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This page is a useful resource
for a wide range of topics that are relevant to Food Hygiene.
Please select from the following:
Resources
What are Food
Control Plans?
How will they work?
Who will have
to have one?
How much will they cost?
How will they be
audited?
Resources
Resources for food businesses provided by the
Council currently comprise the documents which were included within the Trial
Food Control Plan that was demonstrated to businesses within a series of
meetings held over 2007/2008. All 21 of these are available from the
Publications page.
Click here to access this page.
Food Hygiene for Voluntary
Organisations ...
Sale of
Cheese Rolls
Sale
of Home Baked Cakes
Sale of Home made Jam
Sale of sweets and other confectionary
Barbeques and sausage sizzles
Buffets and high risk foods
What are Food Control Plans?
Food Control Plans are a new and different approach to regulating how food
businesses will be operated in the future. Rather than having a rigid set of
rules that are applied to all businesses throughout the country in the same way,
these plans are customised according to the type of activity that is involved.
Different plans will be produced for different food sectors.
How
will they work?
Food Control Plans require there
to be a Food Control Plan Manager always available, rather like a bar manager
for licensed premises. There must also be arrangements to provide cover if a
Manager is absent.
Managers are responsible for ensuring that all those
people involved in the operation are trained in the plan and are properly
supervised to ensure that they obey its requirements.
There is extensive record keeping that will have to
be maintained. This is to prove that the plan is being properly complied with.
Who will have to have one?
Everyone who sells food will have to have a Food Control
Plan. The only exceptions are where people can apply for Food Handling Guidance
such as fundraising activities by community groups or people who provide meals
with accommodation. There are separate rules which determine eligibility for
such Guidance. The Council can give advise on this upon requested. Many groups
and societies sell food, either as a direct sale or as an inclusion within a
ticket price and this system has been in place in a similar format for many
years.
How much will they cost?
Food Control Plans will have to
registered each year and the inspections/audits will also be charged for. Food
Handling Guidance should be hopefully available free of charge. At this stage it
is not predictable how much registration and audit fees will cost. There will in
all likelihood be additional fees for any re-visits that are made to confirm
that infringements have been
corrected.
How will they be audited?
The current inspection system
merely involves an Environmental Health Officer calling unannounced and touring
the premises. There are no records that are required to be kept and it is not
normal to question staff as to how they work.
Under the new system the audit
will consist of three stages:-
Records examination
Premises inspection
Questioning staff as to working practices to confirm
awareness of the Food Control Plan
The three stages are necessary to prove that the
plan is being properly implemented. It is a more exhaustive process and it is
designed to identify any areas where the plan is not being adhered to. In the
event of any problems being identified infringements can be required to be
corrected or an audit can be considered to have failed. Under these
circumstances the frequency of audit can be reduced so that they are conducted
more frequently. This will add more compliance costs to the operation.
The new legislation will also bring additional
powers for Councils to issue formal notices. Prosecution powers will remain and
at some time in the future NZFSA has indicated that it intends to introduce
Premises Grading on a national basis.
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