Food Act, Food Hygiene and Food Control PlansBrett Playle, Senior environmental health officer

Food Act 2014Power to impose movement controls; to direct the recall of food; or to require information already in place.All other parts of Act come into force 1 March 2016

What does it do?• Restates and reforms the law relating to how persons trade in food • Achieving the safety and suitability of food for sale• Maintaining confidence in NZ’s food safety regime

How does it work?

• Provides for risk-based measures• Provides certainty for food businesses• Requires persons who trade in food to take responsibility

for safety and suitability

Benefits?

• Flexible, risk-based• Empowers businesses to manage food safety;

recognises differences• Enables businesses to put in place safe systems

at lower cost ; provides tools to manage food safety• Covers all food for sale or export; exemptions• Consistent national system• Focus on producing safe food ≠ prescriptive rules

So?

• New regulations/notices in consultation with TAs and food industry- late 2014, early 2015.• Year 1- Food Service Sector, On-licence (bars,

cafes, restaurants)• Year 2- Food Service Sector (prepare/deliver

pizza/takeaway meals; commercial catering; hospitals, hospices, rest homes; catering services:- defence, prison, educational facilities)• Year 2- Food Retail Sector (bakeries; dairies*;

fishmongers; butchers; supermarkets*)

Template Food Control Plans

Current legislation

• Food Hygiene Regulations 1974• Food Act 1981• Health Act 1956• The Health (Registration of Premises)

Regulations 1966• The Health (Infectious and Notifiable Diseases)

Regulations 1966

Sale of Food to the Public

• Certificate of Registration under FH Regs 1974• Or an active exemption from FH Regs 1974 by

fully implementing a Food Safety Programme.• A Food Control Plan is a template-FSP.

Regulations

• Prescriptive• ‘must’, ‘shall’• Old? (1974!)• Emphasis on physical requirements.

Food Control Plan

• HACCP/Codex Alimentarius principles• A quality management system to produce safe

food.• Identifying, controlling, managing, eliminating, minimizing hazards.

OTP-FCP

• Training and Supervision• Hand hygiene• Personal hygiene• Health and sickness• Readily perishable food• Cleaning and sanitising• Food allergens

Approved suppliers

• Purchasing and Receiving• Checking temperatures

• Calibration, every 12 weeks, 0 and 100 ° C ± 1.

• Storage• Pest-proof containers, FIFO

• Chilled/frozen food storage• Store cooked and RTE food separately from raw,

uncooked food.• Covered and date-marked• R-P-F made on site date marked for when it should

be used by• ≤ 5 ° C • Frozen solid

Preparation

• Prepare raw food separate from cooked/RTE food (or different times, cleaning & sanitising in between)

• Different cutting boards.• Minimise time in danger zone (5 – 60 ° C)• Disposable piping bags or reusable (cleaned and sanitised).

Defrosting frozen food

• In fridge/chiller (best way)• Microwave (use immediately)• Air-tight container + cold running water• Bench ≤ 4 hours

Cooking Poultry

• > 75 ° C, instantaneous, or• = 75 ° C, 15 sec or• 70 ° C, 2 min or• 65 ° C, 10 min.• Thickest part of the meat.• Standard time/temp method (once per week), or each time, every time, or one in a batch.

Hot holding

• Food must be reheated first!

• ≥ 60 ° C• Use probe

thermometer to check 2 hour hot holding.

• Don’t top up- replace!• 21 - 60 ° C > 2 hours,

throw away.

Cooling hot prepared food

• R-P-F , cooled 60 to 21 ° C within 2 hours, and 21 to below 5 ° C in another 2 hours.How?• Blast chiller• Shallow tray• Smaller portions• Rack/air circulation• Colder area• Vac-pack food, place in iced water• Food in chiller once 21 ° C.

Reheating prepared food

• Oven, microwave, pot, pan, wok.• Reheat poultry ≥ 75 ° C.• Stir, mix foods.• Watch use of plastics in microwave ovens.

Display and self service

• Chilled RTE-RPF isheld ≤ 5 ° C or displayed unrefrigerated ≤ 4 hours.• Time on display > 5 ° C indicated bytime stickers on wrapping/next to foodor, coloured stickers.• Sneeze guards, covers.• Supervision• Left-over self service food is not re-used.

