Food service to vulnerable populations

On this page

• New food safety law
• Resources to help businesses
• Impacted businesses need to be licensed
• Development of the law

New food safety law

The Authority has introduced a new law which covers NSW businesses which serve food to vulnerable persons.

The law was developed to protect vulnerable people in our community, including older persons and people who have weakened immune systems.

It will help the Authority to implement a new national standard ¹ more effectively.

The new law will impact businesses such as

• hospitals
• aged care facilities
• same-day aged care services
• respite services and
• certain delivered meal organisations such as Meals on Wheels.

Businesses covered by the new law will need to hold a NSW Food Authority licence and have an audited food safety program in place.

For a summary of the requirements of the new law see:

• Requirements for Vulnerable Persons Food Businesses (pdf, 31 KB) 

¹Standard 3.3.1 of the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code, titled 'Food Safety Programs for Food Service to Vulnerable Persons', was gazetted 5 October 2006 and commences 5 October 2008

Resources to help businesses

The Vulnerable Persons Food Safety Scheme Manual

This manual has been prepared to explain the new requirements in more detail. The manual contains detailed information on:

• which businesses need to be licensed
• cost of a licence
• how to develop a food safety program, including a template food safety program and a worked example
• minimum compliance requirements
• technical information a business might need to help it to serve safe food

To access the manual, see: Vulnerable Persons Food Safety Scheme Manual.

FAQs

A set of frequently asked questions (pdf, 88KB) answers some common enquiries.

Impacted businesses need to be licensed

Businesses covered by the new law will need to submit an application and pay the appropriate licence fee by 18 October 2008.

It is against the law for impacted businesses not to submit a licence application form by this date.

To access the licence application, see: Vulnerable Persons food business licensing.

Development of the law

The Authority has been working with an industry stakeholder group to ensure the new law is practical and effective.

The Authority prepared a Regulatory Impact Statement and undertook public consultation on the statement during February and March 2008. The statement outlines the new law and its impact on industry, consumers and government.

• Regulatory Impact Statement (pdf, 2.43 MB) 
• Summary of submissions received from the public consultation process (pdf, 40 KB)