Beans and pulses are a brilliant food source - full of fibre and protein, they're nutritious, cost effective and environmentally friendly. In fact, Veg Power and The Food Foundation are launching a whole campaign focussed on Boosting Beans. But, did you know that some beans contain a toxin called Phytohemagglutinin (or PHA)? Don't panic - it's easy to cook them safely to ensure that this toxin is destroyed - just follow our guide below.
Importantly, PHA poisoning is generally NOT life threatening. Symptoms can however be unpleasant, and include nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. Typically these start to occur within one-three hours of eating beans that contain toxins. There are no particular types of people who are more susceptible to the ill-effects of PFA, but people who are already vulnerable to gastric problems may suffer more severely.
The symptoms of PHA poisoning can be brought on by just a few beans, and the severity of symptoms can increase with the amount eaten.
The good news is, straightforward cooking destroys PHA, as long as you follow some simple rules. The amount of PHA within different types of beans varies, so the guidelines below are for red kidney beans, as these contain the highest levels of PHA. If you are cooking a different type of bean, you may want to find the specific guidelines for that type.
For dried red kidney beans: soak the beans for 12 hours in cold, clean water. Drain the water, then boil vigorously in fresh water for at least ten minutes. Getting the water to boiling point is important here, as it is the temperature that denatures the toxin. In terms of cooking the beans, they will probably need considerably longer than ten minutes to become soft and edible, we're just considering food safety here.
For tinned (canned) red kidney beans: tinned beans have been treated at ultra-high temperatures as part of their processing, so these are safe to eat straight away. However, some will be stored in brine, so we always recommend rinsing tinned beans before you eat to minimise salt levels in your food.
Famously, the issue of PHA poisoning was brought to the attention of many when slow cookers (crockpots) became popular in the seventies. Initially it was thought that undercooked meat was the culprit for many people becoming ill following a slow cooked chilli-con-carne. However, it became apparent that kidney beans, popped straight into the cooker and never reaching boiling point, were the problem. So - if you want delicious kidney beans in your chilli, either use tinned beans, or soak and boil the beans first.
Many beans - including fresh green beans - do contain PHAs, although fresh beans do not require soaking or a long cook at boiling temperatures. As previously mentioned, red kidney beans contain the highest levels of PHAs. White kidney beans also contain the toxin, as do soy, broad, pinto and other beans - but to a lesser extent.
All of these beans can be enjoyed safely as long as they are cooked properly. And that's great news, because beans really are a superfood.
If you'd like to learn more about cooking all foods safely, have a look at The Safer Food Group's training courses, available here.
FIFO in food safety stands for first in, first out. It is a food management system designed to ensure that your food products are fresh and safe to use. But should you be using FIFO in your food business?
FIFO, or first in, first out, is a way to manage your stock usage. It works by using the food that you have had longest (first in) before any other food (first out). It requires placing newer deliveries behind older ones, pushing them forward. By ensuring that older food doesn’t get forgotten about and become rotten or mouldy, it limits waste. Perhaps it may be the method that you use at home without even realising it.
FIFO is not a bad food management system in principle. It shows that you are considering how long a food has been in your inventory, and it goes some way to reducing food waste. However, within a professional environment, it has major flaws for food safety. The system relies entirely on human consistency. It needs perfect labelling and perfect execution every single time. This is incredibly hard to maintain in a busy environment. Simple mistakes can happen frequently. Someone might place a new item at the front for convenience. An old item can get pushed to the back and forgotten. These small errors lead to increased waste. More seriously, they can cause foodborne illness.
There are a handful of limited instances where FIFO can work adequately. This is typically for very fresh, short-life foods that lack any best-before date. Think, for example, of loose, unpackaged bakery items like daily bread. They are delivered and sold on the same day. This is very much the exception, though, not the rule.
For the vast majority of foods, FIFO is not reliable enough on its own. Relying solely on staff to remember what came in first is an unnecessary risk. It is simply not a recommended primary system for ensuring food safety.
