Handbook for Food Safety Auditors

Handbook for Food Safety Auditors

Food Act 1984 (Vic)

Index

Preface2

1.Introduction3

2.Roles & Responsibilities5

3.Approval of Food Act food safety auditors11

4.Food premises classification and compliance check frequency 13

5.Overview of the audit process21

6.Audit procedures under the Act 27

7. Case studies47

Appendix 1National RegulatoryFood SafetyAuditor Framework adapted

to the VictorianFood Act 198460

Appendix 2Certificates and notices under the Act62

Form 1Certificate of adequacy of food safety program 64

Form 2Certificate of compliance66

Form 3Notice to the proprietor to correct critical non-conformances68

Form 4 Notice to the council of critical non-conformances (initial audit)70

Form 5Notice to the proprietor to correct non-conformances72

Form 6Certificate of compliance (with non-conformances that can 74 no longer be remedied)

Form 7Certificate when non-conformances are remedied76

Form 8Notice to the council of critical non-conformances at re-audit (corrective action not taken) 80

Form 9Notice to council of non-conformances at re-audit 84 (corrective action not taken)

Appendix 3Additional information about the Act86

Appendix 4 Glossary88

Preface

This is the 3rd edition of the handbook for auditors.

The 1st edition was published in 2002, and the 2nd edition in 2005.

This handbook reflects the Food Act 1984, and the procedures for approving auditors, as at April 2013.

This edition -

provides comprehensive guidance about food premises classification and compliance check frequency (chapter 4) and the audit process (chapter 5);
updates the requirements for regulatory audits and the identification and notification of non-conformances (chapter 6);
includes revised case studies (chapter 7); and

contains notification forms and certificates under the Act (appendix 2).

If you would like to receive this publication in an accessible format, please email:

Published by Food Safety and Regulation, Victorian Government, Department of Health, Melbourne,Victoria. This publication is copyright, no part may be reproduced by any process except in accordancewith the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968.

Authorised by the State Government of Victoria, 50 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne.

Chapter 1 Introduction

The Victorian Food Act

The principal Act that controls the sale of food in Victoria is the Food Act 1984(the Act). It provides the regulatory framework for the food industry to ensure that food sold is safe, suitable and correctly labelled.

The Commonwealth and state governments jointly agree upon national food standards, which are embodied in the Food Standards Code. This collection of bi-national standards promotes consistency in Australia’s and New Zealand’s food laws.

Under the Act, food business owners that operate in Victoriaare legally responsible to ensure that the food they sell meets all of these requirements.

The Act-

sets out offences for breaches of the food laws and the applicable penalties and defences;
provides the means through which the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code is applied as the law in Victoria(which includes the Food Safety Standards);
establishes a food premises classification system and enforcement powers, including emergency powers where there are immediate threats to public health;
provides the means through which municipal councils register food businesses.

The Act is available at

Who is an approved food safety auditor?

Only auditors with a current approval granted by the Department of Health (the department) under the Act may audit food premises for the purposes of the Act.

These auditors are carrying out a statutory audit. Any other kind of approval of an auditor - such as through professional accreditation - is not sufficient.

It is an offence for a person who is not approved to –

conduct a food safety audit under the Act; or
directly or indirectly represent that he or she is an approved food safety auditor, or is authorised to conduct a food safety audit.

Approval of a person under the Act is required because -

the auditor must be competent to perform this type of audit;
legal consequences flow from these audits for businesses;
councils who register audited businesses must be able to have regard to these audits;
these audits must be carried out in ways set out in the Act;
the outcomes must be reported to councils in ways described in the Act.

This handbook describes the audit process for approved food safety auditors conducting these audits.

Most food businesses in Victoria are regulated by the Food Act. This handbook only relates tothe audit of those businesses that require a food safety audit under that Act. This handbook does not apply to any audits of businesses licensed by Primesafe or Dairy Food Safety Victoria, as these audits are conducted for the purposes of separate legislation administered by those agencies.

Food Safety & Regulation Unit

Department of Health

GPO Box 4541

Melbourne 3001

1300 364 352

Chapter 2 Roles and responsibilities

The following sections outline the role and responsibilities of each participant in the Victorian food regulatory system, including the role of auditors.

The department, local councils, and auditors all play a role in the audit system under the Act.

The Department of Health

Thedepartment has general oversight of the administration of the Act. This includes providing guidance to councils, auditors and authorised officers to promote the objects of the Act and a consistent approach.

