Food safety in focus Food Act report 2010 Food safety in focus Food Act report 2010 This report has been developed as required under the Food Act 1984 (s. 7(C)). If you would like to receive this publication in an accessible format please phone 1300 364 352 using the National Relay Service 13 36 77 if required, or email: [email protected] This document is available as a PDF on the internet at: www.health.vic.gov.au/foodsafety © Copyright, State of Victoria, Department of Health 2012 This publication is copyright, no part may be reproduced by any process except in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. Authorised and published by the Victorian Government, 50 Lonsdale St, Melbourne. Except where otherwise indicated, the images in this publication show models and illustrative settings only, and do not necessarily depict actual services, facilities or recipients of services. March 2012 (1201039) Print managed by Finsbury Green. Printed on sustainable paper. ISSN 2200-1220 (Print) ISSN 2200-1239 (Online) Food safety in focus Food Act report 2010 Contents From the Minister for Health 1 From the Municipal Association of Victoria 2 Highlights for 2010 3 About this report 6 Food safety reform in Victoria 7 Food regulation: a shared responsibility 15 Keeping food-borne illness in check 19 Safer food, better business: Victoria’s food industry 23 Annual review 2010 27 Supporting food safety statewide 43 Workforce: the capacity to change 49 In your municipality 55 The national picture 93 Looking forward 97 Appendices 99 Appendix 1: Data sources, specifications and limitations 100 Appendix 2: Governance 103 Appendix 3: Functions, accountabilities and legislation 105 Appendix 4: Fixed and mobile food premises registrations/notifications 106 by business class, region and municipality, Victoria, as at December 2010 Appendix 5: Fixed and mobile food premises registrations/notifications 108 by business class, region and similar municipality, Victoria, as at December 2010 Appendix 6: Municipalities by number of fixed and mobile food premises 110 registrations/notifications by business class, Victoria, as at December 2010 Appendix 7: Food premises by number and rate per 10,000 persons, Victoria 2010 112 Appendix 8: Offences under the Food Act 1984 which resulted in a conviction, 114 by type of offence, Victoria, July to December 2010 Appendix 9: Number of food premises where Food Act offences have been committed, resulting in a conviction, 117 by municipality and type and number of offences, Victoria, July to December 2010 Appendix 10: Major food safety and related committees 125 Appendix 11: Resources and publications 131 Appendix 12: Websites 133 Appendix 13: Glossary of terms 134 Appendix 14: Acronyms 137 References 138 List of figures Figure 1: Food Act and associated reforms 2010 12 Figure 2: Food Safety and Regulation Unit responsibilities 18 Figure 3: Food-borne and suspected food-borne outbreaks by cause (n = 40), Victoria, 2010 21 Figure 4: History of food regulation in Victoria 26 Figure 5: Typical food premises classifications under the Food Act 1984 30 Figure 6: Food premises registrations and notifications, as at December 2010 31 Figure 7: Food premises by Department of Health region, as at December 2010 31 Figure 8: Numbers of fixed and mobile food premises by municipality, Victoria, as at December 2010 34 Figure 9: Food premises per 10,000 population in Victoria, as at December 2010 35 Figure 10: Examples of food complaints 2010 37 Figure 11: Notifiable microorganisms, Schedule 5, Public Health and Wellbeing Regulations 2009 38 Figure 12: Visits to Department of Health food safety website, January to December 2010 47 Figure 13: Most viewed content on food safety website, January to December 2010 47 List of tables Table 1: Fixed and mobile food premises by business class and region, Victoria, as at December 2010 32 Table 2: Fixed and mobile food premises registrations/notifications by business class, 32 region and similar municipality, Victoria, as at December 2010 Table 3: Food recalls conducted by Department of Health by reason for recall, Victoria, 36 January to December 2010 Table 4: Food complaints and incidents by type, Victoria, January to December 2010 37 Table 5: Convictions for offences under the Food Act by number of food premises at which a conviction 41 was recorded for each offence, and by number and type of offence, Victoria, July to December 2010 Table 6: Number of food premises where Food Act offences have been committed at which a prosecution 42 resulted in a conviction, by municipality and region, Victoria, July to December 2010 Table 7: Participants in dofoodsafely food-handler training program, January to December 2010 51 Table 8: dofoodsafely participants by employment status, January to December 2010 51 Table 9: dofoodsafely users’ first or main language spoken, January to December 2010 51 Food safety in focus Food Act report 2010 From the Minister for Health Victoria has a vibrant food industry which is vitally Community and not-for-profit groups have welcomed the important to Victorians’ health