Petro-Canada Makes Enhancements to Line of Food-Grade Lubricants

Petro-Canada
Tags: industrial lubricants, greases

Petro-Canada on September 15 announced enhancements to the PURITY FG with MICROL product line with the introduction of PURITY FG2 with MICROL MAX grease. As part of the first industrial strength food grade lubricant line to contain MICROL – an antimicrobial preservative registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for use in food grade lubricants – PURITY FG2 with MICROL MAX has the required industry credentials and fits perfectly in HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point) and GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) plans.

Helping its customers maintain the highest levels of safety standards in their plants and ensuring they preserve their competitive advantage, is Petro-Canada's No. 1 goal. The improvements made to the PURITY FG with MICROL product line address a number of factors including lubricant deterioration, fouling and odour caused by microorganisms.

PURITY FG2 with MICROL MAX maintains consistency and lubrication in the presence of food acids, juices and by-products; it withstands higher temperatures; does not run from bearings under steam cleaning, as well as resists water washout, water jet spray and most sterilizing chemicals used in cleaning. These advancements continue to help Petro-Canada's customers maintain the safest, most competitive food manufacturing plants under extremely demanding conditions.

The product also helps protect a company's machinery, preventing seizure, scuffing and spalling under shock loading conditions and ensures long-term equipment protection from rust and corrosion.

PURITY FG2 with MICROL MAX is available as a grease and compliments the MICROL hydraulic and gear fluid line. It is currently the only food grade lubricant on the market that is fully compliant with both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and EPA regulatory requirements.

It is H1 registered by NSF International and has received Halal Certification. The product also maintains food allergy safety, it is free of gluten, contains no peanuts, tree nuts or their derivatives and is manufactured in a facility that doesn't manufacture, store or otherwise handle any peanut or tree nut product.

"PURITY FG with MICROL continues to bring significant innovations to the food processing industry," says Colleen Flanagan, category portfolio manager, Petro-Canada Lubricants. "The latest generation of PURITY FG with MICROL not only inhibits microbial growth in the lubricant to prevent degradation in plant-tough environments, it operates well under wide temperature swings and resists water washout, a major challenge and concern for most food manufacturing plant managers."

Food processing machinery lubricants have some unique challenges. Stringent regulations, harsh environmental conditions and rigorous plant operations require well-designed food grade lubricants. Petro-Canada has established an excellent reputation in quality and performance with its PURITY industrial food grade line. With the addition of MICROL, a new level in lubricant product protection was achieved. Now with the improvements to the PURITY FG with MICROL product line, Petro-Canada is set to change the face of food manufacturing once again.

In recent Gelda Scientific laboratory testing, in a test modeled after those performed in the pharmaceutical industry, PURITY FG2 with MICROL MAX was found to create a zone of inhibition, an area surrounding the grease that protects it from the growth of microbes that can cause odour and product degradation, to help maintain the lubricant's effective operating condition. Competitive calcium sulphonate and polyurea Food Grade greases that were tested were not able to produce the same zone of inhibition during the testing.

"Petro-Canada is breaking ground in the area of protecting food grade lubricants from deterioration caused by microorganisms," says Dr. Henry Sapiano, manager of R&D, fluids and greases. "Lubricants and greases are the fundamental building blocks of successful food manufacturing processes. Petro- Canada is helping its customers build a better way at each step in the processes."

In 2007, Dr. Henry Sapiano and his team were awarded an International Stevie Award for Petro- Canada's first-generation PURITY FG with MICROL product in the category of Best New Product or Service in the International Business Awards.

Petro-Canada is the world's largest producer of pharmaceutical grade white oil used in a variety of food processing industries, offering a complete line of industrial lubricants suitable for ancillary use in food processing plants. Petro-Canada blends and packages more than 350 different lubricants, specialty fluids and greases that are exposed to more than 70 countries on six continents. Products are manufactured from 99.9 percent pure base oil, among the purest in the world. As the world's largest producer of white oils and one of the leading suppliers of long life factory fill automatic transmission fluids, Petro-Canada is focused on going beyond today's standards. With more than 30 years of experience in blending Group II base oils and one of the leaders in development of Group III base oils, the company delivers a diverse line of innovative lubricants to meet an ever increasing range of international specifications. Petro-Canada specializes in offering customers products and services proven to offer tangible savings solutions.