1
Introduction
This guide is intended to apply to small Bed and Breakfast premises with
3 or less guest rooms serving only* a traditional fried breakfast
which is cooked and served to order.
*including certain packed lunches but not including other meals such as lunches or evening meals
If you need help in deciding if it is appropriate for your premises - phone Environmental Health on 0845 277 7000
Recent changes to food legislation now requires all food businesses to have a
HACCP based Food Safety Management System in place.
(HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point and is a documented safe system of work.)
One way of complying is to use the Food Standards Agency endorsed:
CookSafe system - for caterers, or the
RetailSafe system - for retailers and smaller caterers.
These systems however contain more detail than is necessary for most small Bed and Breakfasts. With this in mind, Stirling Council has prepared this guide* tailored to the specific needs of proprietors of small Bed and Breakfasts.
While you are required to have a safe food safety system in place, the system used in this guide is not a legal requirement as such and you are free to use alternative equivalent systems or to develop your own.
Contents and how to use this guide:
If yours is a new business or you are proposing alterations, start by reading:-
Section 1 Getting Started
to make sure you have all the necessary permissions etc.
Read and understand:-
Section 2 The Law - HACCP Explained
to be aware of your legal obligations and the terminology used
Ensure that you have the necessary facilities as detailed in:-
Section 3 Facilities Guide
i.e. fridges, sinks etc.
Read and put into practice (via the next section) the:-
Section 4 Hygiene Guide
to ensure your food is safe
Most important of all – put in place a safe system of work by committing to your:-
Section 5 House Rules
which state your safe methods for your food business
Use the sheet provided to keep:-
Section 6 Records
to confirm that your house rules are being followed
*This guide has been prepared by Stirling Council to help small Bed and Breakfast proprietors comply with food safety law. It has been prepared in good faith but cannot be founded upon in any legal proceedings as the interpretation of the law is ultimately the responsibility of the courts.
Stirling Council Environmental Health Compliance Guide for Small Bed and Breakfasts – last updated 2 July 2010
Section 1
Getting Started
Registering your Food Business
All food businesses are required to register with their Local Authority 28 days prior to commencing business. If you have not already done so, please complete and return the form in Appendix 1 to:-
Stirling Council
Environmental Health
Viewforth
Stirling
FK8 2ET
There is no charge for registration - if you require a receipt please enclose a stamped self addressed envelope.
We may use your details to send you information on:-
· relevant food safety issues e.g. withdrawals of unsafe foods
· the availability of food hygiene training courses
· significant changes in food law
While Stirling Council will not proactively pass your information to other parties, members of the public and commercial organisations have a legal right to request details of information held by local authorities.
In order to ensure our database is up to date, please advise us of any changes in your details or if you cease trading.
For help or advice with registration phone Food Safety on 0845 277 7000
or email .
Food Hygiene Inspections
Local Authorities are required to inspect all food businesses. The frequency of programmed inspections is set by a Statutory Code of Practice and varies from 6 months to several years depending on the type of premise and how well it is run. As B&Bs are considered to be of lower food safety risk, inspections frequencies for most will tend to be at the lower end of this range.
Once we have received your completed registration form, your details will be entered in our database of food businesses and an inspection date will be programmed in.
While we will always try to minimise the inconvenience to you during inspections, we trust you will understand that we must call without prior warning.
For further details or advice on the inspection process phone Food Safety on 0845 277 7000
or email .
For information on additional legal requirements and permissions relevant to B&Bs on the following subjects see Appendix 2.
Planning Permission
Building Warrant
Fire Safety
Health and Safety
Trading Standards
Commercial Rates
Section 2
The Law - HACCP Explained
What does the law require?
You must ensure that the food you serve is safe to eat. To this end food business operators are required to put in place a permanent safe procedure based on the principles of HACCP.
What is HACCP?
HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point and is a documented safe system of work designed to prevent problems rather than waiting until they happen - resulting in safer food.
HACCP has 7 parts:-
1. Analysis of the food HAZARDS
2. Identifying the CRITICAL CONTROL POINTS
3. Having CONTROLS and TARGETS
at the CRITICAL CONTROL POINTS
4. MONITORING the effectiveness of the controls
5. Taking CORRECTIVE ACTION when things go
wrong
6. Making checks (VERIFICATION) to ensure the
system is working and up to date
7. Keeping RECORDS of house rules and monitoring
How do I comply?
