Skip to main content

Aquaculture facility

If you grow or harvest seafood at a land-based or marine-based aquaculture facility for supply to other businesses, then you require an accreditation with Safe Food Production Queensland (Safe Food).

This activity is classified as Producing under the Seafood Scheme of the Food Production (Safety) Regulation 2014.

Note: A Safe Food accreditation is required for aquaculture activities conducted in Queensland, regardless of whether you are export registered and only export product overseas.

Other accreditations you may need

If you are storing seafood under active refrigeration at a separate site from your aquaculture facility, then you will require an accreditation as a Cold Store.

If you store live seafood at a land-based site other than your aquaculture facility, then you will require an accreditation for Live Holding.

REQUEST INFO PACK

Before you apply

If you intend to process seafood within your aquaculture facility (e.g. gutting, gilling, cooking), you must ensure your premises meets the requirements of:

If your food premise complies with these requirements, and you wish to proceed with an application for accreditation, please see below for what you need to submit.

What should I submit with my application?

  • Application form

    Complete the Application form and select Producing (seafood scheme, aquaculture) as your activity on page 2.

    Note: If you want to complete this form on your mobile or desktop, please download or save it first.

  • Payment of fees

    Fees and payment details can be viewed within the application form.

  • Food Safety Program

    You must submit a Food Safety Program (FSP) with your application. A FSP documents the processes and procedures you will follow to minimise or eliminate food safety risks and ensure the food you produce is safe. This is a detailed document that covers all aspects of your business, from inputs, product descriptions and temperatures, right through to cleaning, maintenance and pest control. It involves a risk assessment to identify where any possible issues may arise, how to recognise these issues, what the acceptable limits are around each step, and what to do to rectify a food safety issue, should it occur.

    A FSP can be developed in partnership with a food safety consultant or your industry peak body. However, you are not obliged to use these.

  • Site plan

    Please submit a site plan of your aquaculture facility that shows the location of:

    • pond/ dams/ tanks
    • water source (e.g. crook, ocean)
    • processing area (if applicable), including location of any brine tanks, cookers, IQF, chilling equipment and packing area
  • Photos

    Please submit photos of the following:

    • ponds / dams / tanks
    • drains and disposal system for garbage and wastewater
    • floors and walls
    • cool rooms & refrigerators, including temperature gauge (if applicable)
    • brine tanks, cookers, IQF, chilling equipment (if applicable)
    • all processing equipment that may come into contact with seafood (if applicable). For example, knives, filleting gloves, thermometers, packing machines.
  • Development approval

    If you are a land-based aquaculture facility, you must provide a copy of your development permit issued by the Department of State Development, Manufacturing, Infrastructure and Planning.

    If you are a marine-based aquaculture facility, you must submit a copy of your resource allocation authority issued by Fisheries Queensland.

Submit your completed application to applications@safefood.qld.gov.au or PO Box 221, Greenslopes, Brisbane, QLD 4120.

When to apply

Under the Food Production (Safety) Act 2000, it is unlawful to engage in certain activities relating to primary production or processing of food until you have been granted an accreditation by Safe Food. As such, you should allow adequate time for your application to be reviewed by Safe Food before you begin operating.

Your application will aim to be assessed within 14 days, although applications submitted in their entirety (with all the items outlined above) are likely to be processed faster.

Upon submission of your application, a member of our Central Assessment Team will contact you for payment (if paying by credit card). Once payment has been received, your application will be assessed, and we will contact you if we require any further information.

You will be notified in writing about the outcome of your application (approved or refused).

Fees

Fees are based on the activities you are carrying out and are outlined in the Application form.

Please note that new applications will incur a one-time application fee that is non-refundable.

Our accreditation period runs from 1st January – 31st December*. You will therefore need to renew your accreditation on an annual basis.

For more information, please refer to our fees & charges.

*Our fees are not pro-rata.