Food safety in food businesses

Notification is a requirement under the Food Act, 2001 and involves all businesses notifying Council of their business and contact details. All businesses that sell food within the City of Marion are required to complete a notification form.

Temporary food premises are also required to complete a notification form before any event.

Temporary food premises are structures set up for a specific, occasional event such as a fete or fair where the cost of providing a permanent structure is unnecessary for food safety.

Temporary food premises may not be able to meet some of the requirements of the Food Safety Standards due to their temporary nature.

The Food Safety Standards allow temporary food premises to be exempt from the responsibilities of a food business to provide handwashing facilities with warm running water, soap, and hand drying equipment.

Temporary food premises are required to have hand washing facilities, although they do not need to be permanent. If permanent hand washing facilities are not available, the requirements of the Food Safety Standards can still be met without the need for an exemption. A container of warm water with a tap or valve, supplied with a collection bucket for wastewater, along with soap and single use paper towels must be supplied in areas where food handlers work.

If these basic hand washing facilities cannot be provided, an exemption may be issued if an Environmental Health Officer is satisfied that food safety is not placed at risk. For example, where there is a limited number of food handlers and only minimal hand contact with food, the Environmental Health Officer may issue an exemption for the supply and use of warm running water.

The Temporary Food Premises Notification Form and Application for Exemption from Food Safety Standard can be downloaded below.

Event Organisers can complete a separate notification form which details all the stall holders on the one form, rather than each individual stall holder completing a separate notification form.

Alternatively, you can email, fax, post or drop your form in in person.

Post: PO Box 21, Oaklands Park SA 5046
In person: 245 Sturt Road, Sturt

A new national Food Safety Standard will come into effect in December 2023. This will apply to many food businesses who process and /or sell high risk products. For further information and to determine if your business is affected, please visit the SA Health website.

I’m alert is an online interactive platform including quizzes for food handlers of any skill level looking to improve their knowledge on the safe practices and procedures when handling food.

The online program is the equivalent of a two-day consultant delivered course and covers a wide scope of the Food Safety Standards, relevant to all food handlers.

During the course you will gain an understanding of:

• Potentially hazardous food
• Contamination of food
• Temperature control
• Food handling skills and knowledge
• Cleanliness and sanitising of specific equipment
• Animals and pests
• Temperature measuring devices
• Hygiene and health standards of food handlers
• Food recall systems
• Food displays
• Processing, packaging and storing of food and much more.

There is no practical involved in this program and upon completion you will receive a certificate with your details included which can be kept as part of your food safety records.

Please be advised that you will require the follow system requirements in order to get the most out of the course:

• Internet Connection
• PC, MAC or iPad
• Modern Web Browser
• Screen Resolution of 1024 x 768 or Higher
• Speakers or Headphones
• Adobe reader version 5 or higher

There are specific requirements under Food Safety Standard 3.2.2 (Food Safety Practices and General Requirements) which outline the way in which food businesses must be designed and constructed to minimise opportunities for food contamination.

Food businesses are required to ensure that their food premises, fixtures, fittings, equipment and transport vehicles are designed and constructed to be easily cleaned and where necessary, sanitised.

Businesses must ensure that the premises are provided with the necessary services of:

• water,
• waste disposal,
• light,
• ventilation,
• cleaning and personal hygiene facilities,
• storage space, and
• access to toilets.

For any further information, please contact one of council's Environmental Health Officers on (08) 8375 6600.

Council's Environmental Health Officers routinely inspect all food premises to ensure compliance with the Food Act 2001 and the Food Regulations 2002. Complaints regarding food premises, food handling and food poisoning are investigated by the Environmental Health Officers.

• For a copy of the Act and Regulations please visit the Department of Health Website (see below).

If you have concerns about any of the following issues, please contact one of Council's Environmental Health Officers on 08 8375 6600.

• Poor handling of food in a food business.
• The cleanliness of a food business.
• Pests found within a food premises.
• Unsatisfactory food storage.
• The sale of unsafe or unsuitable food (including contamination with foreign matter and food poisoning)

Primary Industries and Regions SA (PIRSA) is responsible for the administration of primary industries legislation. The Dairy Authority of SA and Meat Hygiene unit are two PIRSA agencies with responsibilities for Meat and Dairy product safety.

If you believe you have food poisoning, visit your doctor. A doctor can take samples for laboratory analysis to see whether your symptoms are food related.

If a sample comes back positive for a notifiable disease, the doctor should notify the Department of Health, who may require your food history to help find the cause of the illness.

Please view information sheets below for further details regarding food poisoning bacteria.

The City of Marion's Environmental Health Officers inspect food businesses for compliance with the Food Act 2001 (SA) and the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code and work with businesses to improve standards.

The use of enforcing the Food Act is proportionate and graduated and dependent on a wide range of factors including the compliance history of the food business and the level of risk posed to consumers.

The names of businesses or individuals that have been found guilty by a court of a breach of the Food Act are placed on a public Food Prosecution Register, maintained by SA Health. The name remains on the register for two years from the date of the court decision.

• To view the public Food Prosecution Register please visit the SA Health Website (link below).

Council has also made a resolution to place the names of businesses or individuals that have been found guilty by a court of a breach of the Food Act on the City of Marion's website. The name will remain on the City of Marion prosecution register for a period of two years from the Court decision date.

Prosecution Register

Michael Calava; and Tight Assignments Pty Ltd, previous proprietors of a food business in the City of Marion area, each convicted of 3 counts of offences under Section 21 of the Food Act on 16 April 2015:

• Count 1: re Clause 17(1) of Standard 3.2.2. of the Australian New Zealand
• Count 2: re Clause 17(1) of Standard 3.2.2. of the Australian New Zealand
• Count 3: re Clause 15 of Standard 3.2.2. of the Australian New Zealand

The Dairy Authority licences milk vendors, dairy food processors and dairy farmers (including goat and sheep dairy farmers).

Food safety enquiries or information on codes of practice can be obtained by contacting the:

Dairy Authority of SA

33 Hutt Street, Adelaide SA 5000

The aim of the PIRSA Meat Hygiene Program is to administer the Meat Australian Standards which exists to ensure that all meat and meat products processed in South Australia for domestic and restricted export consumption are wholesome.

All sectors of the meat processing industry i.e butchers (excluding purely retail operations) are affected by the Meat Hygiene Act 1994.

Enquiries about food businesses administered under the Meat Australian Standards can be made to:

Primary Industries and Regions SA (PIRSA)

GPO Box 1671, Adelaide SA 5001

Pig Swill Feeding

Swill feeding is the traditional name for the feeding of food scraps to pigs. It is a dangerous practice that can introduce and spread disease, placing livestock industries and the whole economy at risk.

It is against the law in Australia to feed pigs swill and anyone caught feeding or supplying prohibited pig feed to pigs can face a $10,000 fine under the Livestock Regulations 2013.

If you encounter any situations where you suspect pigs are being fed prohibited pig feed, please call (08) 8207 7900 or the Emergency Animal Disease Watch Hotline on 1800 675 888. For more information please visit www.pir.sa.gov.au/african-swin...

For further information, please contact:

Community Health & Safety Unit

In person: 245 Sturt Road, Sturt SA 5047

Post: PO Box 21, Oaklands Park SA 5046