Breakfast Bites is an initiative by the FSAI to allow small food businesses to have access to key information in relation to food safety. The presentations have been shared with DCEB to allow our local companies to have access to the information.

1. © FSAI
How to Contact Us
Advice Line - Mon-Fri 9am to 5pm: 1890 336677
Email: info@fsai.ie
Website: www.fsai.ie/subscriptions
www.facebook.com/FSAI
@FSAIinfo

2. © FSAI
Starting a Food Business

3. © FSAI
Where to Start?
 You must familiarise yourself with food hygiene legislation
 You need to register your business
 Your business may also need approval
 You need to develop a food safety management system based on HACCP
 You must have a traceability system
 You may require some form of food safety training
 There are special considerations when operating from home or selling
at farmers’ markets

4. © FSAI
The Food Hygiene Rules
Know the rules for making food safely and
hygienically
Regulation 852/2004 – general hygiene
Regulation 853/2004 – animal products
Regulation 178/2002 – principles of food
safety

5. © FSAI
The Rules
Apply to all food businesses – big or small
Sets out requirements for:
 registration, food safety management system and training
 food premises (layout, design, construction, siting and
sizing)
 rooms for food preparation, processing or treatment
 moveable or temporary premises (market stalls, mobile
food vans) and home businesses

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 Transport
 Equipment
 Food Waste
 Water Supply
 Personal Hygiene
 Provisions applicable to foodstuffs (contamination,
temperature control)
 Wrapping and packing
 Heat treatment

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Keep cold food cold (below 5°C)
Keep hot food hot (above 63°C)
Wash hands frequently
Don’t cross-contaminate – keep raw and cooked foods separate
Clean as you go
Use reputable suppliers
Have good work flow to reduce risks
Train staff
Common Sense Stuff

8. © FSAI
NB!
You are responsible for ensuring the food
you produce/process/prepare/sell
is safe

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Register Your Business
Must register as a food business with relevant
Competent Authority
HSE Local Authority DAFM SFPA
Give them a call to discuss your business and to get a registration form
Contact details are on our website

10. © FSAI
Approval
Some businesses require approval
Generally producers/manufacturers/processors of foods of animal
origin
 Slaughterhouses
 Meat processers
 Meat product manufacturers (e.g. hams, salamis, sausages)
 Egg producers
 Producers of dairy products (e.g. milk, cheese, yoghurt), fish
processors
 Producers of processed fishery products (e.g. smoked fish,
marinated fish)

11. © FSAI
Remember!
Contact Competent Authority at earliest stage of business
development
These are your inspecting officers
You won’t always be inspected before you start trading
Frequency of inspection is based on risk assessment
Once registered you can start trading

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Food Safety Management System
Based on Principles of HACCP

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HACCP ...... Is it a bird? Is it a plane?

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No..it’s just a really bad name for a system that
helps you control risks and hazards
HACCP = Your food safety management system
HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis and Critical
Control Points

15. © FSAI
Law requires that you have a food safety management
system in place based on the 7 principles of HACCP

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What are the 7 Principles of HACCP?
• Indentify hazards e.g. Bacteria, metal, detergents
• Determine critical control points (CCP) e.g. Cooking to
70C for 2 mins
• Establish critical limits e.g. Centre of food must reach
70C for 2 mins
• Establish system to monitor control of CCP e.g.
Recording final cooking temp
• Establish corrective action to be taken if CCP out of
control
• Verify system is working
• Documentation of procedures

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Your Food Safety Management System
allows you to:
Identify risks and hazards
Put a system in place to control them
Develop a plan of action for when things go
wrong

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Flexibility
Not necessary to always apply full HACCP principles
Risk assess your business and decide how best to control
hazards then decide on an option below
 Comply with basic hygiene prerequisites (Article 4 and
Annex II of Regulation 852/2004)
 Use an established standard e.g. NSAI standard for
caterers
 Apply HACCP principles e.g. using FSAI’s Safe Catering
Pack

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Very Important!
There should be ownership of this system
– not just a folder on a shelf
It should be constantly reviewed, tested
and updated
All staff should be aware of their role in
making the system work

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Designed for caterers
Helps business to put system
in place
DVD
Record Books
Workbooks
Safe Catering Pack

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Traceability

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What Comes In and What Goes Out
 Must have a system in place that records food and
ingredients that are supplied and food and ingredients
that are sold on
 Exception where sale is to the final consumer e.g. shop,
restaurant, café, butcher shop
Further Information
FSAI’s Guidance Note No.10 – Product Recall and Traceability

23. © FSAI
Why is Traceability Important?
If something goes wrong with a food product you have supplied, an
up-to-date and detailed traceability system:
Allows for speedy identification of the problem
Permits quick recall/withdrawal of affected product(s) if necessary
Minimises risk to the consumer
Minimises reputational and financial damage to the food business

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Food Safety Training

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What you need to know about training
Legally required to undertake food safety training and/or be
supervised in line with the level of activity you are involved in
Important! You do not necessarily have to attend a food safety
training course. There are a number of ways you can fulfil your
legal requirements for training
A certificate is not necessary. It is more important that you can
demonstrate working safely and hygienically with food

26. © FSAI
Use our training guides and other training
resources
Attend the FSAI’s Food Safety and You course
Get an in-house Trainer
Avail of e-learning programmes
Attend a course
Help yourself or get help

27. © FSAI
Starting a Food Business in the Home

28. © FSAI
What to consider?
Contact competent authority straight away to discuss feasibility
Home environment may not be suitable for some activities
Kitchen may not be suitable for type/volume food to be produced
Must keep domestic and business activities separate

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Additional legislation you may need to
think about

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General Labelling rules
Product specific labelling rules e.g. Beef, fish, honey, jam
Nutrition and health claims
Microbiological criteria

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Useful Publications
HACCP
HACCP Pack
Guidance Note No. 11
Traceability and recall – Guidance Note No. 10
Food stalls – Guidance Note No. 16
Shelf-life Determination – Guidance Note No. 18
Microbiological criteria – Guidance Note No. 26

32. © FSAI
How to Contact Us
Advice Line - Mon-Fri 9am to 5pm: 1890 336677
Email: info@fsai.ie
Website: www.fsai.ie/subscriptions
www.facebook.com/FSAI
@FSAIinfo

33. © FSAI