You must use a proper, date-based system. This is the best and safest alternative. It is the UK food safety standard for a very good reason. Properly dated packaging is a much safer and more accurate guide. Best-before and, crucially, use-by dates are there for your protection. They provide a clear, scientific measure of safety. Best-before dates denote quality. Food beyond its best-before date may still be safe to eat, but it may taste, look, or smell worse. Use-by dates, on the other hand, are about food safety. You must not eat or serve food that has gone beyond its use-by date, as it is considered unsafe.
Alongside the labels on pre-packaged food, it is important to use your own labelling system. Foods which have been opened should be labelled to ensure that all your staff know when it was opened and when they should be used by. This is particularly important for ingredients which are not used all at once.
Beyond labels, you and your staff should use your senses to ensure your food is safe to eat. Food may go off even before its best-before or use-by date. As a result, it is important to check for signs of mould or bacteria. Is there visible mould on the product? Does the product smell unusual, particularly excessively sour? If the answer to either of these questions is yes, you should throw it away. Ultimately, your customers’ safety is more important than some food waste.
Finally, if possible, your business should set up a digital inventory of stock. This will help your business from a food safety perspective, as you can keep track of which items need to be used and by when. There are also benefits beyond food safety. With a digital inventory, it will be easier to track which products sell the most and plan your business strategy accordingly.
In summary, FIFO in food safety is a basic product organisation system. It can serve as a helpful secondary check. But it should never be your primary food safety method. Always trust the use-by dates above all else. Label everything you can clearly. This disciplined approach is the safest way to protect yourself, your staff, and your customers. To help increase your food safety skills, check out our certified food hygiene training for both you and your staff.
When you’re setting up a food business for the first time, one question often arises: who exactly is responsible for enforcing food hygiene? This enforcement is not the duty of a single entity but rather a role split among government agencies, local authorities, and individual professionals working within structured legislation and frameworks. By understanding how this is split, you can better understand not only who is responsible for enforcing food hygiene legislation, but also how you can be prepared and compliant with their enforcement.
The rules of food hygiene in the UK are established through legislation and guidance. The majority of this is written by government agencies, then passed onto Parliament or individual Ministers for consideration. For food hygiene, the leading agency responsible is the Food Standards Agency (the FSA). As experts on food safety, this agency is responsible for understanding food hygiene on a national level. Their role involves collecting evidence and data on food hygiene across the nation. Using this, they can then set the standards and create national food hygiene policies. These policies are then passed onto Parliament or to individual Ministers to ratify into law. The FSA is also responsible for the Food Hygiene Rating System. This is a database of all food businesses, containing their results from their latest inspection as a rating out of 5 stars.
When setting up a food business, one of the most important tasks is to register with your local authority. Local authorities bear the primary responsibility for ensuring compliance within the vast majority of food businesses. They are tasked with executing interventions, including inspections, audits, and enforcement actions. As they are significantly more local, this reduces the number of food businesses they have to look after. This means that they can spread assessments based on need and risk. Inspections are mostly scheduled about every two years. However, a new business needs to be inspected as soon as possible to ensure that standards are being met. Similarly, businesses deemed high-risk (those that have underperformed in recent inspections) may be inspected more often.
Inspections may be unannounced, or they may be scheduled in advance. If they are scheduled in advance, it is your local authority with whom you will be in contact to schedule this assessment. Your local authority also has several powers following an inspection. They are able to issue compliance orders, ensuring that you make specific changes to your business. In particularly extreme failures of food hygiene, they may also temporarily close your business.
The individuals who physically carry out the inspections and provide guidance to businesses are called Environmental Health Officers (EHOs). They are employed by local authorities and act as the visible face of food law enforcement. They may arrive at your food business unannounced to inspect: in these circumstances they are legally entitled to enter the property. After they have completed their inspection, you will be issued with a rating. This is a score between 0 and 5 stars which represents your food hygiene level, with 5 being the best.
They will also provide you with tailored feedback on the day or soon after on how to improve your business’s food hygiene. If your food hygiene poses an immediate risk to public health, an EHO could issue a closure order to protect the public. They may also take samples to be tested in a lab. Read more about the process of inspections here.
