Monitoring, Audits and Compliance

How Safe Food monitors your business

Safe Food uses different ways to check compliance, including:

• scheduled compliance audits
• spot checks (called check audits)
• reviewing your records and documents
• monitoring your approved food safety program or management statement

These checks help confirm your systems are working and food safety risks are being controlled.

Your food safety program or management statement must be followed

As an accreditation holder, you must:

• Follow your approved food safety program or management statement
• Keep it up to date and accurate
• Make sure staff understand and follow it.

Your program or statement must explain how you:

• Identify food safety risks
• Control those risks
• Check your systems are working
• Take action if something goes wrong.

What to expect during an audit

Audits are a normal part of holding an accreditation.

During an audit, Safe Food (or an approved third-party food safety auditor) may:

• Inspect your premises or vehicle
• Review your records
• Check how you handle, process or transport food
• Speak with staff.

Audit frequency depends on your risk level:

• Low risk businesses: fewer audits
• Medium risk businesses: regular audits
• High risk businesses: more frequent audits.

You may also be audited soon after starting or renewing your accreditation.

What happens if there is a problem

If an issue is found during an audit, it is called a nonconformance.

There are two types:

Minor issue (major nonconformance)

• You will be asked to fix it within a set time
• You must show proof it has been corrected.

Serious issue (critical nonconformance)

• Safe Food must be notified immediately
• You must act quickly to fix the problem
• Follow-up audits will be done to confirm it is fixed.

If problems are not corrected, further action may be taken as set out in Safe Food’s Compliance Policy.

Record keeping

You must keep clear and accurate records that show:

• How your business operates
• How food safety risks are managed
• That your program or statement is being followed.

Records must be:

• Easy to access
• Complete and accurate
• Kept for required time periods.

Safe Food may review these records during audits or inspections.

Working with auditors

You must:

• Cooperate with auditors
• Provide access to your business, records and staff
• Respond to requests during audits.

This helps audits run smoothly and ensures compliance can be verified.

Staying compliant

To stay compliant, make sure you:

• Follow your approved food safety program or management statement every day
• Fix issues quickly when they arise
• Keep staff trained and aware of food safety practices
• Keep records up to date
• Notify Safe Food if something goes wrong that may affect food safety

Over time, Safe Food expects to rely less on traditional audits and other prescriptive processes.

Where possible, Safe Food supports electronic supply chain verification systems that:

• Are supported by industry
• Provide a complete overview of food safety performance.