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Moisture damage is one of the biggest risks facing exporters in the United States. In order to protect cargo from mold, spoilage, degradation, and other shipping risks, it’s essential to employ comprehensive moisture control solutions in the form of shipping container desiccants. These materials absorb and trap moisture, prevent damage, and help ensure your shipment arrives safely.
What Are Shipping Container Desiccants?
Shipping container desiccants are used to control humidity in cargo containers. When cargo shipments travel via ocean freight, humidity can build up inside and cause moisture damage. Shipping container desiccants ward off mold growth, container rain, spoilage, and other risks that ruin shipments.
Desiccants are hygroscopic, meaning they attract moisture droplets in the atmosphere. Shipping container desiccants come in bags, which draw in moisture through a breathable outer membrane. Once moisture enters a desiccant bag, it’s trapped inside, preventing it from seeping back out into the container. This lowers the humidity level and prevents moisture buildup.
Common desiccant materials used in shipping containers include:
- Calcium chloride: This mineral salt is high-absorption, capable of absorbing more than 300% of its weight in moisture. It is considered safe for food applications by the FDA.
- Silica gel: Silica gel has a much lower absorption capacity than calcium chloride. It comes in a few different grades. Food-grade and pharmaceutical-grade silica gel are free of heavy metals and other toxic additives, but industrial-grade silica gel is not considered safe for food or pharma.
- Clay: Clay is a low-absorption desiccant that is typically reserved for short trips or low-humidity environments.
Are Desiccants Safe for Food Cargo?
Foods like grains, rice, coffee, and nuts are commonly shipped via ocean freight and protected by container desiccants. Desiccants are safe for food cargo as long as they meet the following conditions:
- Food grade or GRAS: The desiccant is food-grade, or it’s Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) by the FDA.
- Leakproof: The desiccant bag is leakproof and sealed, so the liquid absorbed inside won’t come into contact with the container’s cargo.
- Suspended: The desiccant bag isn’t in direct contact with the cargo, but is instead hung from the walls or ceiling of the container.
Calcium Chloride and Food Cargo
Calcium chloride is generally considered the safest shipping container desiccant for food cargo. Not only does it have a high absorption capacity, but food-safe calcium chloride desiccants contain the same type of calcium chloride used in food preservation.
To ensure your calcium chloride container desiccant is safe for food, look for a container desiccant that locks in moisture in a solid gel, like the Hybag container desiccant. Once moisture is absorbed into the HyBag, it cannot leak back out into the container environment.
Are Desiccants Safe for Pharmaceutical Cargo?
Medications, supplements, medical devices, and other types of pharmaceutical cargo are regularly sent via ocean freight. Humidity presents a number of different risks for these pharmaceutical shipments. First, excess moisture can degrade pharmaceutical ingredients and render compounds ineffective. It can also damage labels and packaging, making shipments non-compliant.
Pharma-grade desiccants are required to meet certain standards set forth by the Good Distribution Practice (GDP) and Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) guidelines, both quality systems pertaining to pharmaceuticals. According to this guidance, desiccants must be:
- Pharmaceutical grade: If using silica as a desiccant, but must meet purity standards for pharmaceuticals. Industrial-grade silica is not safe for pharmaceuticals.
- Leakproof: Like desiccant bags for food cargo, desiccant bags for pharmaceutical cargo must be leakproof and use gel absorption to ensure moisture from the desiccant doesn’t come into contact with cargo.
- Documented: Safety Data Sheets and material compliance documents are required in case of an audit.
Custom Moisture Control Solutions for Food and Pharma
Container desiccants are safe for food and pharmaceutical exports as long as they meet certain standards. They must be leakproof, positioned away from cargo, and food-grade or pharma-grade desiccant materials.
To ensure your shipment is properly protected, and that your container desiccants meet all requirements, source your moisture control solutions from EPGA. No two shipments are alike, which is why we offer custom solutions to meet your precise needs. Contact us today to get started.
Shipping Container Desiccant Safety: FAQ
Is there such a thing as food-safe desiccant?
Yes, there are a few food-safe desiccants:
- Food-grade silica gel: Food-grade silica gel is free from the ingredients that make industrial-grade silica toxic. That said, silica gel typically doesn’t have the absorption capacity that container shipments require.
- Calcium chloride: Calcium chloride is a high-capacity container desiccant that’s safe for use in food cargo. It’s a non-toxic ingredient commonly used to preserve food.
Can desiccant touch food directly?
No, container desiccants cannot safely touch food directly. Rather than coming into contact with cargo, container desiccant bags must be suspended from the ceiling or walls of the container. Additionally, they must have a totally leakproof design. Typically, food-safe container desiccants use a gel formula to lock moisture inside and prevent leakage.
Are shipping container desiccants safe for pharmaceutical shipments?
Yes, shipping container desiccants are safe for pharmaceutical shipments as long as they meet a few different requirements:
- Leakproof design: Again, desiccants cannot leak fluid back into the cargo container.
- Pharmaceutical rating: Desiccants like silica need to be rated as pharma grade desiccants to ensure they don’t contain toxic ingredients.
- Documentation: You’ll likely need to include a Safety Data Sheet along with your shipment to certify the safety of the container desiccant.
What types of desiccant are used in pharmaceutical shipments?
Common desiccants in container shipments of pharmaceutical cargo include silica gel, calcium chloride, molecular sieves, and clay.
