Prior to purchase, design and construction of a food business, the Town must be contacted so that all Planning, Building and Health requirements are understood and applied by the proprietor.
The Town of Vincent Food Premises Guidelines for Owners, Architects & Builders is a must read document that contains vital information from health legislation and Council policies.
The Town’s Environmental Health Officers carry out regular inspections and audits of Food Premises to ensure they are being operated in a well maintained, clean and hygienic manner.
Food Sampling is conducted by Officers on a regular basis to ensure that food sold and stored at the premises complies with chemical and bacteriological standards.
Environmental Health Officers have particular powers to enter a food business without making an appointment. This is so that there is an unbiased observation of cleaning, hygiene and maintenance standards at the premises.
Food premises are assessed to check compliance with the FSANZ Food Safety Standards and the Health (Food Hygiene) Regulations 1993 (available at www.slp.wa.gov.au). The Food Act 2008 has been part proclaimed, with the associated Regulations and remainder of the Food Act 2008 due to be proclaimed on 31 October 2008. The Health (Food Hygiene) Regulations 1993 will be repealed upon the introduction of this new legislation
It is strongly recommended that food businesses ensure their staff are appropriately trained, to meet skills and knowledge requirements of the national Food Safety Standards. The Town, in conjunction with Challenger TAFE, offers an affordable online Food Handler Training course which is nationally accredited. A number of food businesses have successfully completed the programme.
“The Town’s food safety programme, in conjunction with Challenger TAFE, has provided our team with realistic procedures and practical information to use every day in our business, ensuring we deliver the highest standard of quality food to our customers. We also greatly benefited from doing the programme with 12 of our own participants which made the implementation a shared responsibility”.
Theodore Kailis – Kailis Bros Fish Markets and Cafe Leederville.
There are a number of other training programmes available, such as the FoodSafe and FoodSafe Plus programmes produced by Environmental Health Australia (formerly Australian Institute of Environmental Health).