Roles and responsibilities
Food safety plays an important part in the food supply chain to ensure that food is safe and suitable for consumers to eat. Food businesses are responsible for complying with food safety legislation, regulation and standards. Food safety regulators and food safety auditors monitor and enforce food laws in Queensland.
Food businesses
A food business is any business, enterprise or activity that involves the handling of food. This includes commercial, charitable, non-profit and community organisations.
In relation to food safety, the role of a food business is to:
- provide safe and suitable food to consumers or other food businesses
- comply with all food safety legislation, regulations and standards
- comply with any conditions specified in a food business licence
- notify 13HEALTH (telephone: 13 432 584) for the suspected intentional contamination of food
- conduct food recalls for any food that is determined to be unsafe.
Some food businesses are also required to have:
- a current food business licence that is displayed in the food business premises
- a food safety supervisor
- a food safety program with regular audits conducted by a food safety auditor
- kilojoule menu labelling displayed on a menu board
- food labelling on food.
Food safety regulators
There are several agencies that monitor and enforce food laws in Queensland. They include:
- State Government through Queensland Health
- Local government
- Safe Food Production Queensland
Queensland Health
The role of Queensland Health is to:
- enforce food safety requirements in food businesses for matters such as composition of food, labelling, foodborne illness investigation and intentional contamination
- investigate and respond to food safety complaints
- manage applications, renewals, suspensions and cancellations of food safety auditors
- maintain a register of approved food safety auditors
- maintain a register of approved mobile food vehicles
- manage food recalls with food businesses.
Queensland Health can be contacted via 13 HEALTH (13 43 25 84).
Local government
The role of local government is to:
- enforce food safety requirements in food businesses for matters such as licences, food handling practice, foreign objects in food
- manage applications, renewals, suspensions and cancellations of food business licences
- accredit food safety programs
- investigate and respond to food safety complaints for matters they enforce
- inspect any food business in their area regardless of whether the food business is licensed or not.
Contact details for local councils can be found in the local government directory.
Safe Food Production Queensland
The role of Safe Food Production Queensland is to:
- enforce food safety requirements for the primary production and processing of meat, eggs, dairy, seafood and horticulture (seed sprouts) in Queensland
- accredit food safety programs for primary production and processing food businesses
- investigate and respond to food safety complaints relating to primary production and processing food businesses
- manage applications, renewals, suspensions and cancellations of food safety auditors for the auditing of primary production and processing food businesses
- maintain a register of approved food safety auditors for the auditing of primary production and processing food businesses.
Safe Food Production Queensland can be contacted on 1800 300 815 or at https://www.safefood.qld.gov.au/
Food safety auditors
The role of a food safety auditor is to:
- provide advice to local governments about accreditation of food safety programs
- conduct audits of accredited food safety programs
- prepare audit reports and provide a copy of these reports to the local government and the food business.
Auditors approved under the Food Act 2006 do not have any enforcement powers and cannot require a food business to make any changes to their food safety program or the food business. Only Queensland Health or local government officers have the authority to direct a food business to make any changes to their operations.
Read more about food safety auditors and food safety programs
More information
Read more about:
- What is a food business?
- Food safety regulation that all food businesses must comply with