Guidance on Compliance with Food Hygiene and Health and Safety Requirements for Food Stalls and Marquees at Events

This brief guide will provide you with information when selling food at a market stall, mobile trailer or tented structure in Worcestershire. These food vending operations could be sited on a road side, at markets, or at events such as shows or fetes, or anywhere food is being prepared or sold as a commercial operation.

It covers the main requirements of Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 (following UK Exit from the European Union on 1 January 2021 EU law has been retained under the powers contained within the European (Withdrawal) Act 2019 as UK law enforced by the Food Safety and Hygiene Regulations 2013) and The Food Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013, and also recommends some good hygiene practices.

This information should not be taken as a comprehensive guide to food and health and safety requirements. It is the responsibility of the Food Business Operator to ensure food and health safety requirements are met when trading.

1. Registration as a Food Business

To sell food you must be registered as a food business with the Local Authority where you are based. This includes food vending stalls, market traders and mobile food units. There is no fee to register and a registration form is available on request from your local authority. If you are based in Worcestershire you can download a form from the WRS website on the Register a Food Business page.

2. Licences

Contact the WRS Licensing Department on 01905 822799 for licensing information relating to street trading and events. or visit the WRS website section about Licensing.

3. Weather Factors

Never underestimate the impact weather conditions can have on the safe running of your operation, including the equipment you need to take. We recommend you check the long term weather forecasts to help you plan for sun, wet or cold.

4. Training

All staff working at an event should have been given relevant food and health and safety training to enable them to produce safe food, work safely and not cause a risk to the public.

5. Food Hygiene Rating Scheme

When trading in Worcestershire officers expect to see current FHRS rating (or equivalent) displayed.

6. Food Safety Management Procedures

Food law requires you to have an appropriate written food safety management system based upon the principles of HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point). This might be Safer Food Better Business or a simpler system if you are producing low risk food. You should have your system/or appropriate records to demonstrate safe food is being offered for sale, available at every event.

7. General Food Safety Requirements

People working with food must maintain a high level of personal cleanliness and wear suitable, clean clothing...

Staff should keep hair tied back and, where necessary, wear suitable head covering. They should not wear watches or jewellery when preparing food (except a wedding band).

Staff should not touch their face and hair, smoke, spit, sneeze, eat or chew gum when they are handling food.

Cuts, etc must be covered using coloured plasters.

Nail varnish must be avoided.

Staff should not handle or prepare food if they are suffering from, or carrying, a disease likely to be transmitted through food, have infected wounds, skin infections, sores or have been ill with diarrhoea or vomiting within the past 48 hours.

Food units must be in good repair and condition to minimise the risk of contamination, particularly from access by animals and pests.

Surfaces on which you prepare or place food must be in a good condition and easy to clean and to disinfect. In practice this means they must be made of materials that are smooth, washable, corrosion-resistant and non-toxic.

A suitable hand wash facility with hot and cold water must be provided and immediately accessible to all food handlers offering open high risk foods, eg. pies, meats, curries, unwrapped cheeses, etc. There must be adequate supplies of soap, and paper towels (good practice) or other means of hand drying. For low risk traders, ie. those handling bottles, jars or pre-wrapped items, a washing-up bowl of frequently changed water and/or anti-bacterial hand wipes may be an acceptable option.

It is accepted it is not always possible to provide toilet or changing facilities but suitable arrangements should be available nearby.

If only food is washed at the stall, one sink (in addition to the wash hand basin) may be appropriate, but if pieces of equipment or utensils are washed as well, then two sinks may be required if the risk of cross contamination is high.

There must be a supply of hot and/or cold water that is of drinking quality. If you use plastic containers to store water they must be sanitised regularly, internally and externally, to ensure the quality of the water in them.

Suitable and sufficient storage, including refrigerators and freezers, must be provided. Food (raw and cooked) must be stored at suitable temperatures. Chilled food must be kept at 8C or below at all times (good practice is 5*C); hot food should be held at 63C or over. If reheating food, make sure that it is piping hot (at least 75C) all the way through (good practice is to use a probe thermometer to check temperatures and write these down).

Where necessary, foods displayed at ambient temperatures should be covered or screened to prevent cross contamination.

Raw foods, like raw meat and chicken, must not be allowed to contaminate work surfaces on which ready to eat foods are prepared. Where possible tongs, forks or other utensils should be used for handling food.

Food should be stored so it is not easily accessible to pests.

Adequate facilities for cleaning and disinfecting (including sanitisers), utensils and equipment must be provided.

There must be adequate lighting, either natural (daylight) and/or artificial (electric light).

Tents/marquees should be of cleanable materials and, where necessary, the food preparation areas should be provided with washable wall linings.

Stalls should be adequately screened at the sides and back to prevent risk of contamination.

Any table coverings must be of appropriate material that can be maintained in clean condition during trading hours.

Delivery vehicles and/or containers must be kept clean and only used to transport foods.

Containers used to hold food (.g. boxes) in vehicles and/or containers must not be used for transporting anything other than foods.

Water containers should be emptied and sanitised inside and out daily (particularly around the cap area).

Wrapping materials must be stored so they are not exposed to risk of contamination. Food grade packing must be used.

There must be adequate arrangements and/or facilities to store and dispose of waste (whether liquid or solid).

9. ALLERGEN CONTROL

You must comply with the Food Information Regulations 2014 which means ensuring you have appropriate allergen information available. All pre-packed products should include allergen information on labels. We recommend for open foods that labels clearly identify allergens in products being sold.

10. HEALTH AND SAFETY AT WORK ACT, 1974

Food vending vehicles and stalls are subject to the Health and Safety at Work, etc Act 1974 and Regulations made under the Act.

The most important thing is to make sure you have assessed any risks which might arise from your activity.

Areas which may need particular consideration with events are weather (hot or cold working conditions), slips and trips, manual handling, hot equipment, emptying and filling fryers, lone working, violent and aggressive customers, gas and electricity installations and the use of chemicals for cleaning.

Make sure you have a suitable first aid kit which is maintained and easy to reach at all times. Waterproof plasters (preferably coloured blue) are required.

Always Keep LPG Cylinders in a Fire Resistant Compartment.

Cylinders, regulators or change-over valves must be kept in a separate, ventilated, lockable fire resistant (½ hour fire resistance) compartment. Access should only be from outside the vehicle. Compartments must be ventilated at high and low level.


Fire Extinguishers:

Always have at least a 1.36kg (31lb) dry powder fire extinguisher and fire blanket.

If a fire breaks out, turn off all cylinder valves and if possible remove all cylinders from the vicinity of the fire. Clear the area of all unnecessary persons and call the Fire Brigade.

Fire extinguishers should be serviced regularly (recommended at least every twelve months).

11. Inspection Reports

Inspecting officers will not leave a written report unless there are major non compliances, eg no FSMS, poor hand washing facilities, no hot water, lack of cleanliness, lack of knowledgeable staff, unsafe LPG.

For a business registered outside Worcestershire we will send a copy of the report and FHRS score on the day to your registering Local Authority.

Further Information:

 

 

 

Issued by Community Environmental Health Team (Food Safety), Worcestershire Regulatory Services. Contact us on 01905 822799 or enquiries@worcsregservices.gov.uk