grain.htm
  5. Bakery productshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/bakery.htm
  6. Dairy productshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/dairy.htm
  7. Fruit and vegetableshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/fruitveg.htm
  8. Alcoholic and soft drinkshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/drink.htm
  9. Chilled and frozen products https://www.hse.gov.uk/food/chilled.htm
  10. Supply chainhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/chain.htm
  11. Safety risks overviewhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/safety-hazards.htm
  12. Manual handlinghttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/handling.htm
  13. Slips on wet or contaminated floorshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/slips.htm
  14. Falls from heighthttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/falls.htm
  15. Workplace transporthttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/transport.htm
  16. Struck by somethinghttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/struckby.htm
  17. Overview - Food processing machineryhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/machinery.htm
  18. European CEN 'C' Standards for food processing machineshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/standards.htm
  19. Packaging machineryhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/package.htm
  20. Overview - Prevention of dust explosionshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/dustexplosion.htm
  21. Selection and use of vacuum cleanershttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/dustexplosionapp1.htm
  22. Explosion relief for small bins and siloshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/dustexplosionapp2.htm
  23. Overview - Occupational health topicshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/healthtopics.htm
  24. Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)https://www.hse.gov.uk/food/musculoskeletal.htm
  25. Dermatitishttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/dermatitis.htm
  26. Noise induced hearing losshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/noise.htm
  27. Overviewhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/asthma.htm
  28. Low dust flourhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/low-flour-dust.htm
  29. Exposure to disinfectantshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/disinfectants.htm
  30. Work-related stresshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/stress.htm
  31. Overview - Occupational rehabilitationhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/rehabilitation/index.htm
  32. OH Case studieshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/rehabilitation/casestudies.htm
  33. Overview - Resourceshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/information.htm
  34. Case studieshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/experience.htm
  35. Useful linkshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/links.htm
  36. Food and Drink Manufacture Health and Safety Forumhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/forum.htm
  37. Topics of interesthttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/live.htm
  38. Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)https://www.hse.gov.uk/food/musculoskeletal.htm
  39. Work-related stresshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/stress.htm
  40. Occupational asthma and rhinitishttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/asthma.htm
  41. Occupational dermatitishttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/dermatitis.htm
  42. Noise-induced hearing losshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/noise.htm
  43. Occupational rehabilitationhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/rehabilitation/index.htm
  44. Exposure to disinfectantshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/food/disinfectants.htm
  45. A recipe for safety: Occupational health and safety in food and drink manufacture https://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/hsg252.htm
  46. Moving food and drink: Manual handling solutions for the food and drink industries https://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/hsg196.htm
  47. Sound solutions - Reducing noise in food and drink https://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/hsg232.htm
  48. Musculoskeletal disordershttps://www.hse.gov.uk/msd/index.htm
  49. Work related stresshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/index.htm
  50. Asthmahttps://www.hse.gov.uk/asthma/index.htm
  51. Dermatitishttps://www.hse.gov.uk/skin/index.htm
  52. Noisehttps://www.hse.gov.uk/noise/index.htm
  53. Rehabilitationhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/sicknessabsence/index.htm

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Updated 2023-06-15