Food Law Code: FSA consults on changes
18th January 2023
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has recently concluded a 12 week consultation seeking views from the food and drink industry on proposed amendments to the Food Law Code of Practice.
What is proposed?
The proposals involve fundamental changes to the food standards delivery model within the Food Law Code namely the introduction of a:
- new food standards risk rating scheme that local authority officers will use to evaluate the risk posed by a food business
- new decision matrix to determine the frequency at which food standards official controls should be delivered in line with the outcome of the risk assessment.
According to the FSA, the new model will allow local authorities to have flexibility to use any of the official control methods and techniques available and direct local authority resource to where it is most needed to tackle risk in the food chain.
What happens next?
The consultation closed on 9 January 2023 and the FSA expects to publish a summary of responses received within three months of the closing date. The Food & Drink team will update you with the resultant changes to the Food Law Code in due course.
