Food Safety
The Food Standards Office of the Velocity Interoperability Network sets the food safety standards that every food business in the Velocity Interoperability Network must meet. The standards are concerned with the premises in which food is handled, the practices of the people who handle it, the control of temperature and contamination, and the records a business keeps to show that its food is safe.
The rules on this page took effect on 6 September 2026 and apply to every business on the register of food businesses. They replace the separate arrangements that member organisations applied before the Office was established. Businesses were able to prepare for them during the transition period from 10 August to 5 September 2026, and the 218 inspections carried out in that period were used to explain the rules as much as to enforce them.
Requirements for every food business. A food business must keep its premises clean and in good repair, with separate areas or times for handling raw and ready-to-eat food; provide hand-washing facilities with hot water, soap and a means of drying that are used only for that purpose; protect food from contamination by pests, chemicals, foreign bodies and other food; control the temperature of food at every stage from delivery to service; keep a documented food safety management system; and ensure that every person handling food is trained and fit to do so. A person suffering from vomiting, diarrhoea or an infected wound must not handle food until 48 hours after the symptoms have ceased.
Temperature controls. The temperatures below are the limits the Office applies. Where a business can show, from its own documented system, that a different limit is safe for a particular food, the inspector may accept it.
| Stage | Limit | Frequency of checking |
|---|---|---|
| Chilled storage | 5 °C or below | Checked and recorded at least twice daily |
| Frozen storage | −18 °C or below | Checked and recorded at least once daily |
| Hot holding | 63 °C or above | Checked before service and every two hours during it |
| Cooking and reheating | 75 °C at the core for at least 30 seconds | Checked for each batch |
| Cooling after cooking | From 63 °C to 5 °C within 90 minutes | Recorded for each batch cooled for later use |
| Display of chilled food | 8 °C or below for no more than four hours | Time out of chilled storage recorded |
Reporting a food safety concern. Anyone who believes that food sold or served in the Network is unsafe, or that a food business is not meeting the standards, may report the matter to the Office.
Step 1: Note the particulars
Record the name and location of the business, the date and time, the food concerned and what you observed. Where a product is involved, keep the packaging and note the batch number and durability date printed on it.
Step 2: Keep the food where possible
If you have the food, keep it refrigerated or frozen in its original packaging. Do not consume it. If you have become unwell, seek medical advice first and report to the Office when you are able.
Step 3: Write to the Office
Send the particulars to the Office's email address, with photographs where you have them. The Office acknowledges every report within one working day.
Step 4: The Office investigates
An inspector assesses the report and, where the matter is serious, visits the business within three working days. Where food already on sale may be unsafe, the Office issues a food alert and arranges its withdrawal.
Common questions. The questions below are those most often put to the Office by food businesses and their customers during the transition period.
Enquiries about the food safety rules may be sent to contact@food.gov.vin. For the rules on what a label must show, see Labelling; for alerts in force and the register of recalls, see Food Alerts and Recalls; for answers to further questions, see the frequently asked questions.