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In a food business emergency

However well you manage food hygiene at your business, sometimes you may experience an emergency which affects your ability to operate safely. Use this short guide to help you to deal with some of the most common emergency situations, so that you know:

  • what to do
  • where and how to get help
  • when and who to inform in serious situations
  • when you need to stop trading to protect your customers or staff

Responding to any issue

If an emergency arises, you should always do the following:

  • Let your staff know about it.
  • Inform staff of anything they need to do differently.
  • Keep a written record of when you discovered the issue.
  • Record what actions you take to address the issue, and when.

The next Food Safety Officer who inspects your business may ask to see these records.

If the situation results in a food safety incident, you should report this to the Food Standards Agency.

How to deal with the most common emergencies

Select any topic to read in more detail. 

Lack of hot water

Food businesses must have a constant supply of hot water for safe food handling and preparation. Not having hot water means you can’t effectively wash your hands, or clean equipment and surfaces.

Do not turn off your hot water supply overnight, as when turned on in the morning you may not have a suitable supply when you do begin trading. You should only begin handling food and cleaning tasks when you have hot, constantly running water available.

See the section below on appliances, gas and electrical safety for extra tips on dealing with a broken boiler.

A temporary hot water supply can be provided in some cases, if your normal supply breaks down. Examples would be a counter-top hot water boiler, a kettle, or a pan of water simmering on the stove with containers to carry the water. You must make sure that any water you do use for hand washing and cleaning is mixed with cold water to an appropriate temperature. Staff should not be at risk of being scalded by hot or boiling water. Pans should not be overfilled or carried across kitchens or up and down stairways, as this also can present manual handling and/or slip and trip risks.

If your dishwasher unit has broken, you can use a sink with hot water available to clean equipment. Your hand wash basin(s) should be kept separate from this, and you must make sure there isn’t a risk of dirty equipment contaminating food and other surfaces.

If you have had issues with your hot water but think you can provide a temporary supply, you should make us aware of the issue, and ask for advice. If you can’t ensure you will have hot water available at all times, you should not be handling any open food until this has been addressed.

Fridge or freezer breakdown

‘High risk’ perishable foods (including all products using meat, dairy and fish) must be stored at safe temperatures to remain safe to eat. In catering and retail businesses, these must be stored at 8°C or less, or in line with the manufacturer’s instructions on the label (whichever temperature is lower).

If your fridge or freezer is not working effectively or has broken down, there is a chance of high-risk foods being stored at unsafe temperatures. If the unit’s display is showing a high temperature, you can check the temperature of the food inside with a calibrated temperature probe, which can be more accurate than the unit’s display. This should be placed between two packages or containers .

If the food has been above a safe temperature for 4 hours or more, it should be thrown away. If you're able to move the food to a unit with a suitable temperature within 4 hours, you can still use the food, as long as it is prepared and served directly from this unit. Once you've had to move a high risk food in this way, you should take particular care not to allow it to return to an unsafe temperature before cooking and serving. 

You may be able to adjust the unit to make it colder. If you can’t do this, do not use it to store high-risk foods. You may need to call out a refrigeration engineer for maintenance and repairs.

Once the unit has been adjusted, make sure it comes down to a safe temperature for the products that will be stored inside. This will be 8°C or less for fridges and chillers (2 to 5°C is recommended), unless certain products have to be stored at lower temperatures. Freezers should be holding food at -18°C or less.

For more information, view FSA guidance on safe chilled storage practices

Appliances, gas and electrical safety

If your boiler or other gas-operated appliance breaks down, you should call out an engineer as soon as you can. Gas boilers and ovens must be maintained and regularly checked by a registered gas safety engineer. It is your responsibility to check that your contractor is registered.

If a gas appliance has been fitted or serviced incorrectly, there is a risk of gas leaks, fire, explosions, and carbon monoxide poisoning. If you smell gas, you must take immediate action

Find out what to do in a gas emergency

Electric boilers and other appliances should be checked by a qualified electrician or heating engineer.

Find out more about electrical safety

Product recalls

You may be contacted by suppliers about a product they are recalling. Product recalls can happen because:

  • the product may be contaminated with harmful bacteria (such as Salmonella, E. coli or Listeria) or chemicals
  • manufacturing problems mean there may be something in the product that shouldn’t be there, such as pieces of plastic or metal
  • the product may have incorrect labelling, and may be missing key information for the consumer (like allergen information, or cooking instructions)

You must follow the instructions your supplier has given you.