and to our economy. new food premises classification system. Based on the Our state is Australia’s largest food production, lower food safety risks involved in running simple sausage processing and exporting state, and as such our sizzles, cake stalls and similar events, it significantly eases food industry is a major employer and a significant their obligations under the Food Act. contributor to Victoria’s export success. Public confidence in our first-class food regulatory This is a period of exciting challenges in food safety system remains justifiably high. As the new and better and food regulation. The Food Act 1984 recently food regulatory frameworks are bedded down, our focus underwent major amendment. This report focuses in coming years must be on continuing collaboration on the stories behind the changes and our progress between the Department of Health and local government in implementing them. as coregulators, and engaging with the food industry to improve food safety outcomes. Our regulatory system makes use of the best science to protect public health and consumer interests in food safety I commend the inaugural Food Act annual report to all and hygiene. At the same time, it is now better attuned to those with an interest in this important area. the issues facing the food industry – in particular its need to remain competitive in the marketplace, and its desire for a consistent regulatory approach across Victoria. Enhancing food safety and hygiene has obvious direct benefits for Victorians and also for the consumers who The Hon. David Davis, MLC enjoy Victorian food abroad. A strong food regulatory Minister for Health system has additional benefits for Victoria’s position in the global food market. Purchasers of our food exports have confidence that the products they buy have come from a market where a robust food safety regulatory framework is in place. Work to implement the amended Food Act has involved an intensive focus on a number of key areas – these include education for food handlers, enhanced surveillance, monitoring and enforcement, and provision of a sound scientific framework to underpin risk management decisions. During the year, significant progress was made in supporting local governments in their role as the primary food regulators on the ground. New tools, guidance and training have ensured they understand their responsibilities under the amended Act, and are well equipped to discharge them. While it rarely makes the headlines, local governments’ work in monitoring and enforcing the Food Act is the bedrock of our enviable food safety system. 1 From the Municipal Association of Victoria The Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV), as the The MAV thanks councils for their participation in this peak body representing local government in Victoria, endeavour and their willingness to share information. welcomes the partnership with the Department of Health As the reporting system matures, it will become a to implement a statewide system that improves information powerful tool enabling state and local government to and knowledge about food safety regulatory activities make policy decisions underpinned by strong evidence, undertaken by the department and councils. so that their efforts are better focused on the food risks that pose the greatest threat to safety. This in turn will Victoria’s 79 councils have an enduring involvement in strengthen food safety for consumers, and the proud food safety regulation. Hygiene, cleanliness and the reputation of Victoria’s food businesses. availability of safe food for sale have been key priorities for municipal health inspectors for many decades. Over time these responsibilities have been formalised through state legislation, with the resulting statutory requirements now contained in the Food Act 1984. While councils have had direct knowledge of, and worked Rob Spence closely with, food businesses in their municipalities for Chief Executive Officer many years, there has been a gap in understanding problems that cross municipal boundaries which could be mitigated through collaborative effort between councils and with the Department of Health. This report, for the first time, enables a statewide picture of food safety activities to be provided. The information collated through this process will assist policymakers in both state and local government to identify areas in need of attention and where additional regulatory effort should be focused. In delivering this report, there has been a vast amount of goodwill and collaborative effort by officers from the Department of Health, and within and across councils. In addition to the introduction of many new changes that council staff have needed to understand and explain to food businesses over the past 12 months, municipalities have also worked diligently to adjust their administrative processes so their data is in a format that can be shared with others. While this process remains ongoing and improvements are required, we are proud of councils’ commitment and the considerable inroads that have been made so far.