For almost all food businesses, these are the three groups that are responsible for enforcing food hygiene legislation. Within specific sectors, however, policies may differ. In the Early Years sector, for example, the legal frameworks for food hygiene are provided by the EYFS. This is a legal framework produced by the Department for Education. However, much like other food businesses, most Early Years businesses are still required to register with their local authority and are subject to EHO inspections. Similarly, the NHS and care settings have additional legal frameworks to follow, but are still subject to the same inspections as all food businesses.
An EHO inspection can seem like a daunting prospect. In reality, however, they are there to help your business be as safe as possible. One way that you can ensure you and your staff understand food hygiene and are prepared for an inspection is to undertake food hygiene training. If you are looking for more information on the inspection itself, check out our free “How to get a 5 star rating” course. Finally, it is important to make sure that you have a food safety management system in place, such as HACCP.
Every food business needs to undertake a risk assessment to identify and address areas in which food hygiene risks may exist. Undertaking a risk assessment in your business can be a daunting task-- but it doesn’t need to be. Each food business is different, and so the risks in each business are different, but the process to follow is the same. The following is a practical walkthrough of how to undertake a risk assessment.
Risk assessment may sound intimidating - but it’s something you do every day without even thinking about it. For instance, when you drive or cross the road, you’re constantly assessing the conditions around you, thinking about the risks to your safety and working out how to avoid those risks. This is an informal risk assessment. You don’t follow a written plan because you are performing everyday tasks that you are very familiar with.
Formal risk assessment is the same process, but it is undertaken in a much more considered way. In a business setting, you will be trying to identify risks not only to yourself, but to your team and your customers. In a formal risk assessment, you write down the risks and create a plan to either eliminate them or reduce them to the lowest possible level.
The first step is to identify anything in your food business that could cause harm. In a food context, hazards can be categorised as:
Once hazards are identified, consider who could be affected and how. This includes:
For each hazard, ask: "Who is at risk?" and "How could they be harmed?" For example, if the hazard is undercooked chicken, the risk is food poisoning for customers. If the hazard is a wet floor, the risk is slips and falls for employees.
This step involves assessing how likely the risk is and how much harm it could do. This helps prioritise risks.
Once risks are evaluated, decide on appropriate control measures that either eliminate the hazard or reduce the risk to an acceptable level.
The ideal control is one that completely eliminates the hazard. A good example of this would be removing a specific allergen from your premises completely. However, elimination is not always possible - for instance, it is not possible to remove cleaning chemicals completely. It may be possible, however, to substitute a less harmful alternative.
Where risk cannot be eliminated, people must be protected to ensure their safety. For instance, guards can be installed on equipment with blades, and zoning can be used to prevent cross-contamination.
When no other effective controls can be put in place, PPE can be a suitable control, provided it is effective for the risk it is protecting against.
Once you have identified the hazards and the methods you will use to control them, you must record your findings. This record should include:
Ensure that the control measures identified are actually implemented. Communicate the findings and the necessary precautions to all relevant staff. Training is crucial to ensure everyone understands their role in maintaining food safety.
Click here for The Safer Food Group’s risk assessment template: upload template and insert
Risk assessments are not a one-time activity. They should be reviewed regularly to ensure they remain effective and relevant.
Update your risk assessment as needed and communicate any changes to your staff. This continuous improvement cycle is vital for maintaining high food safety standards.
By following these steps, a food business can systematically manage its risks, safeguard public health, and operate efficiently and legally.
You may have heard of HACCP as a system for managing risk in food businesses. HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points. It is a food safety management system which is designed to identify and target risks in your food business. A critical control point is any point at which an error would put your customers at risk.
In reality, there is very little difference between a risk assessment and a food safety management system (FSMS) or HACCP. A risk assessment is a broad tool that considers all of the hazards that a food business might face. A FSMS or HACCP specifically involves assessing the risks to food safety, then introducing Critical Control Points that must be met to achieve safe food. By undertaking a risk assessment, you can equip yourself with the skills necessary to create and implement your own HACCP system.
