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Food Safe Blog
At Food Safe, we are very passionate about all aspects of food safety training, risk management and internal auditing. Food Safe offers a range of services to businesses in the food and related products sector across New Zealand.
The Food Safe Blog attempts to offer tips and advice on Food Safety, Health and Safety, HACCP, Audit Training, Internal Auditing and Continuous Improvement. Please feel free to follow the Food Safe Blog and have the posts delivered directly to your inbox.
Food Safety Records
A food safety record is a document that contains objective evidence of food safety activities, how they are being performed and results of achievement. It documents what has happened in the past.
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Meaningfully community engagement.
Food Safe's goal is to improve food safety best practice at all levels for the benefit of New Zealand as a whole.
Some examples of our engagement efforts include work with, Maraes, the Ministry For Social Development (MSD), community organisations, universities and assisting people and students into jobs.
One such recent and ongoing collaborate training project included the proactive management team at Auckland City Mission.
Auckland City Mission does great work – offering practical assistance, advocacy and support to individuals and families who have nowhere else to turn.
Food Safe provided the team at Auckland City Mission, basic food safety training including how to implement a food control plan programme, prevention of cross-contamination and safe handling of food, among other things; so that their staff, volunteers and team leaders can gain a better understanding of food safety risk when caring for people in need, who we are so passionate about.
For more information on how you too can support Auckland City Mission click here.
Food Safe runs regular courses in food safety training and auditing; tailor-made to suit specific business needs. Call us on 0800 003 097 or email us at
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
for all food safety training needs.
What is Food Safety Culture?
In simple terms culture is about How, Why and When we practice Food safety
Why focus on Food Safety Culture?
Several global food safety investigations and reports, that have followed food safety break-downs, such as the Listeria outbreak in USA that killed close to 33 people in 2011 to the E-coli 0104-04 outbreak that killed over 20 people in Germany have recommended that food companies consider tracking and improving Food Safety Culture in addtion to other risk control measures.
Many of these deaths, food safety scares and food re-calls were preventable if Food Safety Culture was a meaningful focus of food companies and senior managers.
So what is the challenge?
The challenge for management and food companies in addition to knowledge is, finding an easy-to-use tool to effectively measure Food Safety Culture, so this can be tracked and acted upon.
Is there a specific report related to a New Zealand context?
A report that relates to New Zealand, that specifically details Food Safety Culture and its importance as a lesson for sector-wide improvement is the 'Whey Protein Concentrate Contamination Incident Report' and a page extract from the document, details some of the points below.
Source: Government of New Zealand
So what influences Food Safety Culture and why measure it?
Here is a presentation about Food Safe's innovative analysis tool that helps explain what culture means and how a company can and should measure Food Safety Culture.
What the front-end of Food Safe's Analysis Tool looks like?
Eager to know more?
Give us a ring on 0800 003 097 or email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we’ll show you how you too can benefit from our world leading tool that can measure Food Safety Culture.
Interested in the full report to better understand context?
Author: Government Inquiry into the Whey Protein Concentrate Contamination Incident Date of publication: November 2014. Place of publication: Wellington, New Zealand ISBN: 978-0-473-30935-0
Note: The purpose of this blog and the main reason for highlighling a page of the report above is to focus trainee and management attention to lessons than can be learned and how continuous improvements can be made, rather than drawing attention to a specific company.
Inquiry members:
The three Inquiry members are Miriam Dean CNZM QC (chair), Tony Nowell CNZM and Dr Anne Astin PSM.
Miriam Dean CNZM QC Miriam Dean has extensive governance and commercial litigation experience. A former partner at Russell McVeagh, she is a Queen’s Counsel whose practice focuses on commercial, competition and consumer law, arbitration and mediation. She was also recently the lead reviewer for the 2012 Review of the Crown Law Office. She is currently chair of both New Zealand on Air and the Banking Ombudsman Scheme. She is also a director of Crown Fibre Holdings, the Government’s investment vehicle responsible for managing the introduction of ultra-fast broadband to urban areas, and the Auckland Council-controlled organisation managing the Council’s investment portfolio. Ms Dean is a former president of the New Zealand Bar; previously also a member of the Auckland Transition Agency, the government’s Electricity Market Review and the IANZ Council.
