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The Principal's Piece
Lauren Dyer, Health Protection Manager at Chichester District  Council
As this next edition of Foodbites arrives in your inboxes, we are quickly heading towards the spring and summer months where many of you will be holding indoor or outdoor events, and using bouncy castles and other play inflatables as part of your activities available to the public. This was an area that we brought to your attention last year and again want to really highlight it this year. You may also be aware in the press that there have been several serious incidents which have occurred where inflatables have either collapsed or blown away because of windy conditions. If you are doing any of the following with bouncy castles or inflatables i.e. supplying them, buying them, hiring them for an event or operating them; then I cannot stress how important it is that you follow the simple precautions detailed at this Health and Safety Executive weblink, in order to avoid any serious incidents. You will also find the relevant British Standard for this type of equipment at this link.
If you have any questions regarding this guidance or would like any advice from the Health Protection team about your use of this type of equipment then please do not hesitate in contacting us. This topic area is a priority for our team to address this year and so if you are a business likely to use this type of equipment then we may well be in touch over the coming months to offer our advice further.
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FOOD SAFETY REVISITS & ADVICE – NEW CHARGES FROM 1ST APRIL 2020
This is to make all food businesses aware that as of 1st April 2020 the Health Protection team will be charging for their advisory service for food safety. In addition, there will also be a charge for any re-rating revisits under the National Food Hygiene Rating Scheme.
Food Hygiene Rating Scheme Revisit
Food businesses will be able to request a re-scoring visit is undertaken if they consider they have made the necessary improvements to address the non-compliances identified at the original inspection. The cost of a revisit is £166 and a business can request more than one revisit. The revisit will be carried out within three months of the request. Details of how to apply for a revisit and the documentation required as part of your application will be detailed on our website from 1st April 2020.
Food businesses will be able to choose from one of the following advisory service packages;
New business advice
This is where advice can be given by a Food Safety Officer before a new business opens, to make them aware of the food hygiene requirements which need to be considered before they start trading. There will be a charge for this service of £205 for a maximum two hour visit and then £100 for each additional hour, which includes the following;
• A maximum two-hour site visit of the proposed premises offering advice relating to structural requirements and the proposed layout.
• An on-site written report summarising the visit and any recommendations made.
• A copy of the relevant SFBB pack to the business and a 12 month supply of diary sheets, along with an explanation of how it should be completed.
• Signposting to other sources of information, agencies or Council departments as appropriate.
Existing business advice
For those already running a food business, any relevant food safety advice can be requested or advice can be given on how to improve your food hygiene rating. There will be a charge for this service of £205 for a maximum two hour visit and then £100 for each additional hour, which includes the following;
• A maximum two-hour site visit of the proposed premises offering advice relating to structural requirements and the proposed layout.
• A full review of your premises and food safety documentation i.e. your SFBB or HACCP.
• The Food Safety Officer will discuss with you any legal requirements and advisory matters that require attention.
• A detailed report listing all the requirements that need to be addressed to improve the rating.
• Other requests tailored to the business’s needs.
As of 1st April 2020, a link will be available on our website to request these advice services and a copy of our Terms and Conditions will also be available.
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 Natasha's Law
In the 20 years leading up to 2012 there was a 615% increase in the rate of hospital admissions for anaphylaxis in the UK. Legislation has attempted to keep up with this trend but tragedies have still happened. In 2016 Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, died after suffering an allergic reaction to a Pret a Manger baguette. As the baguette had been produced and packaged on site for direct sale, it was not covered by the legislation requiring allergen labelling on the packaging.
However, from October 2021, millions of allergy sufferers across the country will be protected by a change in the law requiring food businesses to include full ingredients and allergen labelling on foods pre-packed for direct sale. Guidance has yet to be issued by the Food Standards Agency on what circumstances cover the definition of “pre-packed for direct sale”, but the example cited by government is that a packaged sandwich or salad made by staff earlier in the day and placed on a shelf for purchase will need full labelling. The FSA anticipate detailed technical guidance being published in early 2020.
Further information is available at this Food Standards Agency link.
If you are a food business and need food labelling advice then please contact the Business Advice and Support Partnership (BASP)
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New SFBB pack
The FSA have released an updated SFBB pack for caterers on 19th November last year. Although older packs are still OK they do not carry the level of detail in areas such as allergen control that would now be considered acceptable without extra information added by yourselves. If you have an older pack we would strongly recommend that you consider updating it soon to keep your staff, business and customers safe and up to date.
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 Mobile caterers at events
Throughout the summer months there are numerous events that involve catering via mobiles, markets and stalls, often on 'green field' sites. These events can be very busy and the external nature brings different challenges to maintaining food safety.
If you are operating at or running an event in the Chichester District we have produced a guidance document explaining what we would expect from a food outlet. During the summer the Food Safety Officers try to visit as many events as possible to ensure that the different risks posed by events are adequately managed.
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Electrical Safety
Working in kitchens comes with some significant health and safety responsibilities and one of these relates to electrical safety. So what do these responsibilities include?
Electrical equipment and electrical supplies need to be designed, installed and maintained to be safe.