It is a legal requirement for you to use the principles of HACCP in your food safety management system. As a result, risk assessments are not just important for protecting your customers; they are also a legal necessity.
Let's walk through the creation of a burger and chips in a commercial kitchen to demonstrate risk assessment. In its simplest form, this can consist of 4 ingredients: beef, bread, lettuce, and potatoes. The first consideration is where your food has come from. It is your responsibility to ensure your food is safe, and this includes its delivery. It is crucial that you audit your suppliers and check each delivery to ensure that the food you receive is at the right temperature and in a good state. Once you have decided a supplier and received a delivery, the food will begin its journey in your business.
Firstly, consider the different types of food and where they will need to be stored. Your beef is raw meat, and so needs to be refrigerated at a temperature below 5°C to avoid growth of pathogenic bacteria. Similarly, your lettuce also needs to be refrigerated. Bacterial growth increases within the temperature 'danger zone' (8 - 63°C), so you need to be able to transfer your produce to fridges as soon as possible.
Within your storage, it is also important to consider the use dates. Old food, even when stored correctly, is at risk of microbiological contamination from mould growth. It is therefore important to know when your food arrived, and when it needs to be used by. This can be done with a first-in, first-out policy, as well as labelling dates on your produce. This is important for all four of our ingredients, but is less important for ingredients like sugar, which lasts for a long time and is therefore not
Next comes the preparation of the food. Here, all four types of risk are present. Microbiological and allergenic contamination can occur here through cross-contamination. If you use a chopping board to prepare your beef patty, it cannot be reused to prepare your lettuce without thorough washing beforehand. Similarly, your bread must be kept separate from your other ingredients, as the gluten in it is one of the 14 major allergens and is therefore an allergenic contamination risk. It is also important to consider pre-existing contamination. Potatoes may still be covered in dirt, which can be both physical and microbiological contamination, and should be washed before use. The FSA also recommends washing your salad before use. Regularly cleaning your kitchen is also important to prevent contamination. This can remove chemicals, physical debris, and microbes from your work surfaces. Finally, there is a risk from people preparing the food. Staff may shed hair, a physical contaminant, and thus, enforcing hair net use can address this risk. Similarly, a staff member’s jewellery may pose a risk of physical contamination. Unwashed hands may be covered in bacteria, and so a thorough handwashing routine is crucial.
You may think that the job is done here, but the risks are not over yet. Hot food is a haven for bacteria unless kept above a safe temperature, so if it cannot be served straight away, keep your burger under a hot lamp. Your system for serving customers, too, may pose risks you haven't considered. Food for customers with allergies should be clearly marked, so your server can ensure that the right meal goes to the right person. Finally, your food service area is the last place you will see the food before it reaches the customer. This provides a chance to check for any physical contaminants which may have been missed up til now. If in doubt, do not serve.
Your business may not serve burgers, but it serves some food. Some of the risks mentioned above will apply to your food, and some won't. There will also be some risks not mentioned above which do apply to your food. To undertake a risk analysis, methodically follow your food journey for each of your meals and ingredients. Note any place where these risks may occur, and put systems in place to address these risks. It is also important that your staff are trained in food hygiene so that they can mitigate these risks. Check out our Level 2 Food Hygiene course here, which contains more practical examples of assessing risk in a food business. Alternatively, if you would like to learn more about food safety management systems and HACCP, check out our Level 2 HACCP course, designed for food business managers.
International news sites have recently reported on the tragic case of two deaths and further hospitalisations, apparently caused by botulism in broccoli panini. Whilst some sites are treating this with a hint of amusement, there is certainly nothing funny about two preventable deaths. We look at what we know, how these cases might have been caused and what could have been done to prevent them
We know that the common food that was eaten by those who suffered from food poisoning was a sandwich made from sausage and a leafy green vegetable, cimi de rape (also known as broccoli rabe), from an Italian food truck. Jars of cimi de rabe were reportedly seized from the truck, but it is not yet clear who prepared or preserved the vegetable.
