Registering a food business in Ireland

Who to register with

• HSE environmental health: restaurants, delis, retailers, mobile food businesses and food stalls, and some manufacturers, including microbreweries.
• Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: businesses involved in slaughter, or handling or processing meat, dairy products and eggs.
• Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority: businesses handling or processing fish, fishery products and aquaculture products.

Not sure which applies? The FSAI Advice Line ([email protected]) can tell you.

Registration or approval?

Most caterers and shops only need to register. Some businesses that make or handle food of animal origin must also be approved, for example meat product makers, dairy producers and fish processors. The FSAI says these must be approved before they start trading.

• The types of business that need approval are set out in Annex III of Regulation (EC) No 853/2004.
• Depending on the business, approval may come from the HSE, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, a local authority or the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority.
• Most small businesses producing meat products are supervised by local authorities.

When and how to register with the HSE

• When: before you start operating, even from home.
• How: online through the HSE’s National Environmental Health Service (ehonline.hse.ie), or through your local environmental health office.
• What you need: whether you are a company or sole trader, business name, address, email and phone number, premises type, start date, and any other food businesses you run in Ireland.
• What happens next: an environmental health officer checks the notification, your business is entered on the register with a reference number, and you get an acknowledgement letter.
• Changes: tell the HSE if your activities change or the business closes.

Make contact early. The FSAI says the registering body will advise whether your premises and operations comply with food hygiene law.

What the inspector will expect

• A food safety management system based on HACCP. This is a legal requirement under Regulation (EC) No 852/2004. For caterers, the FSAI Safe Catering pack is designed for this. It includes a Declaration of Completion and Review that you sign to show you have a system in place.
• Training. Food handlers must be supervised and instructed or trained in food hygiene to suit their work. Whoever is responsible for your HACCP system must be trained in HACCP principles.
• Traceability. You can trace food back to your suppliers.
• Allergens. Allergens used as ingredients are declared to customers. See the 14 allergens.
• Suitable premises. If you plan to work from home, it must be suitable for what you will do.

Practical first steps

1. Work out which agency supervises you, and contact them early.
2. Notify them before you open.
3. Write your food safety plan, such as a completed Safe Catering pack.
4. Train your staff, and keep a record of it.
5. Set up your daily records from day one.

For the records, start with our free printable templates, or keep your Safe Catering Pack records on your team’s phones.

See the FSAI’s guidance on registering. This is general information, not advice for your business. Your food safety management system (HACCP plan) and FSAI guidance are the reference. Hygivo is not affiliated with or endorsed by the FSAI.