Food Safety: Maximising impact by understanding the food business context

In Australia there are 5.4 million cases of food-borne illness annually which costs the community $1.2 billion per annum. As a co-regulator in food safety, local government has a significant interest in ensuring adherence to good food safety practices.  In 2012-3 ACELG, in partnership with Queensland University of Technology, Logan City Council, Redland City Council, Sunshine Coast Council, Ipswich City Council and Environmental Health Australia (Queensland) Inc. undertook research that explored current attitudes and beliefs concerning food safety within a diverse set of food business contexts. 

This research project involved focus groups or interviews with food business operators and young food handlers to explore their food safety understanding, attitudes, practices and the organisational culture in which they participated. The research concluded that local governments need to adopt a holistic approach to food safety that considers all factors that influence food safety outcomes, and a customisable food safety strategy template and accompanying guidelines have been developed to assist local governments implement such an approach.

View the other ACELG research partnerships here.

Downloads

Food Safety: Maximising impact by understanding the food business context (Report)

Food Safety Strategy Template (A customisable template for councils developing a food safety strategy)

Food Safety Strategy Template: Supporting information (Accompanying guidelines for preparation of the food safety strategy).