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Food businesses in Northern Ireland are required by law to register their establishments with the environmental health service of their local council. Food establishments include:

• food retail businesses
• catering outlets
• food manufacturing and packing businesses
• importing or exporting food
• food distribution businesses
• domestic premises where food business activities are carried out

Registered premises are inspected to ensure they comply with the law. See how to register your food business.

Comply with the law when starting a food business

Whether you're starting up a food business from scratch or taking over an existing business, it's essential to get things right from the beginning. There are some very important rules you must comply with, including:

• ensuring premises are suitable for preparing food safely
• ensuring appropriate food safety procedures are in place

Read more on how to comply with food safety regulations and what you must do regarding food allergies, food intolerance and labelling.

Best practice when starting a food business

You should consider following best practice guidelines to help you comply with the law. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has advice and guidance on . Their guide on  covers best practice and helps food businesses meet their legal requirement to have a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point based procedure in place.

There is also FSA guidance on for caterers focusing on key areas such as food safety, storage, training and hygiene.

All food establishments in Northern Ireland, including food businesses operating from domestic premises, must be registered with their local council environmental health service.

Do I need to register my food business?

All types of food businesses that serve customers directly need to register, including:

• restaurants, cafes and takeaways
• catering businesses run from home, B&Bs, mobile catering and temporary businesses
• marquees, food stalls, food pop-ups and food vans
• nurseries, schools and care homes
• distance selling, mail order and food delivery including online

You will need to register your food business if you:

• sell food
• cook food
• store or handle food
• prepare food
• distribute food

Businesses involved in food distribution or food supply that operate from an office should also register as food businesses, even if they don't keep any food at the premises.

When do I need to register my food business?

You must register your food establishment at least 28 days before opening. If you have more than one food establishment then each one must be registered with the local council where it's located. If you are already trading and have not registered, you need to do so as soon as possible.

You should also inform the local council environmental health service if the food business activities change, including:

• change of food business operator (notification of a change of the operator of a food business establishment should be made by the new food business operator)
• a change to the activities carried out in relation to food
• closure of a food business establishment

Why do food premises have to be registered?

Registration enables local authorities to keep an up-to-date list of all food premises in their area. They can visit them when they need to and inspect the establishment to make sure they comply with food safety regulations.

How to register your food business establishment

Registering a food business is simple and free of charge. You only have to register each food establishment once.

GOV.UK has a  tool where you simply submit the postcode location of your food business establishment. The tool then returns details of how to apply to your local council with a link to the application form, whether it be an online or downloadable form. 

Your local council environmental health service will be able to help you with any questions you have about registering your food business. Find your local council in Northern Ireland.

Food safety legislation exists to protect the public from unsafe food. To comply with food hygiene and standards, you must have the relevant food safety management procedures in place. You must also consider the suppliers you use, the traceability of your food, and how you transport it.

Food safety management procedures

All catering and retail food business operators must have in place food safety management procedures based on the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles.

HACCP is an internationally recognised system of food safety management that helps you:

• identify potential food safety problems - or 'hazards' - in your business
• introduce procedures to remove the hazards, or reduce them to an acceptable level

These procedures can help you produce and sell food that is safe to eat, providing that you:

• keep up-to-date documentation and records relating to your procedures
• review procedures regularly to ensure they reflect what you produce or how you work

FSA guidance on food safety management

To help you put your food safety management procedures in place, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) provides food safety management guides for small businesses, including:

• - for caterers and retailers in Northern Ireland
• - for restaurants, cafés, takeaways and other small catering businesses

These guides will not only help you comply with food hygiene regulations, but will also help you understand how to:

• make food safely
• train staff
• keep records to show that your food safety procedures are effective
• protect your business' reputation
• improve your business' efficiency - eg by wasting less food

There are other FSA guides that can help you comply with food hygiene legislation and give advice on good practice. For example:

• - it focuses on E. coli but the steps taken to avoid cross-contamination will also help control other harmful bacteria
• - it provides hygiene and allergy advice specifically for takeaways and food delivery businesses
• - it gives advice on preventing the spread of infection by clarifying what illnesses and symptoms staff should report and what managers should do in response

Your local council environmental health service can also advise you on the relevant food safety management procedures. Find your local council in Northern Ireland.

Food hygiene

Anyone who handles food must ensure that their practices minimise the risk of harm to the consumer. Part of complying with food safety is managing:

• food hygiene, including requirements on cleaning, cooking, chilling food and cross-contamination
• , ie legal standards for labelling and composition of food products

You must also meet the legal requirements for food packaging and labelling.

Food allergens and additives

To keep your customers safe, you must follow the allergen information rules which require you to:

• provide accurate allergen information
• handle and manage allergens properly in the food preparation area

Find out more about food allergies, food intolerances and labelling.

Additional rules apply if you use food additives.

Traceability and withdrawal of food

Traceability rules help keep track of food in the supply chain. To meet the traceability requirement, you must keep records of:

• all the suppliers that provide you with any food or ingredients
• all the businesses that you supply with food products or ingredients

The records will help enforcement officers if there is a problem with food safety that means food may have to be withdrawn or recalled. Records should include:

• the name and address of supplier (or the business you are supplying)
• the nature and quantity of products
• the date of the transaction or delivery

You can also record batch number, invoices or receipts of food products purchased.

You must keep these records up-to-date and available for inspections at all times. They will be checked if there is a safety problem with food you have sold.

You need to withdraw from sale food which is unsafe. You must let the environmental health department of your local council and the FSA know if you have supplied unsafe food to customers. Read guidance on .

Food safety inspections and enforcement

In Northern Ireland, local councils are responsible for enforcing food hygiene laws. Authorised officers have the right to:

• enter and inspect your premises at any reasonable time without making an appointment
• take enforcement action to protect the public, such as seizing foods suspected to be unfit for human consumption

Find out what to expect from a food safety inspection.