Special foods

• SushipH of rice ≤ 4.8 (test monthly)Ingredients— sealed, airtight packaging orSoak prepared vegetables in food-safe sanitiser for

10 min, rinse.• Cooled 60 → 21 ° C in 2 hours → ≤ 15 ° C in next

4 hours.• Nigiri, ≤ 15 ° C, ≤ 8 hours• Nori, ≤ 15 ° C, ≤ 12 hours

Special foods (continued)

• Chinese style roast duckDipped in boiling water + vinegar + spices Hung to dry ≤ 6 hoursStart & half way through drying process (temp

probe ≤ 25 ° C)Roasted Hanging hook, skin intactDisplayed in well ventilated areaNot touching On display ≤ 22 hours

Special foods (continued)

• Doner KebabLength of formed block of meat ≤ length of

burners.Amount of meat ≈ 1 dayMeat collected when shaved (don’t let fall into

drip tray!)Start cooking → keep cooking!Minced meat spits (cook from frozen)Shaved meats → 2nd cook process (hot plate)

Sous vide

• Vac-pack raw food → water bath or combi steamer• Minimum internal temp (60°C for 45 min)• Closed cell foam tape• Validation records:- time/temperature/weight of

product/thickness• Calibration:- temperature probe/water bath• Chill as quickly as possible.• Shelf life < 10 days.• Risks:- L. monocytogenes, C. botulinum

Hand hygiene• Soap, nailbrush, warm running water (20 sec) • Hand-drying:- single-use paper towels; single-use

(cloth) roller towel; air blower.• Gloves:- not a substitute; change between tasks;

wash hands after removal and before putting on.

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KusIuq8wu_0

Cleaning and sanitising

• Preclean, hot water + detergent, rinse, sanitise with food-safe sanitiser, final rinse, air dry or single use drying cloth.• Dishwashers:- items too hot to handle• Cleaning cloths:- single use or washed, sanitised,

dried.• Outside tables:- designated cleaning cloths.

Cleaning schedule

• What, how (chemicals, dilutions, equipment), when, who.• Work surfaces, chopping boards, utensils,

fridges, mixers, slicers, processors, sinks, soap dispensers, reusable cloths, work clothes, ice machines.• Touch points:- rubbish bins, broom & mop

handles, door handles, taps, switches, can openers, telephones.

Maintenance schedule.• Fridges/freezers• Ovens• Dishwashers• Ice machines• Coffee machines• Air extraction equipment• Hot/cold holding equipment• Slicers/mixers• Knives• Flyscreens, chopping blocks.

Pest Control

• Deter (rubbish covered/removed; cleaning!)• Keep out (maintenance; incoming goods)• Monitor (traps; detectors; bait stations)• Control → eliminate.• Best done by professionals

Water Supply• Surface water, groundwater supply, or roof

water should have a treatment system. filtration (> 1 NTU) chlorination UV disinfection.

• Monitor FAC (weekly, 0.2mg/L), E. coli testing (3

monthly)• Maintenance schedule (pumps, filters, UV lamps, back-flow prevention)• Cleaning schedule (tanks, UV light , filters)

What does an EHO look for?

• Are you managing the risks?-temperature records (chilled RPF in refrigerators; cooked poultry; sous vide; cooling; reheating; hot holding)• Cleaning schedule (written v reality)• Staff training• High Risk menu items?• Pest control. • Approved supplier records.• Discussion/dialogue• PAS form

Off the Peg-Food Control Plan • Does not cover:-

vulnerable people (hospices, hospitals, aged-care, day-care centres)chilled/frozen mealsjams, pickles, cakes for sale elsewhere

wholesale manufacturers

The plan doesn’t work unless you do!

• http://www.foodsafety.govt.nz/elibrary/industry/food-control-food-fcp-plans/Food_Control_Plan_Version.pdf

• http://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/1974/0169/latest/DLM42658.html?src=qs

• www.southoxon.gov.uk/node/9550 (sous vide cooking)

Happy Cooking!