Bakers face asthma risk

Workers - and especially bakers - are still at risk of getting asthma at work, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has reported.

On World Asthma Day, 4 May, the HSE said that work is the cause of asthma for one in 10 of all adult sufferers. Flour and grain are the second biggest cause of occupational asthma, and some 65,000 baking industry workers are at risk from flour dust.

The HSE estimates that around 1,000 workers have developed occupational asthma through flour and grain in the last 10 years.

A survey of 55 bakeries in the UK, conducted for the Advisory Committee on Toxic Substances (ACTS), revealed a low level of compliance with the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations, and poor working practices.

Although 80% of the bakeries surveyed were aware that flour dust is a respiratory sensitiser, only 26% of those with five or more employees had assessed the hazards and completed a written risk assessment. Most bakeries were still using inappropriate work practices, such as flour dusting by hand and cleaning by dry-brushing, and only 27% knew of the exposure limits relating to flour dust.

In the past three years, the HSE has served 73 improvement notices to bakeries relating to flour dust.