Some people have an allergy or intolerance to certain types of food. They need enough information about what they eat to help them avoid these foods.

Food businesses in the retail and catering sector are required by law to provide allergen information to consumers and follow the relevant labelling rules. They must:

• provide allergen information for prepacked and non-prepacked food and drink products
• handle and manage food allergens effectively in food preparation
• make sure that staff receive training on allergens

List of allergens in food - 14 major food allergens

Any type of food can cause a reaction, but some are more likely to than others. There are 14 major allergens which food businesses must declare by law when used as ingredients:

• celery
• cereals containing gluten - including wheat (such as spelt and Khorasan), rye, barley and oats
• crustaceans - such as prawns, crabs and lobsters
• eggs
• fish
• lupin
• milk
• molluscs - such as mussels and oysters
• mustard
• tree nuts - including almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, brazil nuts, cashews, pecans, pistachios and macadamia nuts
• peanuts
• sesame seeds
• soybeans
• sulphur dioxide and sulphites (if they are at a concentration of more than ten parts per million)

Even a very small amount of certain foods can sometimes cause a severe reaction called anaphylaxis. This can make people very ill and in some cases can be fatal, so it's crucial and also a legal requirement that you're able to inform your customers what's in a particular dish.

Allergen information for different types of food

Different allergen labelling rules apply depending on how the food is provided to the customer. For example:

Prepacked food

Prepacked food must have an ingredients list present on the packaging and allergens present in the product must be emphasised each time they appear in the ingredients list.

Non-prepacked (loose) foods

Loose foods must have allergen information for every item that contains any of the 14 allergens.

Prepacked for direct sale (PPDS) food

From 1 October 2021, the requirements for PPDS food labelling changed. Any business that produces PPDS food is required to label it with the name of the food and a full ingredients list, with allergenic ingredients emphasised within the list.

Find out more about food allergen labelling.

Tell customers about food allergens and calories

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has developed a range of resources to help food businesses comply with legal requirements to manage and record allergen information.

These resources include:

• The MenuCal tool - can help you to identify, manage and communicate allergen information for food and drink on your menu. You can also use it to calculate the amount of energy in food and drink on the menu.
• - it offers advice for food businesses on providing allergen information and best practice for handling allergens.
• In-depth - it outlines the food allergen labelling and information requirements under the EU Food Information for Consumers regulations.
• - free online training and materials for food business operators and those involved in selling or producing food.
• - it includes advice on providing allergen information and avoiding cross-contamination in the kitchen.

Further guidance is available on the which came into force on 1 October 2021. You can also use the Food Standards Agency's  to check if your business sells PPDS food. 

Labelling of 'free-from' foods

Making 'free-from' claims in relation to food allergens requires strict controls of ingredients, how they are handled and how they are prepared. A 'free-from' claim is a guarantee that the food is suitable for all with an allergy or intolerance.

For example, if you are handling wheat flour in a kitchen and you cannot remove the risk of cross-contamination, you should let the customer know. You should not make any gluten-free or wheat-free claims.

The Food and Drink Federation provides specific information and guidance on:

See more on labelling food products.

It makes good business sense to give your customers healthier food choices. By serving healthier options you could help improve the health of your customers while also reducing your operating costs. For example, you could reduce the amount of meat in a pasta dish by substituting it with finely diced vegetables. 

Making menus healthier

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) in Northern Ireland has a range of online resources to help you make your menu healthier.

Their 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵs you to display energy information – in both kilojoules (kJ) and kilocalories (kcal) – on your menu and provide healthier options, enabling consumers to make healthier, more informed choices when eating out.

To put energy information on your menu will need to accurately calculate the energy content of your recipes. You can do this using the FSA's free online MenuCal tool. The tool can also help you identify, manage and communicate required allergen information. 

By standardising recipes and planning your menu, you can make small changes to make the food you serve healthier and more profitable.

Healthier catering tips for food businesses

A range of healthier catering guides is available from the FSA. These guides provide simple, practical changes that businesses can make when procuring, preparing, cooking, serving and promoting food. There are seven different business-specific guides:

These guides describe simple, practical changes businesses can make when procuring, preparing, cooking, serving and promoting food.

Making Food Better programme

The FSA's Making Food Better programme, previously known as the Eating Well Choosing Better programme, 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵs small and medium-sized food businesses across all sectors of the NI food industry to reformulate their products to provide healthier food for consumers. Reformulation aims to:

• reduce levels of sugar, saturated fat, and salt content of the food produced for, sold or served to customers
• reduce portion size served to customers

The programme aligns with the UK government's targets on sugar, salt and calorie reduction. To deliver this programme, the FSA work closely with representatives from across Northern Ireland including the Department of Health, Invest Northern Ireland, the food industry, district councils and academic institutions.

Guidance is available from the FSA to help businesses . The FSA website also lists other  to help them on their reformulation journey.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) provides a free online tool to help businesses identify, manage and communicate allergen information and display calories on menus.

The MenuCal tool allows food businesses to identify if there are allergens present in any of the food they serve and make this information known to their customers. MenuCal can also be used to calculate energy in the food that businesses serve. The tool enables food businesses to add ingredients for recipes and print off menus with allergen and energy information clearly displayed.

MenuCal aims to save food businesses time and money by helping you comply with legal requirements to manage and display allergen information. It could also increase your profitability by appealing to health-conscious customers by helping you to:

• make smarter choices about the food you serve
• tailor portion sizes to reduce the amount of energy value
• change ingredients to give a healthier option

Through the FSA's , 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵ and advice is available to food businesses to help them put energy information on the menu.