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About us

Safe Food regulates the primary production and processing of meat, eggs, dairy, seafood and horticulture (seed sprouts) in Queensland, Australia.

Regulatory services

Our Role

We work to ensure food produced in Queensland is safe, trusted, and meets national standards by:

  • Ensuring compliance with national food safety standards across Queensland’s food production systems
  • Supporting businesses across the food supply chain to understand and meet their responsibilities
  • Identifying and responding to risks that may affect the safety and integrity of the food supply
  • Maintaining public confidence in Queensland-produced food.

We regulate the production of primary produce in Queensland to make sure it is safe for human and animal consumption by:

  • Regulating food safety schemes for primary production
  • Advising the Queensland Minister for Primary Industries on food safety matters
  • Monitoring compliance with hygiene and operational requirements across premises, vehicles, plant, and equipment
  • Supporting industry to manage food safety risks through effective systems and practices
  • Approving and auditing food safety programs and quality assurance measures
  • Granting accreditations to primary production and processing businesses
  • Training and approving auditors to assess compliance with food safety schemes
  • Reviewing audit outcomes to ensure consistency and integrity
  • Commissioning research to inform food safety policy and practice.

Supporting Industry

We work with businesses involved in primary production to:

  • Minimise food safety risks by developing and maintaining food safety programs
  • Adopt quality assurance systems that support safe and reliable production.

Our Powers

Under the Food Production (Safety) Act 2000, we have powers to:

  • Develop and implement food safety arrangements
  • Accredit primary production and processing businesses
  • Establish and oversee auditing systems
  • Approve and register auditors
  • Investigate potential food safety offences.

Our Experience

Since 2000, we have regulated food safety in a complex and evolving risk environment.

Our team brings extensive, practical experience across:

  • Food production and processing
  • Industry operations and supply chains
  • Food safety systems and standards.

This experience helps us understand how people, processes, and products work together to keep food safe.

Funding

We are funded through:

  • A shared funding agreement with the Queensland Government
  • Fees and charges for accreditations and regulatory services collected from industry.

Safe Food's Board

The Safe Food Board provides leadership and direction to help prioritise food safety issues and guide the development and implementation of food safety initiatives.

The Safe Food Board (the Board) ensures planning and governance processes work effectively and that reporting systems are reliable. It also ensures Safe Food follows sound financial management practices.

The Board provides guidance on administration and policies but does not manage day-to-day operations and does not have a regulatory role.

The Board’s main responsibilities are to:

  • Decide the strategies, and operational, administrative, and financial policies for Safe Food Production Queensland.
  • Consider advice from the Food Safety Advisory Committee and recommend to the Minister the fees for food safety schemes.
  • Ensure Safe Food Production Queensland performs its functions properly, effectively, and efficiently.
  • Review the performance of the Chief Executive Officer each year.
  • Lisa Palu, Chair and Independent non-executive director

    Lisa Palu brings several decades of experience in advocacy, policy and communications across state and Commonwealth governments, agriculture, science, and the resources sector.

    Read more about the Chair’s appointment in the Media Statement from the Minister for Primary Industries.

  • Katrina Platt, Independent non-executive director

    Katrina Platt was appointed to the Board in 2025 for a three-year term commencing 24 April 2025.

    She brings more than 20 years of leadership experience in the Queensland public sector, including over a decade as a Chief Financial Officer and senior executive. Throughout her career, she has focused on improving financial management, corporate services and operational performance across government.

    Katrina has led major initiatives in digital transformation, organisational change and business risk management. Her experience covers both corporate strategy and frontline service delivery, as well as policy development and program management.

    She currently serves as an independent member on several Audit and Risk Committees, including for Queensland Health and the Department of Employment, Small Business and Training. She is also Managing Director of a residential construction company.

    Katrina holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting and Finance), is a Certified Practising Accountant (CPA), and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

  • John Piispanen, Executive director (Queensland Health)

    John Piispanen is the Acting Executive Director of the Health Protection Branch at Queensland Health. He has more than 36 years of experience in public health across Queensland, including 10 years as Director of the Metro North Public Health Unit and earlier work in Far North Queensland as Director of Environmental Health.

    He is a qualified environmental health officer and holds a Master of Public Health from James Cook University, where he received the Sidney Sax Medal for academic excellence. He also holds an Adjunct Associate Professor role with the University of Queensland.

    John’s work focuses on food safety, health risk assessment, regulatory systems, and emergency and disaster response. He is a member of the Australian Medical Assistance Team (AusMAT) and has supported international responses, including Ebola in West Africa and COVID-19 in Papua New Guinea.

    John is the Queensland Health representative on the Board.

  • TBA, Executive director (Department of Primary Industries)

    The appointment of the next executive director from the Department of Primary Industries will be announced soon.

Annual Reports

For more information about our activities each year, please review our Annual Reports.