Hypochlorites

Hypochlorous acid (HClO) salts, sodium hypochlorite among them — widely used and inexpensive disinfectants. In food plants they sanitize equipment, surfaces, and process water, and they disinfect drinking water worldwide. Their effectiveness depends on concentration, contact time, pH, and the absence of interfering organic matter, and treated food-contact surfaces must be rinsed where required to keep residues out of food. Despite the rise of alternative sanitizers, chlorine-based disinfection remains the backbone of water safety and plant hygiene across the food industry.