It also has a range of general functions to ensure the proper operation of the Act, such as:

responding to food incidents and emergencies, including co-ordination when more than one municipality is involved. This includes cases where members of the public have become sick from eating food that is inherently unsafe. It also applies when allergens present in food are not declared on a label as required under the Food Standards Code (as this may pose a serious threat to persons who are allergic to those substances who may consume that food);
approving analysts and food safety program (FSP) templates;
publishing the register of convictions of food businesses; and
setting requirements for the number of samples of food to be taken by councils to monitor food sold in the State.

The role of the department in relation to the Victorian food safety audit system is to:

establish and maintain processes to approve food safety auditors;
set application and selection criteria for auditors based on technical expertise, competence, training, qualifications and experience;
maintain a register of auditors approved under the Act;
investigate complaints made against auditors;
revoke or suspend the approval of an auditor under the Act, if required;
monitor and evaluate the implementation and outcomes of the auditing system; and
review and change systems where evaluation shows the objectives of the systems are not achieved.

Local government

In Victoria, typically the enforcement agency for a food business is the local council that registers a food premises under the Act. This handbook refers to such a council as the registering council.

The registering council has a number of roles under the Act that form part of the audit system, or which involve the monitoring of food businesses.

In the case of class 1 and class 2 food premises, the registering council is responsible for:

conducting an annual assessment of all class 1 food premises, and also those class 2 premises with a standard food safety program;
conducting discretionary inspections of food premises;
deciding whether a food business is able to operate, by granting registration of a food premises;
checking that class 1 and class 2 food premises that are required under the Act to be audited are audited in the time frame and frequency declared in the Government Gazette by the Secretary to the department (currently one audit per annual registration period);
receiving information from approved auditors about these audits and -
taking a certificate of adequacy of a food safety program into account when deciding whether to grant an initial registration, or renew registration annually;
taking into account certificates received from an auditor about a regulatory audit when renewing registration; and
responding to notifications by an auditor about non-conformances;
investigating complaints made against a food business; and
enforcement action, where required in the case of a non-compliant business.

Registering councils also may liaise with auditors concerning compliance matters raised during an audit, or seek information from an auditor due to the investigation of the potential source of an outbreak of food related disease.

Councils may also query an auditor about whether a notification is or is not required, particularly the failure to notify council about critical non-conformances straight away. They may report any concerns they may have regarding an auditor to the department.

The Act now permits a registering council to offer food safety audit services if the audit is conducted on behalf of council by an officer or employee who is an approved food safety auditor. In all cases it is the proprietor of the food premises who retains the right to choose who they engage to conduct the food safety audit of their premises.

Section 19U of the Act sets out the circumstances under which an officer or member of staff of a registering council may conduct a food safety audit for the purposes of the Act. These include:

only conducting, or assist in conducting, a food safety audit of a fixed food premises within that council's municipal district if the audit is conducted on behalf of the council;
only conducting, or assist in conducting, a food safety audit of a temporary or mobile food premises or a food vending machine on behalf of a council.

The Act provides that if a food safety audit of a food premises is conducted by or on behalf of a council:

the proprietor of the food premises must only be charged the reasonable costs of the audit by the council. (However, the council may waive or vary the costs of an audit if the council considers that there are special circumstances having regard to criteria fixed by the council); and
council must ensure that the method of determining the reasonable costs of an audit payable under the Act, and the criteria used to determine that fee, are available for inspection by the public.

There are some modified procedures in the Act that apply when council officers conduct audits on behalf of a registering council and detect non-compliance. This is because a council, as the registration authority, has enforcement powers. As these procedures are not relevant to private approved auditors, they are not set out in this handbook. Any council that wishes to conduct audits should check the department’s website for further information, or contact the Food Safety and Regulation Unit of the department for advice.

Approved food safety auditors

The registering council can have regard to information provided about an audit under the Act by an approved auditor of –

aclass 1 food premises; and
any class 2 food premises that chooses to develop their own independent (or non-standard) food safety program (FSP).

Only food safety auditors who have been approved by the department may audit food premises for the purposes of the Act.

(In the future, if any templates for class 1 food safety programs are registered with the department under the Act, auditors may also conduct one annual food safety assessment of these premises. Refer to appendix 3 for more information.)

There are two activities undertaken for the purposes of the Act by approved food safety auditors:

checking the adequacy of a FSP – typically when a business is first registered by council under the Act; and
an audit of a registered premises that considers the adequacy of the FSP, along with whether the business is complying with the program and the food safety requirements that apply under the Act (a “regulatory audit”). Currently this full audit must be conducted annually.