In plain terms - you must:-
· Think about all of the parts of your business process which could harm your
customers if they went wrong.
e.g. incomplete cooking, spread of germs from raw meat etc.
· Put a safe system of work in place to prevent things going wrong.
i.e. house rules, regular monitoring and recording.
In doing so, particular attention needs to be given to your HIGH RISK FOODS
There are many different ways of complying. One method is to use this guide which has been tailored to the specific needs of proprietors of small Bed and Breakfasts.
For advice phone the Environmental Health Food Safety Team on 0845 277 7000.
Section 3
Facilities Guide
Your premises must be suitably constructed and be provided with suitable and sufficient facilities and equipment to allow you to make food safely.
Decorative and Structural Finishes
Walls, floors and ceilings must be capable of being effectively cleaned. Absorbent surfaces such as carpets, feature walls, untreated wooden panels etc are not recommended.
Layout
In a busy kitchen there can be an opportunity to contaminate food where clean and “dirty” processes cross. Think about how you prepare food in the kitchen and design out crossovers e.g. passing raw meat over cooked food.
Lighting
The food preparation areas must be sufficiently lit to permit the hygienic preparation of food and effective cleaning.
Ventilation
As breakfast cooking involves mainly frying, direct ventilation above the cooker, ducted to the outside via grease filters is strongly recommended. This should be powerful enough to prevent the escape of grease and cooking odours into the kitchen.
Work Surfaces
Standard domestic work surfaces maintained in a good condition so as to be easily cleaned will suffice.
Hand Wash Facilities
Hands must not be washed in the same sink used for food preparation/utensil washing. Commercial kitchens require a separate wash hand basin in the kitchen. For small bed and breakfasts where the kitchen is semi-domestic, an existing wash hand basin in a nearby toilet may be used as an alternative, however this is not ideal as it can result in a food handler potentially re-exposing themselves to the risk of contamination and it is strongly recommended that a dedicated wash hand basin be provided in the kitchen. It is good practice to use bactericidal hand wash and single use towels e.g. paper towels.
Washing Machines
The washing machine should ideally be in a separate utility room away from food preparation areas. If it is in the kitchen then it must not be loaded when commercial food preparation is in progress.
Fridges and Freezers
Sufficient fridge and freezer storage should be provided for the size of your business/domestic use, preferably with a built in temperature indicator. Fridges should operate at or below 5°C and freezers at or below minus 18°C. It is recommended that daily temperature checks are made either by using a thermometer or by checking the built in indicator. In the latter case, it is recommended that monthly spot checks with a thermometer are also carried out.
Dry goods
Adequate cupboards for dry goods such as cereals must be provided.
Wash Up Sinks
While commercial kitchens are recommended to have at least 2 sinks (one for washing and one for rinsing utensils) most domestic kitchens will only have one. This will normally be sufficient for the production of lower risk foods in small quantities. The use of an automatic dishwasher is recommended.
(B&Bs generate a lot of fat as a by-product of fried breakfasts. Fat grease and oil must not be put down the sink. This is an offence under the Sewerage (Scotland) Act which causes major problems in the sewerage network costing £15million a year across the UK. Businesses and householders are encouraged to put any used fats and oils into a sealable container in the bin. For detailed advice see Scottish Water’s guide to disposing of cooking fats at www.scottishwater.co.uk.)
Food Preparation Sinks
Larger commercial premises will have a separate dedicated food preparation sink. This is not essential for a B&B however, any sinks used for food preparation and also for washing up should be cleaned and disinfected in between uses.
Probe thermometer
A probe thermometer should be purchased to carry out spot checks (explained in Section 4) on the safety of your cooking methods.
Timer
You are recommended to have a means of measuring the cooking time to ensure the consistency of your safe methods. This may already be built in to your equipment or, where necessary, a separate cooking timer bought.
Toilet Facilities
These should be conveniently accessible and should be provided with hand wash facilities as detailed above.
