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WHS Management for Commercial Bakeries

Flour dust WEL drops 87.5 per cent. Baker's asthma affects 10 per cent of exposed workers. Protect your bakers now.

Commercial bakeries generate flour dust during weighing, mixing, dough handling, and equipment cleaning operations. Flour dust is a potent respiratory sensitiser that causes baker's asthma in approximately 10 per cent of workers with sustained exposure. The incoming WEL of 0.5 mg/m³ is an 87.5 per cent reduction from the current standard of 4 mg/m³, meaning most bakeries will need upgraded dust extraction and enclosed ingredient transfer systems. Beyond respiratory hazards, bakeries present serious machine entrapment risks from mixers and dough dividers, burn hazards from ovens and steam, and manual handling injuries from heavy ingredient handling.

Key Hazards

Flour dust inhalation causing baker's asthma and rhinitisMixer entrapment during operation and cleaningOven and steam burns during loading and unloadingManual handling injuries from heavy flour sacks and dough troughsSlip and fall injuries on flour-dusted and wet floorsNoise exposure from mixers, conveyors, and packaging equipment

Regulatory Requirements

HRCW Categories

Plant with entrapment risk, confined space entry for silo cleaning

Section 26A Codes (binding 1 July 2026)
Hazardous ChemicalsPlantManual TasksNoiseFalls

SWMS Required

Related Sectors

Need Help with Bakery WHS?

Our team can help you set up compliant WHS documentation, flour dust monitoring programs, and baker's asthma prevention plans for your bakery operations.

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