Safer Food, Better Business: can you keep it on an app?

Safer Food, Better Business (SFBB) is the Food Standards Agency’s free food safety pack for small caterers in England and Wales. Many small restaurants and takeaways still keep it on paper. Here is what it is, what the law really asks for, and whether you can keep it on a phone, tablet or computer.

What the law requires

No law says you must use SFBB. The law says every food business must have food safety procedures based on HACCP principles, and keep records that suit the size of the business. SFBB is one easy way to do that.

• England and Wales: Safer Food, Better Business (a Welsh version exists).
• Scotland: CookSafe, from Food Standards Scotland.
• Northern Ireland: Safe Catering, with record forms SC1 to SC9.

What is in the SFBB pack

• Safe methods in five sections: cross-contamination, cleaning, chilling, cooking and management.
• The diary: daily opening and closing checks, a record of problems and what you did, and a daily sign-off.
• Records: staff training, suppliers, contacts, cleaning schedule and the “Prove it” checks.
• The 4-weekly review: a walk round the kitchen and 12 questions about what has changed.

The daily diary

Opening checks include:

• Fridges, chilled display and freezers working properly
• Other equipment, such as ovens, working properly
• Staff fit for work and wearing clean work clothes
• Food preparation areas clean and disinfected, with no signs of pests
• Handwashing stations stocked with soap, towels and hot water
• Probe thermometer working and probe wipes available
• Allergen information accurate for all items on sale

Closing checks include: food covered, labelled and put in the fridge; out-of-date food thrown away; waste removed; surfaces, equipment and floors cleaned. The manager then signs to confirm that the safe methods were followed and supervised that day.

Can I keep SFBB on an app?

Yes. The official SFBB guidance says you can keep an electronic diary, and the Food Safety Act 1990 lets officers inspect records “in whatever form” they are held. CookSafe and Safe Catering also accept electronic records with the same content.

A good digital system should:

• Save the date and time of every entry automatically, and never let records be backdated
• Show who made each entry, with their own login or PIN
• Keep a history of any changes
• Make it easy to show or send the inspector the records they ask for

How long to keep records

• SFBB: keep your diary pages at least until your next inspection.
• Northern Ireland: at least 12 months.
• Scotland: for a “reasonable period”; ask your food safety officer. Keep training records for as long as the person works for you.

The 4-weekly review

Every four weeks, walk round your kitchen and check your safe methods are still right. If the same problem has happened three times or more, find out why and fix the cause. SFBB says to do the review even if there were no problems. In Scotland, CookSafe uses a weekly record and a review about every six months.