FOOD SAFETY LEGISLATION

1. FOOD SAFETY LEGISLATION Food Safety legislation is designed to protect consumers from illness and harm

2. Food Legislation • The Food Safety (Northern Ireland) Order 1991 • Regulation EC 852/2004 • Food Hygiene Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006

3. Role of Enforcement Officers • Authorised Officers – Environmental Health Officers • Provide Food Safety advice • Inspect food premises • Enforce legislation covering food • Investigate outbreaks of food-borne disease and possible offences

4. Powers of Enforcement Officers • Powers of entry • Inspect food and premises • Power to seize and detain food • Serve notices • Power to close • Prosecute

5. Food Safety Law • Safe Food • Free from contamination • Fit for human consumption • Hygiene of food premises, equipment and personnel • Hygienic practices (including temperature control) • Control of food poisoning • Composition, amount and labelling of food.

6. The inspection of food premises Purpose of inspection by an EHP • Ensure operation is capable of producing safe food • To identify foreseeable incidences of food poisoning • Assess effectiveness of hazard analysis, especially in relation to critical control points (identify the risks) • To check standards have been achieved (legal and industry guides) • Identify training needs of staff (competency) • To provide advice/make recommendations • To respond to a complaint • Revisit • To continually improve food hygiene standards • To ensure the business complies with the law.

7. Food Handler – Legal Requirements • Keep yourself clean • Keep your workplace clean • Protect food from contamination or anything that could cause harm • Follow good personal hygiene practices • Wear appropriate protective clothing • Tell your employer if you are suffering from or are a carrier of a food-borne illness

8. Food Handler – Legal Requirements Legislation also states that food handlers must not: • Do anything that would expose food to contamination • Sell food that is unfit for human consumption • Sell food with an expired date mark • Work with food if they have symptoms of food poisoning

9. Notices • A Hygiene Improvement Notice is used to require food businesses to improve something sub-standard • A Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice can apply to: • Premises (prohibiting use of premises) • Part of premises • Equipment • A food business operator

10. Penalties for Non-Compliance • Prohibition from using part of business • Fines and legal costs • Prison sentence • Closure of business • Prohibition from running a food business • Criminal record

11. Due Diligence The principal of defence under The Food Safety (Northern Ireland) Order 1991 A business must be able to demonstrate that it has done everything within its power to safeguard consumer health Accurate records are useful in proving this defence; these may include: • HACCP • Monitoring records – storage/cooking/delivery • Pest control • Cleaning schedules

12. What the Law RequiresEC 852/2004 on Hygiene of Foodstuffs • Premises must: • Be registered with the local Council • Be kept clean • Be maintained in good repair • Have a good design, layout and construction • Have adequate facilities for washing equipment and food • Have satisfactory lighting and ventilation • Have adequate hand washing facilities

13. Contd…. • Equipment must: • Be kept clean and in good condition • Be installed allowing cleaning in the surrounding area • Waste must: • Not accumulate • Be deposited in closable containers • Prevent pest access

14. Contd… • Personnel must: • Have high standards of personal hygiene • Wear clean protective clothing • Report to the proprietor when suffering from illness or a condition that may contaminate food • Be supervised and instructed and/or trained in food hygiene matters commensurate with their work activities

15. Complying with Food Safety Law?

16. Food Safety Training • Legal requirement • Appropriate to tasks undertaken • Recorded • Refreshed

17. EC 852/2004 Article 5 Hazard Analysis (HACCP) Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point Hazard – anything that could cause harm to consumers HACCP is designed to help food companies to minimise the risk from food hazards

18. HACCP System Food companies need to: • Analyse the hazards to food safety • Assess the level of risk from each hazard • Decide the most critical points that require controls • Implement appropriate controls • Establish a monitoring system • Set up procedures to correct problems (corrective action) • Review the system when operations change

19. Record Keeping Legal requirement that certain records are kept as part of the HACCP-based food safety management system, eg: • Fridge/freezer records • Cooking/hot-holding temperatures • Cleaning records • Training records • Pest control checks

20. The Food Hygiene Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006 • Applies to high-risk foods • Cold foods- store below 8oC • Hot foods – store above 63oC During service :- • Cold food max 4hrs at room temperature then discard or refrigerate • Hot food maximum 2 hrs at room temperature

21. Summary • Environmental Health Officers have wide-ranging powers to control food safety • Controls are the responsibility of everybody • Many penalties for non-compliance • Due diligence defence available • Record-keeping is a legal requirement • Every business must carry out a Hazard Analysis