Health
Regulations
Are you planning to
operate a Mobile Cart? Then this information is
important when choice which Coffee or Food Cart is best
for you !
As you will no doubt be selling Coffee or Food, you are
required to meet certain requirements by law. The laws
regarding the operation of your Mobile Cart are governed
by the state or territory government and by the local
municipal council under which you wish to operate your
Coffee or Food Cart. This is particularly important if
you plan to operate your business as a mobile business
and move around. It could be as simple as one side of a
road being controlled by one council and the other side
by another. The council rules may therefore differ and
it is your responsibility to ensure compliance with
these regulations.
To assist state and
territory governments and local municipal councils
regulate health standards, the Australia and New Zealand
governments has established a bi-national government
agency. This is called Food Standards Australia New
Zealand and their website can be found at
www.foodstandards.gov.au.
The most applicable aspect
of the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code is
Chapter 3 pertaining to Food Safety Standards
(Australia Only). Some state and territory
governments are still implementing various aspects of
the code and therefore it is important to check what is
applicable to your business. The intention of this
national standards code is to make the requirements for
Mobile Carts uniform and save operators the need to seek
health regulation approval from each local municipality
they wish to operate in.
The City of Melbourne in Victoria has one of the most
stringent health regulations current in force. It is
these regulations by which the national standards code
was developed. The health regulations cover aspects of a
Mobile Carts operation including:
-
Adequate refrigeration
for certain products eg: milk
-
Two sinks - one for
washing hands with hot water at approximately 40
degrees and one for utensils with hot water at
approximately 70 degrees.
-
All sinks are to be at
least 200mm diameter and depth to be at least 100mm
so hands can be completely immersed, also jugs must
also be able to be completely immersed for washing
-
The operation of the
sinks must be hands-free eg: foot controls or sensor
operated
-
Hot water service must
have full power supplied to it at all times to
enable hot water to be available when required
-
Hand towels and soap for
staff
-
Waste water to be in a
separate compartment from fresh water for espresso
machine to stop cross contamination (someone putting
the wrong hose in the individual bottles)
-
Impervious surfaces for
bench-tops and cupboard inserts
This information is
important when choice of which coffee cart is best for
you. The code is amended regularly so it should be
checked regularly to review the latest requirements.
The short list above contains just some of the many
health regulations required by municipal councils. It
should not be regarded as official requirements as they
vary from municipality to municipality but however aims
to give an insight into the types of requirements that
exist.
When operating on the footpath, at a station, at a fete,
in a courtyard, ie: in a public place, you will be
required to gain a permit from the municipal council. It
is at this time that your Mobile Cart must meet their
health regulations and the operation of the Mobile Cart
must also meet other requirements the council may have.
When operating within a private premises, ie: the foyer
of an office complex, it is still necessary to meet
certain requirements of the local council. The reason
for this is that you are operating in a public area
where the council is responsible, and as you are
conducting a food and beverage business and selling to
the public.
It is best to consult your local municipal council when
completing a business plan to operate a Mobile Cart as
to ascertain what requirements must be met. It makes it
difficult when you get a Coffee or Food Cart and then
find that it doesn't meet the health regulations for
where you want to operate it.
All Food and Coffee Carts designed and manufactured by
Coffee Carts of Melbourne are done so in accordance with
the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code.
We recommend that if considering a Coffee or Food Cart
that you ensure that it meets the current most stringent
health regulations so that if checked you'll not be
required to outlay more money to have the Cart altered.
That is if it is even possible to alter.
