Food hygiene legislation and enforcement
Food safety legislation exists to ensure all food business owners operate in a safe and hygienic way. It protects consumers by making it against the law to provide food which is unsafe or harmful to human health.
The legislation applies to all food businesses, including caterers, primary producers (such as farmers), manufacturers, distributors and retailers.
How the legislation affects you will depend on the size and type of your business.
Food safety enforcement
Responsibility for the enforcement of food legislation in Nottinghamshire lies with our Environmental Health team, who ensure that food businesses in the district are preparing and selling food hygienically.
Nottinghamshire County Council is responsible for permitted ingredients, food labelling and quality. Both authorities work together to ensure that all food premises comply with the law.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is the government’s department responsible for protecting public health in relation to food in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. You’ll find a specific business and industry section on their website containing advice and guidance on producing safe food.
Safer food, better business
All food outlets must produce food that is safe to eat. In addition, the law requires businesses to be able to show what they do to make food safe to eat, and to have this written down.
They must also keep records of the checks made. The Food Standards Agency has designed a simple to use tool kit, including an instruction pack and a diary allowing basic records to be kept.
Find out more and download the food management toolkit on the FSA safer food, better business page.
Allergens
You can find examples of where different allergens can be found in the FSA’s allergen fact sheet (PDF, 351kb) and get more details about the allergen labelling requirements for pre-packed and loose foods on the FSA website. For detailed information on food allergen labelling and information requirements see the FSA technical guidance on allergens.
Find additional guidance on allergens, and a handy chef’s allergen menu table from the FSA website.
The FSA also offer free online training to help you understand allergens and managing their use in food.