If you believe that your business has supplied food or drink that may be harmful to people’s health, unfit to eat, or which doesn’t meet legal requirements, you must call us as soon as you can on 01225 477508. You may need to begin your own product recall.

If the food or drink has reached consumers, you should report this to the FSA Incidents Team

View FSA guidance on product recalls and withdrawals, including resources and templates for reporting and handling incidents.

Pest issues

Pests such as rats and mice, flies and cockroaches spread disease through their fur, droppings, urine, and saliva. They must not be allowed into any areas where food and food equipment are being handled and stored, as they can contaminate surfaces by moving across them. Surfaces and equipment need to be cleaned once pests have been identified, even if you can’t see any dirt, droppings or residue on them.

You should be carrying out your own routine checks for signs of pest activity; do not leave these checks for your pest contractor to do. If you don’t clean up dirt and droppings from pests, it can be difficult to tell if there has been further activity in the areas where you found them.

If you find signs of pest activity in the food areas of your business, you must take immediate action to ensure customers’ health is not harmed. This should include the following:
Clean and disinfect any areas where food is handled and stored. Remove any dead pests, droppings and other debris (such as egg cases).   

Make sure the food areas of your business are pest proof. This may include filling holes or gaps in the walls, floors and ceilings of your premises. Any gaps under external doors should not allow pests to enter.

Throw away any food you think may have been in contact with pests. Look for signs of packaging being damaged and activity on shelves.

You should call out a pest control contractor if you find signs of pest activity. If you don’t normally have a regular pest contractor, we’d recommend you do this temporarily until the issue has been resolved. This is because you may need specialist knowledge to address more serious infestations. The issue may need specialist bait or poisons, and these should only be sourced by trained pest controllers. You should make sure any contractors you use are competent. We offer a pest control services for local businesses

You may need to temporarily close your business until the issue has been addressed.

The Safer Food Better Business pack has information on safe pest control practices.

Flooding

Flood water can be heavily contaminated with sewage, harmful bacteria and other pollutants. If your business has been flooded, you must check if any food handling or storage areas have been affected. Do not prepare or store any food in these areas. Any equipment that might be used must be deep cleaned and disinfected first. Any food that has come into contact with flood water should be thrown away. You should check with your waste contractor how this should be done.

Depending on the issue,main water supply of your business premises may have been affected. If you have concerns about the quality of your water supply, you should contact your water supplier.

The Food Standards Agency have produced guidance for consumers on food safety after a flood.

View GOV.UK advice on flood planning for businesses

View guidance on electrical safety after flooding

Drainage issues

If you have noted an issue with internal or external drainage at your business, you should speak to a qualified plumber and may need to arrange a callout.

Watersafe find a plumber service

If drains inside your business aren’t working, you need to check whether this presents a risk of food areas being contaminated with dirty water. Food should not be handled in areas where building and plumbing work is taking place. Once any leaks have been fixed, you should clean and disinfect the affected areas.

If drains outside your business are blocked, you may need to contact the local water and sewerage company. In the centre of Bath and most of B&NES, this will usually be Wessex Water.

Waste accumulation

If you don’t have enough waste storage available, or your waste contractor has missed a collection, waste can start to build up at your business. Overflowing bins and bags of waste left on the ground can attract pests, and cause nuisance odours.

Our Cleansing Enforcement team may issue you with a fine, if you are not storing your waste properly, or if you aren’t disposing of your waste through an approved collector.

Waste should be put into bags first, before being put into a lidded bin. The lid should be able to be kept closed. You may only be allowed to put out your waste for collection at certain times of the day. Waste must not be stored in areas where food is handled.
You may need to request an extra bin from your waste contractor, or ask for a larger bin. If your contractor has missed a collection, you should contact them about this and keep a written record that this has happened.

We offer waste collection services for businesses. Find out more about our services:

If you can't operate safely

If you're unsure if you can still operate safely, you should call us immediately on 01225 477508. Use our online contact form, if the issue doesn't pose an immediate danger to public health.

We have to assess each situation on a case-by-case basis. Depending on the issue, the risks involved and what actions you can take (or have already taken), we may suggest that you close your business voluntarily to prevent any risks to consumer health. If we find an imminent risk to health, we may serve you with a Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice that legally requires you to close the business or stop a certain activity.