Update 15/08/25 - Following the seizure of cimi de rabe from the food van, the Italian Ministry of Health has also issued a recall of four Neapolitan-style friarelli (cimi de rabe) products under the brand names Bel Sapore and Vittoria
The patients suffered from botulism, caused by pathogen Clostridium botulinum present in the broccoli sandwich. This rare but very serious pathogen is found in soil, dust, and river and sea sediments. The pathogenic bacteria themselves can be destroyed by cooking, but poor storage can lead to the production of toxic spores, which are resistant to heat. In the UK, most cases of foodborne botulism are caused by homemade food that is improperly canned or preserved. Typically, this includes foods such as fruits, vegetables, honey and fish. Botulism is also often found in prepared garlic products.
As it is likely that the botulism was present in the preserved cimi de rabe, we can identify a few potential points at which the preservation process went wrong, allowing the pathogen to produce toxic spores.
If you are involved in food preparation or production, you will recognise these as Critical Control Points - events where good food hygiene practice and monitoring should be used to reduce or eliminate food safety hazards. For more information, take a look at our Level 2 HACCP course which helps food businesses create food safety management systems, based on HACCP principles.
Sadly, a woman in her 40s and man in his 50s have died following this outbreak and 17 more have been hospitalised. Clostridium botulinum is a highly dangerous pathogen that attacks the nervous system and can be fatal in 5-10% of cases. Fatalities are not restricted to typically vulnerable patients.
According to the NHS, initial symptoms can include vomiting, stomach cramps, diarrhoea or constipation. Without treatment, the illness can attack the nervous system, leading to:
For more information on botulism, its causes and prevention, take a look at the FSA website
Photo credit: Adi Rahman via Unsplash
The first rule of running a food business, just like a doctor, is do no harm. It is vital your food and drink is safe for consumers. Many food-based bacteria are well-known, as are the ways to prevent them. Undercooked meat, poultry, and eggs can cause salmonella poisoning; undercooked chicken can carry Campylobacter. One lesser-known bacterial growth, however, is pink mould. But what is it, how does it form, and what can you do to prevent it from getting your customers sick?
Contrary to its name, pink mould is not actually mould. It is a bacterium called Serratia marcescens. Much like many other types of bacteria, it loves warm, damp places. It also tends to grow in the dark. This means that many of the machines in your kitchen can be the perfect breeding ground for pink mould. It is most commonly found in machines that operate using water. This includes dishwashers and glasswashers, and ice machines, which you may use all year round. It is also common in machines used more often during the summer, like slushy machines or soft-serve ice cream machines.
Pink mould is airborne– once it forms inside your machines, it can be spread across all of the machine’s contents. This means your “clean” glasses and dishes or your fresh ice would be coated in bacteria. This, unsurprisingly, would put your customers’ health at risk. Pink mould is particularly dangerous for vulnerable customers. These include young children, the elderly, and those with pre-existing health conditions. In large doses or with repeated exposure, anyone could be affected by it. Symptoms of pink mould are broad. These include difficulty breathing, bladder issues, vomiting, and pneumonia. When considering the pre-existing vulnerabilities of some of your customers, it can be fatal. This is why preventing bacterial build-up is so vital.
Most people only become aware of pink mould when they see contamination. If pink mould is visible on your ice creams or your dishes, it’s already too late. This is a sign that the bacteria has been building up inside your machine for so long that it has come out of your machine. Instead of waiting until you see contamination to realise you have a problem, be proactive.
Check the visible part of your machines daily for visible signs of bacteria. About once a week, check the insides of your ice machines and dishwashers with a torch. Regularly clean your machine, and if there are any signs of pink mould, stop using the machine until after it has been deep cleaned. Ensure that anything that comes into contact with your machines, such as an ice scoop, is clean to prevent cross-contamination. Finally, make sure that the machines are regularly serviced to ensure that they are working as intended. This will prevent build-up in the parts of the machine you cannot easily access to clean.
