Rules and regulations
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is the body appointed by government as being responsible for all food safety standards. The FSA can provide you with advice on all food hygiene matters and has a publication called ‘Safer Food, Better Business’ which will help you comply with the law and make your premises safe for the public.
The publication covers key areas on serving food including contamination, cleaning, chilling, cooking, management and keeping a food diary. To order this book contact the FSA on 0845 606 0667 or email foodstandards@ecgroup.uk.com
Currently, there is no law that states you must undertake formal training to open a café or coffee shop. However, you must ensure that you and anyone else working with food at your business has the appropriate level of training and/or supervision to do their job properly. The legal responsibility lies with the business owner so make sure you have all the information you need. Your business must also be registered with the local authorities and you can and likely will face inspections in the future.
A failed inspection is bad for your café both legally (you could be closed down), in terms of business (bad publicity and referrals) and morally as people could be taken ill or even die from contaminated food. In order to avoid such pitfalls you should learn the HACCP, which stands for ‘Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point’. This is an internationally recognised and recommended system of food safety management that focuses on identifying the ‘critical points’ in a process where food safety hazards could arise and putting steps in place to prevent things going wrong. For more information visit www.food.gov.uk/foodindustry/hygiene/haccpcontacts
You might want to take a look at the rules and regulations section of our catering guide too as the same restrictions on food preparation will apply. Click here to see our catering guide