PPE develops new S70C food contact sealing material

Precision Polymer Engineering (PPE), one of the world’s leading manufacturers of high performance moulded elastomer seals, has developed S70C − a silicone rubber sealing material with extended food contact regulations compliance.

S70C is a translucent silicone rubber sealing material developed for use in food, dairy and pharmaceutical equipment. The material can be moulded into O-rings, gaskets, and other custom-shaped components.

As a food-contact material, S70C is compliant with 21 CFR 177.2600 of the FDA (U.S. Food & Drug Administration), Class VI suffix 87 and 88 of USP (U.S. Pharmacopeia), European EU (Reg.) 1935/2004 and 2023/2006, German BfR XV, and 3A Sanitary Standard 18-03 Class 1. Additionally, S70C is compliant to China GB406.11-2016 and BS 6920 WRAS (Water Regulations Advisory Scheme).

At the material launch, Duncan Frame, Business Line Leader for Strategic Growth at PPE, spoke about the changing landscape of food contact material regulation compliance.

He said: “Our food contact sealing materials have always conformed to FDA, USP and EU requirements. In 2016, China deviated from the US and European standards by creating their own standards. This made the development of a ‘universal’ material grade for food contact applications more complex. We’re proud that our S70C silicone material has been certified as compliant to these new Chinese standards, making S70C suitable for markets around the world.”
Jon Riley, Industrial Product Manager at PPE, spoke about the benefits of S70C’s unique combination of material compliances.

He said: “S70C and its extended compliance profile gives our customers the benefit of being able to specify a single material irrespective of the final market. There is no other like-for-like material which can match S70C’s sealing performance, and is approved for use in each of the United States, European, and Chinese markets.”

PPE has a deep understanding of the challenges faced by equipment manufacturers and operators in food and pharmaceutical applications. This knowledge feeds into the development of material grades which are capable of long term sealing performance under temperature extremes and a wide range of chemically aggressive environments. High performance sealing materials play a significant role in the reduction of process downtime and cost of ownership, and help to protect end consumers by decreasing the risk of product contamination.