Tony Nowell CNZM Mr Nowell has extensive governance, food standards and export sector experience. He is currently the chair of Scion (New Zealand Forest Research Institute Ltd), a director of Food Standards Australia New Zealand, New Zealand Food Innovation Auckland and the National Export Advisory Board. A past chair of the New Zealand Food and Grocery Council and the former Chief Executive of Zespri International Ltd, he also previously held senior management roles with Griffin’s Foods Ltd and Sara Lee Corporation. He co-chaired the New Zealand Government’s Food and Beverage Task Force in 2005 and currently represents New Zealand on the APEC Policy Partnership for Food Security.
Dr Anne Astin PSM Dr Astin has extensive scientific and management experience, including 10 years as the Chief Executive Officer who developed, established and led the start-up of a government statutory authority for dairy food safety in Victoria, Australia. The Inquiry is supported by a legal advisor, Simon Mount, and two policy advisors, Mark Patchett and Sally Johnston.
Independent peer reviewer: Professor Alan Reilly
Professor Reilly, Chief Executive of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, has agreed to act as expert peer reviewer for the Inquiry’s reports. Professor Reilly has worked for more than 30 years in the area of food safety. Before taking up his current role, he worked in the Food Safety Programme of the World Health Organization in Geneva. He is also the chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board of the European Food Information Council.
Eager to know more?
Give us a ring on 0800 003 097 or email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we’ll show you how you too can benefit from our world leading tool that can measure Food Safety Culture.
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A quick snapshot about the New Zealand Qualification Authority (NZQA) Framework
What is the purpose of the NZQF?
The NZQF is a framework based on outcomes, described in terms of knowledge, skills and attributes, and their application.
The New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) administers the NZQF, which is the definitive source for accurate information about all quality assured qualifications, covering senior secondary school and tertiary education qualifications, and including all qualifications open to international students.
The NZQF provides information about what knowledge and experience holders of qualifications can be expected to have, and about what further education and/or employment opportunities the qualification leads to
The detail about NZQA qualifications and how it works:
Most food prepared and served on marae will not be covered by the food safety plans and programmes of the Food Act 2014.
Customary food activities
Food prepared and served on marae for customary activities such as tangi is outside the scope of the Food Act 2014, and will not be regulated because the food isn’t sold or traded.
Fundraising
Marae that are raising funds for charitable, benevolent, or cultural purposes would not need to operate with a food control plan or under a national programme as long as the trading takes place no more than 20 times a year. However, a marae operating with a food control plan would have unlimited fundraising opportunities. MPI has developed a marae food safety guide that contains more information on food safety and an explanation of tikanga in this context. When you do have to comply with the Act Food businesses that are operating from a marae, and selling food, will be regulated in the same way as other food businesses. The requirements will depend on the type of food business involved.
Why the Act was changed?
The flexible risk-based approach taken by the Act offers an opportunity for marae and other community organisations to develop food manufacturing and food service practices that are consistent with their tikanga.
This could offer business, tourism and employment opportunities in the food sector.
For example, marae around Karapiro registered a food control plan (FCP) based on an MPI template ahead of the Rowing World Cup in 2012 to provide catering services. Other marae are establishing cafes, catering businesses and food manufacturing and horticulture businesses.
The current regulatory system, which focuses on premises rather than skills, offers less support for start-up businesses, and is not flexible enough to accommodate innovative or traditional practices
Who to contact?
If you have questions about marae food, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Source: MPI
A Marae Food Safety Guide:
A Home kill Guide:
A Wild Foods Guide:
