Food Safety and Risk Management in Food Businesses

This assignment explores the critical aspects of food safety within a business context. It emphasizes the importance of minimizing risks to both consumers and the environment by implementing safe handling practices and ensuring product quality. The document delves into risk assessment strategies, including labeling requirements and supervisory roles for potentially hazardous foods. Additionally, it discusses the necessity of public liability and product liability insurance policies to protect businesses from potential legal liabilities arising from food-related incidents.

Running head: HOSPITALITY
Hospitality
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Table of Contents
Preparing and Selling Food.............................................................................................................2
Legal requirements..........................................................................................................................2
Workplace design............................................................................................................................3
Workplace systems and procedures.................................................................................................4
Job description.................................................................................................................................5
Risk assessment...............................................................................................................................6
Policy statements.............................................................................................................................6
References list..................................................................................................................................7

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Preparing and Selling Food
The food safety regulation is applicable at every stage of food production, from
processing and manufacture to distribution. The food safety standards in Australia require the
food businesses to produce quality food that is suitable and safe to eat. The food standards
include hygiene and health obligations that aim at reducing the incidence of food-borne illness.
In order to set up food business in Australia, the proprietor of the business must comply with
certain legal requirements (Newsome et al. 2014). There are four food safety standards in
Australia developed by the Australia New Zealand Food authority (ANZFA) after consulting
with the food industry, Sate and Territory health authorities and other interested individuals and
organizations. The four food safety standards include the following:
 Food Safety Programs; Food Safety Practices and General requirements Interpretation and application Food premises and equipment
Legal requirements
According to the Food Act, every proprietor of food business that is involved in
preparing and selling of food must be registered with the Food authority irrespective if the fact
that the Food Business is a ‘for-profit’ business or ‘non-profit’ business except for a ‘not-for-
profit’ organization. The organization must provide details about the organization including its
name, location, nature of the business and the name and address of the proprietor of the business.
A license must be obtained by food businesses that are involved in the delivering, collecting or

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processing dairy products; handling raw vegetables, plants or fruit, seafood, processing of an egg
or delivering meals (Charlebois et al. 2014).
The food business organization must appoint a Food Safety Supervisor for supervising
persons dealing with food within the premises.
Workplace design
The construction and design of the food premises must comply with the following conditions
in order to commence the food premises:
 the workplace must provided adequate space for fittings, fixtures and other equipments
with a view to carry out the business activities;
 the workplace must be cleaned and sanitized to avert any dust, fumes, pests, smoke and
other contaminants;
 there must use potable water supply facilities within the food premises;
 the food selling premises must have a waste and sewage disposal system;
 the food premises must have adequate mechanical and natural ventilation facilities;
 the premises must have an adequate lighting systems to carry put the activities within the
food premises
The legal compliance for standard requirements that is applicable to the food premises are
same for all types of workplaces that deals with preparing and selling of food be it , existing
premises, domestic premises or new premises either used for temporary purposes or commercial
purposes (Brown 2014). There are no specifications that could be applied to the construction and
design of the food premises to make an ‘ideal premises’. Food operations differ, hence, the
requirements for appropriate fixtures and equipments for the food premises vary.

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In order to maintain the standard requirement that makes the design of the food premises an
ideal workplace is often impeded by cost, aptness of structure and various other factors.
Therefore, the workplace must be designed taking into consideration the food safety outcomes
and the nature of the food operation carried out within the premises. This would be helpful under
the circumstances where if there were non-compliance of the requirements standards, it would be
easier to change the food operation process than changing the entire premises (Mohr & Hosen,
2013).
Workplace systems and procedures
The Food Safety Standards set out by the Australia and New Zealand Food Safety Code
(ANZ) shall be applicable to all food businesses in Australia. The proprietor of a food business
must ensure that the food businesses comply with the standards mentioned by the food safety
code.
The system and procedures related to the workplace must set out the requirements for
people who are handles the food and the food business as a whole must comply with such
requirements. The workplace dealing with preparing and selling food must have a ‘Food Safety
Program’, which would signify how efficiently, the workplace prepares and stores the food and
eventually how the food is sold. The food safety program shall include the records of standard of
compliance and other activities related to food. It also includes records of the potential hazards
related to the workplace and the activities carried out within the business premises and how
effectively such hazards are dealt with.
In order to ensure that the food prepared and sold are edible, safe and healthy the workplace
must satisfy the following requirements:

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 food items must be prepared by trained and skilled persons under hygienic conditions
using anti-contamination procedures;
 the foods stored or on display must be labeled and protected from undamaged packaging
and contamination by storing them in sealed containers;
 the storage areas must be clean, pest-proofed and sanitary to prevent contamination;
 the food must be refrigerated at 5 degrees or cooler;
 cooked or raw foods should be stored and displayed differently;
 foods on display must be served in clean utensils;
 the food handlers must use clean gloves while serving and handling foods to ensure
safety;
A food business must ensure that it deals with foods that have less chances of being
contaminated easily. Food that are potentially hazardous must be kept at or below 5 degree
Celsius or at above 60 degree Celsius to prevent the development of pathogenic microorganisms.
Every food business proprietor must ensure that the storage of food must be done under
environmental conditions that would have an adverse effect on the safety and the suitability of
the food (Davies, Brough & Johnstone, 2014).
Job description
A person who deals with preparing and selling of food is known as food handlers and
such person is responsible for ensuring suitability and safety of the food dealt with by the food
organization. Hence, it is expected that the food handlers must be adequately trained and must
possess skill and knowledge to handle with the preparing, storing, processing and selling of the
food products. The food handlers must take reasonable steps to maintain hygiene, sanitary and

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safety of the food products and the environment of the workplace. Since the food handlers are
responsible for performing these tasks, it is expected of them to take appropriate measures in
minimizing the likelihood of compromising with the quality, safety and suitability of the food
products.
Risk assessment
Every food products must have labels or information about the products to ensure safety
of the individuals consuming the products. In case the food business deals with providing ready-
to-eat unpackaged food and such food is potentially hazardous, the food business must appoint a
supervisor who is qualified by the Food authority for supervising the workplace premises and the
activities carried out by the food handlers within the premises. Local councils may also inspect
the food business carried out by the organization to ensure that the organization is acting in
compliance with the food safety standards.
Policy statements
The workplace must maintain a public liability insurance that would cover some of the
risks that may arise from the activities carried out within the organization. For instance, any
customer falls sick after consuming any of the food products served or sold by the organization
or trips over an exposed electrical cord. However, the liability insurance will not cover for the
damages that results from the default on part of the organization in preparing the food or in the
food item itself (Rajapakse, 2016). A product liability insurance policy may also be adopted by
the workplace that would cover injury or damages caused to customers or other people as a result
of failure of the food product prepared and sold by the organization preparing and selling such
food products.

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References list
Newsome, R., Balestrini, C. G., Baum, M. D., Corby, J., Fisher, W., Goodburn, K., ... &
Yiannas, F. (2014). Applications and perceptions of date labeling of food. Comprehensive
Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety, 13(4), 745-769.
Charlebois, S., Sterling, B., Haratifar, S., & Naing, S. K. (2014). Comparison of global food
traceability regulations and requirements. Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food
Safety, 13(5), 1104-1123.
Brown, A. (2014). Understanding food: principles and preparation. Nelson Education.
Mohr, R., & Hosen, N. (2013). Crossing over: Hosts, guests and tastes on a Sydney street. Law
Text Culture, 17, 100.
Singh-Peterson, L., & Lawrence, G. (2015). Insights into community vulnerability and resilience
following natural disasters: perspectives with food retailers in Northern NSW, Australia. Local
Environment, 20(7), 782-795.
McDonald, M., & Wilson, H. (2016). Marketing Plans: How to prepare them, how to profit from
them. John Wiley & Sons.
Rajapakse, P. J. (2016). Contamination of food and drinks: Product liability in Australia. Deakin
L. Rev., 21, 45.
Lee, D., & Tongarlak, M. H. (2017). Converting retail food waste into by-product. European
Journal of Operational Research, 257(3), 944-956.

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Davies, B. J., Brough, M., & Johnstone, E. (2014). Food safety: maximising impact by
understanding the food business context.
Davies, B. J., Brough, M., & Johnstone, E. (2014). Food safety: maximising impact by
understanding the food business context.