Design: kitchens can put high demand on electrical appliances, many pieces of equipment can draw high currents and some pieces of equipment require 3 phase electrical supplies. The electrical system has to be designed to allow for high current draw and to work in hot and sometimes wet environments. This means the installation of appropriate circuit breakers and residual current devices (RCDs).
Installation: The installation of all wiring needs to be undertaken by a competent electrician. The electrician may need to consider aspects of the kitchen such as steel tables that need to be earth bonded. If you have outside stores (such as freezers or fridges in sheds), then the supply needs to be robust, weather proof and protected with RCDs.
Maintenance: Typically fixed wiring needs to be inspected and tested every 5 years by a competent electrician and an “electrical safety certificate” from a recognized inspection body such as NICEIC or NAPIT should be available. You also need to make sure your “portable appliances” (anything that plugs in to the electrical supply), are in good order. A visual check by yourself on a regular basis, to check for damaged plugs and leads should be undertaken and Portable Appliance Testing (PAT) should be undertaken on a frequency determined by your risk assessment. Guidance on electrical safety and PAT is on the HSE website.
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 Gas Safety In the Autumn edition we wrote about gas safety in catering kitchens and the gas safety project we are currently running. As part of the project we require gas safety certificates to be provided to demonstrate gas appliances are safe to use. We have come across some certificates that were signed by engineers who were not suitably qualified to work on commercial catering equipment. It is important to employ a Gas Safe Registered engineer that is suitably competent to undertake works on commercial catering appliances, mobile catering is a separate category. Certificates issued by engineers that are not suitably qualified are not valid. Details of an engineer can be checked on Gas Safe Register website.
LPG qualified engineers
When inspecting mobile units and LPG gas appliances there seems to be a lack of qualified engineers in the local area. After speaking to Gas Safe about their 'Register' they have clarified how you find the engineers specific competencies. What you do is enter Domestic or Commercial in the drop down box and put in your Postcode and 'Search'. If you then click on 'Company Services' it will tell you if they do LPG.
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Petting Zoos/Lambing
Unfortunately in recent years there have been several outbreaks of disease due to infections picked up from petting zoo's and lambing events. There are several organisations that offer advice for businesses and visitors to minimise the risks. Click on the relevant link below for more information.
HSE
PHE
Visit my Farm
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 Spaces at Chichester Farmers Market
We currently have spaces on our award winning Farmers Market. If you grow, rear, catch or produce your product within the area using locally sourced ingredients and need a platform to sell, then Chichester Farmers Market could be for you. Held on first and third Friday in Chichester city centre the market offers a range of produce to its customers. To find out more and for an introductory offer email Aime
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 Training courses
Are you responsible for health and safety in your workplace? The NEBOSH National General Certificate in Occupational Health & Safety is a nationally recognized qualification for managers, supervisors, and anyone with Health and Safety management responsibilities. We will be running this course, one day a week across ten weeks, between March and June. If you are interested in attending, please contact our Health Protection team on 01243 534602. You can find out more about the course and what it covers at NEBOSH.
Chichester District Council are also holding several other short Health and Safety training courses that are open to business and individuals including manual handling awareness, accident management and investigations, risk assessment, legionella, ladder safety and asbestos awareness. For full details click here
The Health Protection Team also deliver several food safety courses. Our next Level 2 Food Hygiene course is running on 19th February 2020. Find out more information including course dates and times.
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 Enabling grants!
The Enabling Grants Scheme is back! This scheme is designed to support local independent businesses and to maximise the potential for growth. Applications are now open and must be submitted by 31 March 2020. Check out eBiz for more information.
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 Food waste collections
From April this year the Council's Depot will be able to collect food waste from food businesses across our District. Initially they will be targeting city businesses but hope to roll the service out to the whole district in the future.
They will provide a food waste bin with secure lids for food waste and can arrange collection as often as is needed. The food waste then goes to Basingstoke to produce renewable energy. The bins have been specifically designed with secure, sealed lids and smooth internal surfaces to aid cleaning, although there may be an option to have clean bins swapped with full bins or to provide a cleaning service in the future.
The business does not need to have an existing CDC waste contract to benefit from this service.
Please contact the Waste and Recycling Service directly if you would like to sign up for this service or you would like any further information. |
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In the news
Shigella sickens eight in Norway - link to peas from Kenya
Hummus firm in salmonella scare was fined for egg contamination
Slow-cook bean nightmare
Denmark and Sweden hit by Norovirus in oysters
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FoodBites box
 We are hoping to facilitate demonstrations, forums and networking opportunities around the District. If you have any suggestions for future events or issues that you would like covered please reply to FoodBites Box
We may not be able to reply to your suggestions but we will try and include them wherever possible.
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 Food Hygiene Rating Scheme
Use this link to check out the rating of your favourite restaurant.
Number of businesses in each rating at 27th January 2020
| Rating |
0 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
All |
| Totals |
2 |
17 |
18 |
35 |
155 |
1049 |
1276 |
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Eat Out Eat Well 
Check out the current Eat Out Eat Well Award holders in Sussex.
If you are interested in applying for an award the please visit our website.
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