Preventing pink mould is not just good for your customers– it's good for business too. Clean machines and a process in place for preventing pink mould will help a food hygiene inspection. Having to turn off your ice machine or your soft-serve machine during the summer months can also limit sales, whilst a dishwasher or glasswasher being deep-cleaned will massively reduce productivity. It is therefore in your best interest to ensure you do everything you can to prevent pink mould.
Food safety is a top priority for any catering or food business in the UK. Ensuring that food is safe to eat not only protects your customers but also your reputation and compliance with legal requirements. One of the most important concepts in food safety management is the critical control point (CCP). But what exactly is a critical control point in food safety, and why does it matter for your business?
A critical control point is any step along the food journey in your business where implementing preventative measures can reduce the risk of hazards to your customers. There are four hazards which are important to remember. These are:
To identify the critical control points in your food business, it is important to consider your food’s journey. This is the food’s process from arrival at your business to its service to customers. To identify your critical control points, think about any point in the food’s journey where it may be at risk from the four types of contamination.
For example, think about the food’s storage. If your fridge’s temperature is above 5°C, bacteria can grow, causing microbacterial contamination. As such, the temperature of your fridge is a critical control point. Similarly, raw meats may contain bacterial contamination such as Salmonella, which can only be eradicated by cooking them thoroughly. Thus, the cooking process is another critical control point.
Critical control points don’t just exist in food preparation. They can also include the rooms in which you store, prepare, and serve food. Both physical and microbacterial contamination can be caused by pests. There are three critical control points related to pests: deterrence, detection, and eradication. Another potential critical control point is the removal of waste. Designing a waste removal route which avoids food areas is the most straightforward way to address this critical control point. Even the way you serve your food can be a critical control point, particularly when considering allergenic contamination. Ensuring that critical control points are addressed can literally be a matter of life and death.
Now that you know what critical control points are in food safety, and how to identify them, you have to implement them. One way to do this is using HACCP. HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point. It is a food safety management system which is designed around identifying and targeting critical control points, so that your customers are safe. The principles of HACCP are:
HACCP is not just important for keeping your customers safe, it is also vital for being legally compliant. You are required by law as a food business to have a food safety management system based upon the above HACCP principles.
Understanding and managing Critical Control Points in food safety is essential for running a safe and legally compliant food business. By implementing a HACCP-based food safety management system, you protect your customers from foodborne illnesses and your business from legal repercussions.
If you want to ensure your team is fully trained in HACCP principles, consider enrolling in our Level 2 HACCP training course. This course offers an even more in-depth view into creating and implementing a HACCP system.
A food hygiene rating, also known as the ‘scores on the doors’, is a rating system that assesses and logs the food safety of a food business. Any business which "sells, cooks, stores, handles, prepares or distributes" food may be considered a food business.
As part of registering as a food business, you will be required to register with your local authority. This local authority is responsible for ensuring your food hygiene standards are up to scratch. Approximately every 2 years, you will receive a visit from an Environmental Health Officer (EHO). This is an inspector who will look at your premises, speak with your staff, and read through your paperwork to assess your food hygiene standard. These visits can be unannounced, so it is important your standards are always high.
Food hygiene ratings range between 0 and 5, with 0 being the worst and 5 the best. Businesses with low food hygiene ratings are at serious risk of being shut down by the EHO. It is also a sign to potential customers of how safely you operate. In Wales and Northern Ireland, it is necessary to display your food hygiene rating in a prominent location, whilst in England and Wales, it is highly recommended. Every business’s food hygiene rating is also stored in a public database, allowing anyone to check it before visiting your business. This means that it is in your interest as a business to strive for that level 5 rating.
There are three categories against which the inspector will mark you, with each one weighted equally. They are premises, food handling processes, and confidence in leadership.
Your premises are the physical spaces you work in. This includes the layout of your food preparation area, cleanliness, and property condition. It also includes your pest control. An EHO will check for signs of pests, as well as a system in place to prevent them.
Your food handling processes are the ways you actually interact with the food you prepare. Inspectors will make sure, amongst other things, that your food is kept out of the danger zone, is prepared safely, and that there is no cross-contamination.
