Why Choose BST Detectable Products?
Who Are BST?
BST are the original pioneers of metal detectable plastics for the food industry. We were first established in 1985 by Brian S Teasdale, a former senior engineer at British Bakeries. Brian was the first engineer to address plastic contamination in food in this way, it is with great pride that his initials are still represented by the ‘BST’ brand that is well known and respected in the food industry. Now the company is led by John S Teasdale, who has relentlessly driven the growth of the company since taking over from his father in 2002. Today, BST stock over 800 different food safe detectable products and export to an overseas distribution network covering over 45 countries. We hand assemble over 1.8 million BST DetectaPens® a year at our HQ in Doncaster, South Yorkshire. BST’s core strengths are our commitment to high quality products and materials, as well as our bespoke manufacturing capabilities. Our primary material, BST xdetect®, has benefited from years of refinement making it one of the most durable, colourful, and shatter resistant food safe detectable plastics available on the market.
How do detectable products work and why use them?
Detectable products can take two main forms, the first being a product entirely made from a specially developed detectable material (e.g. BST xdetect®) and the second being a standard food processing item that’s modified to give it detectable properties (e.g. hairnets with metal grips). In the case of BST xdetect®, this is a polypropylene copolymer infused with ferrous and high density additives. The choice of additives is essential, these have to be food grade, non-hazardous, and offer the best detectability results. The correct ratio of additives and their consistent dispersion in the base resin is also essential to ensure that the resulting compound does not lose its mechanical properties. The ferrous additive is designed to disrupt the magnetic field of a metal detector, whilst the high density additive is designed to show clearly on an x-ray image. The plastic is compounded to a precise formulation, with exactly the right ratios of each additive resulting in a plastic that’s metal detectable and x-ray visible whilst retaining the mechanical performance (durability) of the polypropylene copolymer. This mechanical performance is an essential but often overlooked element, as if the finished detectable product doesn’t break in the first place, it’s far less likely to end up contaminating the food in production. This precisely compounded plastic is moulded by BST into a wide range of detectable products, including pens, scrapers, clipboards, boxes, jugs, and numerous bespoke parts as required by our food processing clientele. Food processors have peace of mind that their plastic food processing items are safe, display due diligence in preventing contamination, and are in compliance with HACCP and BRC procedures. Should an xdetect® item break or be dropped into food production, fragments as small as 5mm3 can be detected by metal detection or x-ray inspection systems and automatically be rejected from the production line. Other examples of the second form of detectable products, a standard food processing item that’s modified to give it detectable properties, include mob caps with foil strips, and paper traceability tags with a metal foil core.
What are the most popular detectable products?
BST are well-known for the BST DetectaPen®. This metal detectable, x-ray visible and antibacterial pen can be found in most food processing environments, preventing foreign body contamination without fuss every day of the year. BST pens are BRC 8 compliant, FDA food contact approved, EU migration tested, and are the only detectable plastic pens in the World to be Japanese migration tested. It is worth mentioning that BST migration test the finished plastic product, not just the ingredients of the plastic. They are also shatter proof, and, in write out length tests conducted by two independent bodies, their refills wrote for over twice as long as other comparable products on the market. BST continue to buy high quality German made refills which are lead free, REACH compliant, and ISO 12757-2 DOC compliant, and are fully detectable with the end cap made from the unique xdetect® compound.
What makes BST special?
Supplying a durable, fi t for purpose, food safe, detectable product is no longer enough. This is why BST offer detailed product technical specifications, compliance documentation, on site visits (where safe to do so), online consultation and a level of support that gives customers the reassurance they need.
