Food-Grade Wire Mesh for Sifting, Straining & Washdown
304 and 316 stainless mesh, sieves, and screens fabricated for food and beverage processing — corrosion-resistant, easy to sanitize, and cut to your exact size.
From flour sifting to lauter-tun screens, food and beverage operations run on mesh that survives constant washdown, caustic cleaning, and acidic product without shedding or corroding. Howard Wire Cloth Co. has fabricated woven, welded, and perforated stainless mesh in Hayward, California since 1938 — cut to size for sieves, filter discs, racks, and baskets, all made in the USA. Send us your mesh count, wire diameter, alloy, and dimensions and we'll quote it with free samples.
Where Food & Beverage Relies On Wire Mesh
Flour, Sugar & Spice Sifting
Woven stainless sieve mesh separates fines, breaks up lumps, and screens foreign matter from dry ingredients, from coarse scalping around 20 mesh to fine dusting past 100 mesh.
Straining & Liquid Filtration
Mesh discs and cone strainers clarify oils, syrups, juices, brines, and purees, trapping particulate ahead of pumps, nozzles, and fillers.
Cooling & Drying Racks
Welded stainless mesh racks give baked goods, jerky, pasta, and produce even airflow and drainage while standing up to oven heat and daily washdown.
Wash & Blanch Baskets
Perforated and woven stainless baskets hold vegetables, seafood, and fruit through wash, blanch, and cool cycles without corroding in hot or salted water.
Brewery & Winery Screens
Mash-tun and lauter-tun screens, grain scalpers, and must strainers separate liquid from solids across brewing and winemaking.
Grading & Guard Screens
Vibrating sizing screens grade nuts, grains, and coffee by particle size, while guard mesh shields chutes, fans, and conveyors on the line.
Why Wire Mesh For Food & Beverage
Built for Washdown
304 and 316 stainless shrug off daily caustic and acid cleaning, high-pressure spray, and steam without rusting, flaking, or harboring bacteria.
Corrosion Resistance Where It Counts
316's added molybdenum resists the chlorides in brine, citrus, and tomato, so screens survive the products that pit lesser metals.
Cleanable, FDA-Friendly Surfaces
Smooth austenitic stainless is easy to sanitize and widely accepted for food-contact use, cutting contamination and product carryover.
Precise, Repeatable Openings
Consistent mesh openings deliver predictable sizing, filtration, and yield batch after batch.
Recommended Mesh & Materials
Get Food-Grade Mesh Cut to Your Spec
Family-owned in Hayward, CA since 1938. Send your mesh count, alloy, and dimensions for a quote with free samples.
Common Questions
Is your wire mesh food grade?
We supply 304 and 316 stainless steel mesh — the austenitic alloys most widely accepted for food-contact surfaces because they resist corrosion and sanitize easily. Tell us your process and we'll recommend an alloy and finish.
304 or 316 stainless — which should I choose?
Use 304 for general dry-ingredient handling and drying racks. Step up to 316 when you have chlorides, brine, acidic product, or aggressive washdown chemicals; its molybdenum content resists the pitting that 304 can't.
Can you cut custom sieve discs and screens to my size?
Yes — cut-to-size fabrication is our specialty. Send your diameter or panel dimensions, mesh count, and wire diameter, and we'll fabricate discs, panels, or basket blanks to match.
What mesh count do I need for sifting?
It depends on the ingredient: coarse scalping often runs 10–30 mesh, general flour sifting 30–60 mesh, and fine spices or sugar 80–120+ mesh. Free samples let you test openings before you commit.
Do you offer samples before I order?
Yes. We provide free samples so you can verify mesh opening, wire diameter, and alloy against your product before requesting a full quote.