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New food laws applied in the UK from 1 January 2006. They affect all food businesses, including caterers, primary producers (such as farmers), manufacturers, distributors and retailers. Details can be found, together with links to the legislation on the Food Standards Agency website.
How the legislation affects you will depend on the size and type of your business.
There are a number of new European regulations, which apply directly to food businesses in the UK, and also national legislation in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Do I need to register my business?
Most food businesses will need to register all of their premises with their local authority before they open (or before starting to use new premises). At the moment this is required under the Food Premises (Registration) Regulations 1991.
If you have registered your premises already and have not changed the type of work you do, you don't need to register them again.
The premises for certain types of food business need to be approved, rather than registered, including those producing the following foods:
The approval requirements do not apply to primary producers e.g. farmers. As food businesses they have to be registered with the relevant authority. However, this will not be a new requirement for most farmers as existing forms of registration may be used to meet the requirement. Therefore, if farming businesses are already known to Agriculture Departments, their agencies, such as the Rural Payments Agency or the State Veterinary Service or local authorities, then this will satisfy the requirement.
If information is not already held on any of these databases, then it is the responsibility of the food business operator to contact the relevant authority.
What training is needed for my staff?
Food handlers must receive appropriate supervision, and be instructed and/or trained in food hygiene, to enable them to handle food safely. Those responsible for developing and maintaining the business's food safety procedures, based on HACCP principles, must have received adequate training. Adequate training can be obtained by attending a formal training course, self study, on the job training or relevant prior experience. The operator of the food business is responsible for ensuring this happens.
What is HACCP?
HACCP stands for 'Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point'. It is an internationally recognised and recommended system of food safety management. It focuses on identifying the 'critical points' in a process where food safety problems (or 'hazards') could arise and putting steps in place to prevent things going wrong. This is sometimes referred to as 'controlling hazards'. Keeping records is also an important part of HACCP systems.
Where do I go if I have a specific question about how the new regulations apply to my business?
You should contact the Food Safety Team by phoning (01789) 260832. If you have any specific questions about how the new regulations apply to your business.
Why is EU food hygiene legislation being changed?
The legislation is being changed to set out more clearly the duty of food businesses to produce food safely and to achieve consistency. The legislation includes most areas of farming for the first time, so it covers the whole food chain from 'farm to fork'.
Will the new laws mean more Brussels red tape?
No, when the new EU legislation was being negotiated, the UK argued for flexible and pragmatic legislation. The legislative framework will now be more explicitly focused on the need to protect public health in a way that is effective, proportionate and based on risk.
Will the new regulations affect the public?
The regulations do not include any new requirements for members of the public (though they may need to comply with the regulations when serving food at events etc.) But the key aim of the new laws is to improve food safety, which should benefit the public by helping to reduce the number of cases of food poisoning.
What guidance is available on the new food hygiene laws?
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has produced a draft guidance document for all sectors and three summary guides for different types of small businesses. This guidance focuses on what the legislation says, rather than how to comply with it. The guidance is now available on the internet from the Guidance on the new food hygiene legislation page on http://www.food.gov.uk/
The FSA has produced special packs to help small catering businesses comply with new regulations. This pack is called 'Safer Food Better Business' and you can obtain a copy of the SFBB pack from E.C Logistics. Please call on 0845 6060667 or email foodstandards@eclogistics.co.uk
Is any current EU legislation being removed as a result of the new food hygiene regulations?
Yes, the new EU food hygiene regulations effectively consolidate seventeen existing EU measures in the food hygiene area into just two. The revocation of the current seventeen measures from 1st January 2006 removed the duplication and inconsistencies in approach that can cause difficulties both for businesses and enforcement authorities.
Has any UK legislation being removed
From January 2006, the Food Hygiene (England) Regulations 2006 in England (and similar legislation in Scotland and Wales) revoked and replaced most of the existing food hygiene national legislation. In England, the full range of food hygiene national legislation revoked or amended is set out in Schedule 7 of the regulations.
Most of the actual requirements will not change. The Food Hygiene (England) Regulations 2006 can be accessed on the 'Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI)' website.
Are there new rules covering microbiological criteria of foodstuffs?
Yes. The Microbiological Criteria for Foodstuffs Regulation will applied from 11 January 2006 and complements the EU food hygiene legislation. Microbiological criteria in current EC food legislation have been revised as part of a risk-based approach to food safety. The microbiological criteria can be used by food businesses to validate and verify their food safety management procedures and when assessing the acceptability of foodstuffs, or their manufacturing, handling and distribution processes.
Downloads:
1199 Food Business registration (74KB PDF)
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