Food safety audits & assessments

Page contents: Food safety program audit | Food safety program assessments | Choice of Food Safety Auditor

Food safety program audit

The current audit process involves checking to see whether a food premises is complying with a non-standard (or “independent”) Food Safety Program (FSP). It also requires the auditor to determine whether the program is adequate - that is, does it address the hazards associated with the food handing operations at the premises?

This process will continue to be described as an audit.

Checking for the adequacy of the FSP will continue to be required only for businesses using independent, tailored FSPs.

The one change to the Act regarding the nature of an audit is that it will be explicit that an audit also requires a check as to whether the food premises is complying with the national food safety standards.

Food safety program assessments

A determination about adequacy of a food safety program for a food premises is not needed for a business that chooses to use a standard Food Safety Program template, because the templates are structured documents which have been already been registered by the Secretary to the Department of Health as suitable.

Under the changes, from 1 July 2010 an assessment will involve determining:

• if a template has been used to prepare a standard food safety program, whether it is the correct template for the business; and
• in all cases, whether the premises is complying with its food safety program and the national food safety standards.

When conducted by a council, an assessment will in essence be a kind of extensive inspection of the food premises under the Act, but it must include the checking of these areas.

Choice of Food Safety Auditor

Currently, only DH approved third party auditors may conduct audits of food premises. When the relevant changes come into effect on 1 July 2010, a council officer will be able to audit food safety programs on behalf of their council, provided that the officer is an approved auditor under the Act and the council decides to provide audits. This will make compliance checks more effective, through the more flexible use of the expertise of private auditors and council environmental health officers. Businesses will be able to choose council or private auditors.

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