The Complete Food Production Facility Cleaning Checklist
A practical daily, weekly and monthly cleaning guide for New Zealand food manufacturers and food processing facilities
Maintaining a clean food production facility is essential for producing safe, high-quality food products. Effective environmental cleaning helps reduce the risk of contamination, supports food safety programmes, protects staff and customers, and assists with compliance under New Zealand food safety requirements.
This checklist is suitable for food manufacturers, food processors, commercial bakeries, beverage manufacturers, dairy processors, meat processors, seafood processors, commercial kitchens, packaging facilities and food distribution centres.
Daily Cleaning Checklist
Reception & Administration Areas
☐ Vacuum or mop entrance floors
☐ Clean entrance doors and glass
☐ Wipe reception counters
☐ Sanitise reception desks
☐ Empty rubbish and recycling bins
☐ Restock hand sanitiser stations
☐ Clean visitor sign-in equipment
☐ Remove fingerprints from glass
Staff Hygiene Stations
☐ Refill hand soap dispensers
☐ Refill hand sanitiser
☐ Restock paper towels
☐ Clean hand wash basins
☐ Sanitise taps
☐ Inspect boot cleaning stations
☐ Check foot baths where used
☐ Ensure PPE stations remain fully stocked
Production Areas
☐ Sweep production floors
☐ Machine scrub floors where appropriate
☐ Remove food waste immediately
☐ Remove packaging waste
☐ Clean production benches
☐ Sanitise food contact surfaces
☐ Clean conveyor systems externally
☐ Clean workstations
☐ Clean scales
☐ Empty production waste bins
☐ Keep walkways clear
☐ Remove standing water
Food Processing Equipment
☐ Clean machinery in accordance with site cleaning procedures
☐ Sanitise food contact equipment
☐ Clean machine guards externally
☐ Wipe control panels
☐ Clean touch screens
☐ Remove product residue
☐ Inspect for product build-up
(Always follow your site's lockout/tagout and food safety procedures before cleaning production equipment.)
Packaging Area
☐ Clean packing benches
☐ Sanitise packing equipment
☐ Remove packaging waste
☐ Clean weighing equipment
☐ Empty rubbish bins
☐ Keep packing materials clean and dry
Ingredient Storage
☐ Sweep floors
☐ Keep storage areas organised
☐ Remove damaged cartons
☐ Remove empty pallets
☐ Inspect shelving
☐ Remove dust where appropriate
Cold Rooms & Chillers
☐ Sweep floors
☐ Mop where required
☐ Remove food debris
☐ Clean shelving
☐ Check drainage
☐ Remove ice build-up where appropriate
Staff Lunchroom
☐ Clean benches
☐ Sanitise tables
☐ Clean sinks
☐ Clean microwaves
☐ Clean refrigerator handles
☐ Empty rubbish bins
☐ Vacuum or mop floors
☐ Restock paper towels
Staff Toilets & Change Rooms
☐ Clean toilets
☐ Sanitise toilet seats
☐ Clean hand basins
☐ Polish mirrors
☐ Refill soap dispensers
☐ Restock toilet paper
☐ Refill paper towel dispensers
☐ Empty sanitary bins
☐ Mop floors
☐ Clean lockers externally
Throughout the Day
☐ Clean food spills immediately
☐ Remove food waste frequently
☐ Empty bins before overflowing
☐ Clean high-touch surfaces regularly
☐ Replace soiled cleaning cloths
☐ Maintain hygiene stations
☐ Keep production areas free of clutter
☐ Record completed cleaning checks
Weekly Cleaning Tasks
☐ Machine scrub production floors
☐ Deep clean production equipment (following site procedures)
☐ Deep clean conveyors
☐ Wash walls in production areas
☐ Clean floor drains
☐ Wash rubbish bins
☐ Clean internal windows
☐ Dust high surfaces
☐ Clean ventilation grilles
☐ Deep clean cold rooms
☐ Inspect dispensers
☐ Review hygiene stations
Monthly Cleaning Tasks
☐ Deep clean ceilings
☐ Deep clean lighting fittings
☐ Pressure wash external loading areas
☐ Machine scrub warehouse floors
☐ Deep clean storage shelving
☐ Review cleaning chemical stock
☐ Inspect cleaning equipment
☐ Service floor scrubbers
☐ Service industrial vacuum cleaners
☐ Audit hygiene consumables
☐ Review cleaning procedures
☐ Inspect pest control stations
☐ Inspect emergency exits
☐ Review environmental monitoring records where applicable
High-Touch Surface Checklist
These surfaces should be cleaned and sanitised frequently throughout the day.
☐ Machine control panels
☐ Touch screens
☐ Production benches
☐ Conveyor controls
☐ Door handles
☐ Push plates
☐ Light switches
☐ Handrails
☐ Ingredient bin lids
☐ Weighing scales
☐ Tap handles
☐ Refrigerator handles
☐ Forklift controls
☐ Time clocks
☐ Staff lockers
☐ Hand wash stations
Food Production Cleaning & Food Safety Tips
✔ Always clean before sanitising—sanitisers are less effective on dirty surfaces.
✔ Only use food-safe cleaning chemicals approved for use in food processing environments.
✔ Follow the manufacturer's recommended dilution rates and contact times for sanitisers.
✔ Separate raw and finished product areas to minimise cross-contamination.
✔ Follow your site's allergen management procedures, including dedicated cleaning between allergen and non-allergen production runs.
✔ Remove food waste frequently to reduce contamination risks and discourage pests.
✔ Keep drains clean and free-flowing to prevent standing water.
✔ Ensure cleaning equipment is clean, maintained and stored correctly after use.
✔ Maintain cleaning records to support your Food Control Plan, National Programme or Risk Management Programme.
✔ Train all staff in good hygiene practices and environmental cleaning procedures.
Recommended Colour-Coding System
Red – Toilets and sanitary areas
Yellow – Food production equipment and food contact surfaces
Blue – General production floors, warehouses and non-food contact areas
Green – Staff lunchrooms and food preparation areas
Dedicated cleaning equipment should be used for each colour-coded zone and stored separately to minimise the risk of cross-contamination.
Recommended Cleaning Equipment
- Food-grade microfibre cleaning cloths
- Colour-coded cleaning cloths
- Colour-coded flat mops
- Food industry squeegees
- Food-safe brushes
- Industrial wet & dry vacuum cleaners
- Walk-behind floor scrubbers
- Neutral floor cleaner
- Food-safe sanitiser
- Food-safe degreaser
- Glass cleaner
- Grease Trap Maintenance
- Hand soap
- Alcohol hand sanitiser
- Paper towels
- Toilet paper
- Bin liners
- Disposable gloves
- Hair nets and beard covers
- Wet floor signs
- Stainless steel cleaner (for non-food contact external surfaces)