1
Section 4
Hygiene Guide for small Bed and Breakfasts
The food safety risk in small Bed and Breakfast premises serving only a traditional fried breakfast cooked and served to order is relatively low. You will however be handing raw meats, raw eggs and ready to eat foods (and there is the additional risk of crossovers from foods being prepared for the family) so an understanding of the basics of food safety is still essential.
The following guide details the main food safety risks relevant to Bed and Breakfasts.
You must be aware of the need to control these risks at all stages in your business, from the initial purchase and/or delivery to the storage, handling, preparation, cooking and serving of the food.
(For simplicity, the specific HACCP terms explained in Section 2 (e.g. HAZARD) are not used throughout the text however, by way of illustration, they are shown in context when they first occur below.)
Time and Temperature Control
Essential for the prevention of the Survival of germs in undercooked food and the Growth of germs in cold food outside the fridge and hot food not kept hot enough.
The main areas of risk are:-
Risk from inadequate cooking and reheating (cooking and reheating are examples of CRITICAL CONTROL POINTs) – raw high risk foods such as raw meat and raw meat products (HAZARD) must be properly cooked (CONTROL) to kill the germs already present within them. Black pudding, Haggis and Fruit Pudding have been previously cooked by the supplier and just need to be re heated - the main risk is that they may have been cross contaminated from raw meat either at the butchers or in a variety pack.
The general rule is that all of these foods should be cooked to 75°C in the centre (TARGET). This can be achieved by using one or more of the following safe methods:-
(The reheating of foods previously cooked by you on your premises is beyond the scope of this guide and is not recommended)
Visual checks - use reliable visual changes in the colour and texture of the food e.g. bacon and eggs.
Manufacturer’s instructions – follow these for packaged foods.
“In House” Safe Method - for non packaged foods, devise your own tried and tested safe method – and keep to it every time.
When using a tried and tested Safe Method you must take account of all of the 4 variables below which must then be set and not altered.
1. The type and quantity of the food e.g. take account of the different thickness of sausage.
2. The temperature of the food prior to cooking/re-heating e.g. is it frozen or defrosted?
3. The cooking temperature i.e. oven temperature or grill setting (always pre-heat), microwave power setting.
4. The cooking time – use of a timer is recommended.
e.g. cook 12 defrosted butcher’s thin pork sausages in the preheated oven at X°C for X minutes.
Beware of any changes to your routine e.g. increasing the amount or thickness of the food will require a longer cooking time.
Probing - directly measure the core temperature with a thermometer probe e.g. probing the centre of sausage.
Use a probe when:-
1. Initially trying and testing your safe method.
2. Spot checking your safe method e.g. one different item weekly.
3. If you have changed your routine - probe every batch until you have re-established a safe method.
Risk from inadequate cooking and reheating checks - you must check (MONITOR) the food you cook as often as necessary to make sure it has reached a safe temperature. Always keep to your safe method/s. Carry out daily Checks and regular (e.g. weekly) Spot Checks as below. Keep a record of your spot checks.
Bacon / Check that the colour and texture has changed all over and its piping hotEggs / Check the white and yolk are fully set
OR see “Runny Eggs” below
Sausage*
(link and Lorne) / Check the skin is brown all over
Spot check by cutting a representative one open to make the texture and colour (i.e. no pink meat) have changed and the centre is piping hot
OR if in any doubt or you do not want to damage the sausage:-
Spot check the centre temperature of a representative one with a probe
Puddings
(black, haggis and fruit) / Spot check the centre is piping hot by cutting a representative one open,
OR if in any doubt or you do not want to damage the food:-
Spot check the centre temperature of a representative one with a probe
Fish / Check the flesh has become white, flaky and opaque with no translucent bits
Other foods / Other cooked foods such as hash browns, mushrooms, beans etc are very low risk but be aware of the risk of cross contaminating them if e.g. batch frying along with raw meats
*Sausage (link and sliced Lorne) is particularly risky because the germs already present in the meat have been mixed through to the centre. If the cooking temperature is too high, sausage may appear cooked on the outside before the centre has reached a safe temperature – this is especially important when cooking very thick sausages e.g. Cumberland or when cooking from frozen. Confusingly, sometimes the preservative used in sausage gives a pink appearance which will not cook out – if in doubt check with your probe. Thin fresh sausages in their skins are quicker and safer. Slice Lorne as thinly as practical.