Confidence in management refers to how much the EHO trusts the processes you have in place. As an inspection is only a snapshot of your food business, they will seek evidence that you are committed to maintaining high food hygiene standards. Evidence such as a food safety management system, staff training records, and logged checks of storage temperatures can all be taken into account.
The EHO will give each of these three areas a score. In this case, the lower the score, the better. Premises and food handling processes are scored out of 25. Confidence in management is scored out of 30. Each of the three scores is given in intervals of 5. The EHO is looking for consistency, so you need to achieve low scores in all three categories to earn the top food hygiene ratings.
To achieve a 5, your combined total must be between 0 and 15, with at most a 5 in any given section. A four or three requires at most 10 points in any section, with 20 points the total cap for a four and between 25 and 30 the cap for a three. If any individual score reaches 15, the most you can achieve is a 2, and your total must be between 35 and 40. A 1 is given to any score between 45 and 50, or to a business reaching 20 in an individual area, and any score above 50 will result in a food hygiene rating of 0. You will receive your score alongside written feedback either straight after the inspection or within 14 days.
Your inspection scores will be combined to create your overall food hygiene rating. These range from 0-5:
If your food hygiene rating is high, that’s great news! Food businesses with high food hygiene ratings are deemed lower risk. This means you will probably have a couple of years before your next inspection. Make sure you keep up your food hygiene standards in between inspections. You will also be able to proudly display your food hygiene rating in your business. Good food hygiene is important to customers, and this allows you to build trust with them.
If your food hygiene rating is lower, it means that your hygiene is not up to scratch. Alongside the food hygiene rating, the EHO will provide you with detailed feedback about what didn’t meet the required standard and how to improve. They may also serve a formal legal notice setting out things you must or must not do. Most of the time, you will be given time to address these issues. If your rating is especially low however, the EHO can make the decision to temporarily close your food business until you can demonstrate you have brought your food hygiene standards back up. Your business will also be considered higher risk. This means inspections will occur more often. Finally, imagine seeing a restaurant with a low food hygiene rating. Would you want to go and eat there? Low food hygiene ratings put off customers, causing lower sales.
If your food hygiene rating isn't perfect, don't worry. EHO inspectors aren't looking for reasons to shut you down; they are there to help you. The first thing you should do after receiving your rating is read the feedback given by the EHO. This will be detailed feedback, which will tell you what went wrong and how to improve. As EHOs are experts in food safety, their recommendations will be very useful in improving for your next inspection.
Your inspection may also make you realise that you have gaps in your knowledge of food safety. It is recommended that you and your staff renew your food hygiene training every 2 years. This will keep food safety fresh in everyone's minds, as well as keeping you up-to-date with the latest legislation. You may be being assessed on something which didn't exist when you undertook your training. For more information about our Level 2 food hygiene course, click here. And if you would like more guidance on achieving a 5-star rating on your inspection, check out our free "How to get a five food hygiene rating" course.
One of the most vital functions of an Early Years setting is ensuring the safety of the little ones in its care. That includes serving hygienically prepared, safe food. But do Early Years settings need to register as food businesses? We look at the facts below...
A food business is any organisation that handles, prepares, serves, sells, or distributes food to the public, even if they provide it for free. This includes schools, nurseries, and some charities (depending on their food operations’ size, nature, and frequency). Even if your organisation doesn’t qualify as a food business, you must still follow food safety laws for any food you cook, store, handle, prepare, or distribute.
If your nursery, pre-school, playgroup, school, out-of-hours setting, or childminding service prepares or serves food, you are a food business. In most cases, you must register with your local authority. This doesn’t just apply to meals—providing snacks or drinks (other than tap water) also qualifies you.
The exception is childminders in England. While they must meet food safety standards, Ofsted handles their registration with the local authority. In Scotland, childminders must complete a registration form for their local authority. In Northern Ireland and Wales, childminders must register directly with their local authority, just like any other food business.
Once you register as a food business, your local food safety team will receive your details. They ensure your standards meet requirements and may inspect your premises at any reasonable time, potentially (but not often) unannounced. After your first inspection, they will typically revisit every two years, though businesses with lower standards may face more frequent checks. Inspectors check hygiene, safe food preparation, and whether you have a proper food safety management system.