In the case of a regulatory audit, the appropriate certificate must be provided to a food business and the registering councilif the premises is compliant, or if there are no outstanding non-conformances that can now be remedied. This is described in chapter 6.

The auditor is responsible for providing these statutory audit certificates to the council after auditing a food business.

In cases where non-conformances remain outstanding that can still be remedied, a certificate is not issued under the Act.

The auditor must separately inform the council as soon as practicable about any deficiencies identified during a regulatory audit that may lead to a serious risk of food being sold or prepared that is unsafe or unsuitable. This obligation arises under the Act when such non-conformances are first detected, and also when they are outstanding after the time allowed in a correction notice has expired. The department also requires that the auditor provide a copy of any such notification to the Food Safety & Regulation Unit of the department.

Any other non-conformances identified during a regulatory audit only need to be notified to the registering council if they are not corrected by the business in the course of the audit process, within the time specified in a notice issued by the auditor.

An auditor must also notify the department (and council) about cases where food labels do not declare allergens present in the food as required under the Food Standards Code.

Audits are one way in which the Act seeks to protect public health. The competency and independence of the persons conducting these audits is therefore integral to the regulatory framework established by law. For this reason, only persons who are approved under the Act may conduct these audits. The approval process is outlined in chapter 3.

Under section 19T of the Act the Secretary of the department may, after giving the person a chance to be heard, revoke the person’s approval if satisfied that the person:

has failed to comply with any requirement imposed by the Act on approved food safety auditors; or
is not sufficiently competent to conduct food safety audits; or
has been found guilty of fraudulent conduct in conducting an audit; or
has not satisfactorily carried out two or more food safety audits; or
obtained approval under the Act to conduct food safety audits on the basis of fraud, misrepresentation, or concealment of facts.

Related duties and obligations of approved food safety auditors are explained in the ‘Auditor Arrangements’ document that an auditor must undertake to abide by if they are approved by the department under the Act.

The food premises

Under the Act all food businesses that sell food to the public must ensure that food sold is safe and suitable for human consumption, the premises are kept clean and sanitary, and they observe the provisions of the Australia and New Zealand Food Standards Code (the Code), in particular Chapter 3 of the Code – Food Safety Standards. Chapter 4 explains how the Act applies to different classes of food premises.

Class 1 food premises are those businesses that provide potentially hazardous food to vulnerable groups, such as in aged care facilities.

Class 2 food premises are those businesses whose main activity is handling unpackaged potentially hazardous foods. These are foods which need correct temperature control to keep them safe during the food handling process, including cooking and storage. Class 2 premises include restaurants, fast food outlets, hotels, caterers, delicatessens, supermarkets with delicatessens, cafes and most manufacturers.

TheActrequiresannual audits by an approved food safety auditorof:

all class 1 food premises; and
those class 2 food premises that choose to develop their own independent (or non-standard) food safety program (FSP).

The Act does not require other food premises to be audited.

A food premises with a FSP that is required under the Act to be audited must:

ensure that they have an adequate FSP thatcomplies with section 19D of the Act. (Refer to chapter 6 for more information);
ensure that the FSP is kept at the food premises;
maintain records in accordance with the FSP;
provide a copy of their FSP to the registering council if requested by that council to do so;
ensure that if there are any changes in the activities carried out in the premises, the FSP is revised to reflect those changes and the program continues to meet the requirements of section 19D;
if changes are made to the FSP - provide a copy of the revised FSP to the registering council within 14 days of the revisions being made, if-
the premises is a class 1 premises; or
the premises is a class 2 premises and the proprietor provided the registering council with a copy of the program at initial registration. (This does not occur often. Instead, the proprietor usually provides the council with a certificate from a food safety auditor stating that the program is adequate under section 19D);
ensure that the FSP for that food premises is audited by a person who is approved under the Act and whose certificate indicates that the approval covers that type of premises. (Otherwise the audit is not recognised for the purposes of the Act, and the business will incur the unnecessary expense associated with organising a further audit);
ensure that the FSP is audited by such a person at the intervals required under the Act; and
upon request of the registering council, provide a copy of any report prepared for the premises by an approved food safety auditor within the previous 4 years.

The audit can be conducted by either:

an independent (private) approved food safety auditor; or
a person who is an approved food safety auditor who conducts the audit on behalf of a council, if the council offers audit services.

A list of current approved food safety auditors is maintained on the food safety website

As an audit under the Act involves checking whether any deficiencies identified in previous audits have been remedied, the proprietor should also make available to the auditor reports or details of past audits (or at least the past two audits).