The Food Act 2014
The Food Act 2014 has been in force since March 2016. It puts a duty on everyone who sells or provides food to make sure it is safe (it will not make people sick) and suitable (it meets rules on make-up, labelling and identification and is in the right condition).
The Act is risk-based. Higher-risk businesses have more rules and more checks. It looks at how food is made and handled, not at the building, so a food truck follows the same rules as a restaurant making the same food.
| Measure | Who uses it | Examples from MPI |
|---|---|---|
| Food control plan (FCP) | Higher-risk businesses; a written plan for daily food safety | Restaurants and cafés; ready-to-eat salad makers |
| National programme | Medium- and low-risk businesses; no written plan, but they register, meet standards, keep some records and are checked | Bread-only bakeries and early childhood education services (NP2) |
MPI's My Food Rules tool tells a business which plan or programme it needs, where to register and who can check it. The MPI chief executive can also direct a food recall.
Registration and checks
| Plan or programme | Where to register |
|---|---|
| National programme or template FCP, in one council area, mobile or selling online | Local council |
| National programme or template FCP, in more than one council area | Each council, or all sites with MPI |
| Custom food control plan | MPI |
All food businesses are checked (verified) by the local council or an independent verifier. High-risk businesses are checked more often, and businesses that are doing well are checked less often. Verifiers look at good practices and records, not how fancy the kitchen looks.
Training and hand hygiene
All staff need to know how to keep food safe. MPI suggests new staff read the business's food control plan and work alongside an experienced "buddy". MPI's free Food safety basics online modules cover an introduction to food safety, personal hygiene and keeping a food-safe workplace, and you can print a certificate of completion for each.
People, mostly through their hands, are one of the most common ways bacteria get into food. Wash your hands in four steps:
- Wet your hands under running water.
- Rub them with soap for 20 seconds.
- Rinse.
- Dry them thoroughly.
Good handwashing follows the same steps every time.
- Wet both hands under running water.
- Add soap.
- Rub every part of your hands for 20 seconds.
- Rinse off the soap under running water.
- Dry your hands thoroughly with a paper towel.
- Use the paper towel to turn off the tap.
Wash and dry your hands after coughing, sneezing, blowing your nose or touching your face. Cough into a tissue or your elbow, never over food. Ideally, do not prepare food for others while you are sick.
Cleaning and separation
Cleaning removes dirt and helps stop bacteria growing. Bacteria such as *Campylobacter*, *Salmonella* and *E. coli* can survive for up to two hours on surfaces people touch often, such as benches, taps and door handles.
Use separate equipment and surfaces so bacteria do not spread. Keep cooked food away from raw food, and keep allergens apart. Even a small trace of an allergen on equipment can cause a life-threatening reaction.
Keep raw and ready-to-eat food apart.
- Raw chicken on its own board, with its own knife.
- Ready-to-eat salad on a separate board, with a separate knife.
- Raw food, its juices and the tools used with it must never touch ready-to-eat food.
| Common allergens listed by MPI |
|---|
| Peanuts |
| Tree nuts: almonds, Brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, macadamias, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios, walnuts |
| Milk and egg |
| Fish, crustaceans (such as prawns) and molluscs |
| Soy, sesame and lupin |
| Gluten and wheat |
| Sulphites |
Temperature control
Harmful bacteria grow best in the danger zone, 5°C to 60°C. Some bacteria can double every 20 minutes. Always measure the temperature in the centre of the food.
| Rule | Temperature |
|---|---|
| Cook food to at least | 75°C |
| Keep hot food above | 60°C |
| Chill and store food below | 5°C |
The 2-hour/4-hour rule
| Time in the danger zone | What to do |
|---|---|
| Under 2 hours | Serve, chill or heat to 75°C |
| 2 to 4 hours | Serve or heat to 75°C. Do not chill |
| More than 4 hours | Throw it out |