Changes in Food Hygiene Law

As you may be aware, new food hygiene legislation that affects all food businesses in the UK, including primary producers (e.g. farms), came into operation on 1 January 2006. The legislation comprises three EC Regulations 852/2004, 853/2004 and 854/2004.

These new regulations apply throughout the food chain to all food businesses, including primary producers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers. They require food business operators (except primary producers) to put in place, implement, maintain and document a permanent procedure or procedures to demonstrate that the food they are producing or selling is safe to eat.

The key difference between existing legislation and the new regulations concerns how you manage food safety in your business. The new regulations require you to have a documented food safety management system in place. This means that you must be able to show what you do to make food that is safe to eat and have this written down.

This system must be based on Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles. This is a new requirement for caterers and retailers and will bring you up to the standard currently required in butchers’ shops.

A HACCP based food safety system is more suited to food manufacturers and less easy to apply to catering premises handling lots of different menu items. This is why the Food Standards Agency (FSA) has developed ‘Safer Food Better Business’ (SFBB).

What is ‘Safer Food Better Business’ (SFBB)?

This is a food safety system that has been designed to help small catering businesses such as restaurants, cafés, takeaways and pubs comply with the requirement to have a documented food safety management system based on HACCP. If you are operating this type of business and do not currently have a written food safety management system in place, the Food Safety team recommends that you obtain a copy of the SFBB pack and put this into place in your business. 


Please link to Food Standards Agency Website

Also see: Safer Food Better Business