Setting up and Registering a Food Business

All food businesses must be registered at least 28 days before opening with any significant changes notified to us (if your business is to be located within South Cambridgeshire).

You can either:

• Download a food business registration form (This document also provides a guideline for registration regulations. Simply download the form, complete it and send to our offices in Cambourne)
  or
• Apply online for food business registration via Business Link (in partnership with EUGO). Simply create an account (if not already registered) and complete the form

Registration cannot be refused. If you own premises in more than one local authority area, you must register with each respective authority separately.

Advice for Food Business Operators

If you are thinking of setting up a food business, please read:

• New Food Hygiene Business Advice
  and
• Starting Up: Your First Steps to Running a Catering Business 

The Food Standards Agency have issued a guide for catering businesses. It covers key laws affecting your business, what they require you to do and how they are enforced. The guide also explains about good food hygiene practice.

All food businesses must put into place documented food safety procedures where necessary. The Food Standards Agency have released a pack to help small catering businesses comply with this requirement, please refer to Safer Food, Better Business for further details. Additionally, The Safer Food System have developed a Food Safety Management System which incorporates HACCP (Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Points).

School Cooking Sessions - Safety First

School Cooking Sessions - Safety First is an information leaflet for anyone involved with cooking with children in schools and after school clubs. Includes food hygiene and safety advice together with relevant with risk assessments.

Scores on the Doors Inspections

The outcome of our inspections is scored and the total score from the following categories is used to calculate your business rating:

• Food Hygiene and Safety
• Structure and Cleaning
• Management Control Systems/Training

This ranges from 0 stars (major improvements required) to 5 stars (excellent). You can check the latest food business ratings/star awards via the Scores on the Doors website.

Fee for a Food Health Certificate

Council policy when setting the fee/charge:

Fees set at a level which recovers the Council costs at a commercial rate without costs being set so high that it inhibits local businesses from exporting food

Food Alerts

Food Alerts are the Food Standards Agency's way of letting local authorities, businesses and consumers know about problems associated with food.

Food Hygiene Training

South Cambridgeshire District Council offer and recommend a range of courses in both food safety and health and safety at work:

• iTraining Courses
• Byte Online
• High Speed Training
• CIEH Level 3 Award in Supervising Food Safety in Catering
• Food and Health & Safety Surgeries

For further information, please refer to the Hygiene and Food Safety Training Courses section.

Interactive services

• Visit our Scores on the Doors (food hygiene star ratings) website for up-to-date information about local eating places in South Cambridgeshire. You can now also download a free app for your iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad

Useful links

• Food Standards Agency - Provides information on UK food safety - news, regulations, research and other pertinent information
• Food Safety News - If you want to keep up to date on new food safety and quality legislation, please visit the Food Standards Agency news Centre
• Food Standards Agency Food Regulations - All Regulations that came into effect before April 1st 2000 can be found in the Archive of this website. Any new Regulations proposed after April 1st 2000 are available on this page of the website
• Food Standards Agency Food Industry Enforcement - Matters relating to enforcement in the food industry can be found on this page
• IFST: Institute of Food Science & Technology - IFST is the independent incorporated professional qualifying body for food scientists and technologists
• DEFRA - Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs
• The Department of Health - The aim of the Department of Health is to improve the health and well-being of people in England
• British Nutrition Foundation (UK) - Latest news and facts on nutrition
• Institute for Food Research (UK) - Biotechnology and biological science research information
• UN Food and Agriculture Organisation - Important information on UN's activities on nutrition, hunger relief and agricultural development
• World Health Organisation - Nutrition and food security