After inspecting, the food safety team will give you feedback, highlighting areas for improvement and offering advice. They will also award a food hygiene rating from 1 to 5 stars (5 being the best). You can search these ratings on the Food Standards Agency database, and some areas require you to display them.
Childminders in England registered with Ofsted typically face fewer inspections, usually only if someone raises a concern about food hygiene. Since they operate from home, inspectors must arrange visits in advance.
The Food Standards Agency’s Safer Food, Better Business (SFBB) packs set out the standards for food businesses, including caterers and childminders. These guidelines help you maintain consistent food safety. It states that you must keep your premises clean, handle food safely, and store it correctly.
Inspectors will check your systems as well as your premises. You must have a food safety management system that documents hygiene, cooking, chilling, and cross-contamination procedures. You must also undertake and record regular checks. SFBB also recommends food hygiene training for all staff handling food, as it shows you take food safety seriously and ensure staff understand their responsibilities.
Food hygiene training isn’t just important—it’s a legal requirement. The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework states that "all staff involved in preparing and handling food must receive training in food hygiene."
When choosing training, consider whether face-to-face or online works best. Face-to-face allows you to ask questions and is more interactive, but it is rigid in time and location. Online training is more structured, but provides more flexibility on time and location, often costs less, and suits younger staff.
Next, find a provider who understands Early Years settings. Check their free content (like this article!) or course portfolio to gauge their expertise. If they offer multiple Early Years courses (e.g., food hygiene and health and safety), you can streamline training for your team in one place. This will allow your team to familiarise themselves with the platform and make record-keeping easier.
At The Safer Food Group, we combine our expertise in food safety with strong connections in the Early Years sector. We offer a suite of courses modified specifically for Early Years staff. Our tailored courses include:
Developed in collaboration with the Early Years Alliance, these courses keep you up to date, including the latest EYFS changes coming in September 2025.
Also part of our Early Years training suite:
With increased focus on food safety incidents, what can restaurant owners and managers do to hit the headlines for the right reasons? Bad news stories are guaranteed to create interest. A one-star hygiene rating, allergy incident or shocking trip advisor review will bring negative attention and affect new and existing custom. But a proactive approach to food safety, and an intelligent social media style can help you avoid the pitfalls and deal with unexpected challenges.
Reach for 5 stars
The food hygiene rating scheme offers customers an insight into your business before they step through your door, so working towards that five-star sticker really is a no-brainer. An EHO audit can feel intimidating, but much like public speaking, if you’re well prepared, you can face it with confidence. Undertaking your own audit keeps you a step ahead. By identifying areas of weakness, you have the opportunity to plan and undertake remedial action BEFORE the EHO visits. The Safer Food Group’s free five star rating course describes the audit process and provides you with a comprehensive checklist.
Recent allergy incidents have highlighted concerns for staff training standards in a number of high profile chain restaurants. However you deliver training, it is vital to choose a method that equips your team with the skills, knowledge and confidence to uphold high safety standards.
Consider your team’s learning styles – would they benefit from face-to-face delivery, or an online course that allows them to repeat tricky topics at their own speed? Would interactive quizzes engage them, or would they rather listen to a trainer? Are they adept at learning on their mobiles or laptops, or would they prefer to read printed course material?
Choosing a training provider who is transparent about their course material will help you decide – and undertaking the training yourself will enable you to reinforce key messages and knowledge within the workplace. To trial Safer Food Group courses, drop us a line on info@thesaferfoodgroup.com
Sometimes, despite your best efforts, you may find yourself the centre of unwanted attention. Responding to negative reviews and press can help to turn the tide – but only if you do so in a carefully considered way.
Our top tips for handling situations are:
Being well prepared will help prevent most PR challenges and help you deal with them well if they do happen. So get your plan, and your training, in place now!
The Safer Food Group
Unit 2, Integrity House,
Lower Lumsdale, Matlock
DE4 5EX
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