Who uses mesh gloves and when?
Industries including textile cutting and sheet metal use metal mesh gloves for cut protection. The most popular user remains food processing, where anyone who uses a hand knife or cleans/moves a slicer blade can (should) wear a metal mesh glove.
It's important to note even metal mesh gloves are neither cut-proof nor puncture-proof. They are cut-and puncture-resistant. But no glove is 100-percent cut-proof. Mesh gloves are only designed to be used around hand knives, not powered blades or saws with serrated edges. Warnings on packaging from almost all manufacturers read something like:
“WARNING: These gloves will not withstand the force of power-driven blades, saws, and tools; avoid this hazard.”
“WARNING: These gloves could be caught in moving machinery and should not be used where such contact is possible.”
Hygienic concerns
In most cases mesh gloves are worn in a slaughterhouse, food processing or food service environment, a kitchen cut-up or grocery — all locations where they contact food.