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10 thoughts on “Regulation 5 – Food Premises (40 min)”
Our store room only has air vents and obvious a door.
We store some foodstuff there and the freezer is also there. Do you think we must install some artificial ventilation?
Rgds
Elmari
Can you give us an idea of what foodstuff you are storing in the storeroom? Does the storeroom get very hot in summer, or is it very humid inside the storeroom? Then you migth need to consider better ventilation. I would recommend before you take any drastic steps, to speak to one of our consultants. They will be able to assist you regarding the ventilation for your storeroom.
As long as the tiled floor is easy to clean and non-absorbent it should be fine. This also includes the grout between the tiles. The grout should also be non-absorbent and there should not be any cracks in the tiles, and the grout should not “flake” or have “holes”. It is easy for bacteria to grow and accumulate in cracks and holes. It also makes it difficult to clean and disinfect properly.
Ideally, the following normally applies to food manufacturing plants:
Flooring should be antibacterial and non-slip.
Should be easy to clean.
Food processing flooring should have an anti-slip feature.
Tile flooring should not release harmful substances.
Artificial Lighting and Artificial ventilation must be compliant with the requirements of the National Building Regulations and Building Standards Act, 1977 (Act No. 103 of 1977).
But how do we know if ours is compliant? I briefly went through this Act but did not see anything specific to this.
Whoever installed the lighting and ventilation must have installed it in compliance with the National Building Regulations and Building Standards Act, 1977 (Act No. 103 of 1977). If you are unsure, you can contact a registered electrician/builder to verify compliance. Keep in mind this will carry additional costs.
We have 2 basins in the kitchen with warm and cold water. We then also have a handwashing facility in the bathroom. Do I understand correctly that the place one therefore washes your hands (during food handling) can not be in the washing basins in the kitchen, and therefore will have to be the bathroom handwash basin?
The requirement for handwashing facilities is as follows; handwashing facilities shall be provided at the entrances to the food handling areas that are used by employees, at other conveniently situated places within easy reach of the employees, and at the toilet exits. Hand basins shall not be used for any other purpose.
It is therefore not advisable to only use the handwash basin in the bathroom, but a handwash basin in the food handling area. You can dedicate one of the basins in the kitchen for handwashing only during food preparation and handling.
Our store room only has air vents and obvious a door.
We store some foodstuff there and the freezer is also there. Do you think we must install some artificial ventilation?
Rgds
Elmari
Hi Elmari,
Can you give us an idea of what foodstuff you are storing in the storeroom? Does the storeroom get very hot in summer, or is it very humid inside the storeroom? Then you migth need to consider better ventilation. I would recommend before you take any drastic steps, to speak to one of our consultants. They will be able to assist you regarding the ventilation for your storeroom.
ASC Consultants
So, our floors are tiled. We re-pack fruits and vegetables and process some vegetables. Will this pose a problem?
Hi Anton,
As long as the tiled floor is easy to clean and non-absorbent it should be fine. This also includes the grout between the tiles. The grout should also be non-absorbent and there should not be any cracks in the tiles, and the grout should not “flake” or have “holes”. It is easy for bacteria to grow and accumulate in cracks and holes. It also makes it difficult to clean and disinfect properly.
Ideally, the following normally applies to food manufacturing plants:
Flooring should be antibacterial and non-slip.
Should be easy to clean.
Food processing flooring should have an anti-slip feature.
Tile flooring should not release harmful substances.
Suitable acid resistance.
You are welcome to take a picture of the flooring and send it to support@ascconsultants.co.za.
ASC Consultants
Artificial Lighting and Artificial ventilation must be compliant with the requirements of the National Building Regulations and Building Standards Act, 1977 (Act No. 103 of 1977).
But how do we know if ours is compliant? I briefly went through this Act but did not see anything specific to this.
Hi Tetica,
Whoever installed the lighting and ventilation must have installed it in compliance with the National Building Regulations and Building Standards Act, 1977 (Act No. 103 of 1977). If you are unsure, you can contact a registered electrician/builder to verify compliance. Keep in mind this will carry additional costs.
Have a great day!
ASC Consultants
We have 2 basins in the kitchen with warm and cold water. We then also have a handwashing facility in the bathroom. Do I understand correctly that the place one therefore washes your hands (during food handling) can not be in the washing basins in the kitchen, and therefore will have to be the bathroom handwash basin?
Hi Karin,
The requirement for handwashing facilities is as follows; handwashing facilities shall be provided at the entrances to the food handling areas that are used by employees, at other conveniently situated places within easy reach of the employees, and at the toilet exits. Hand basins shall not be used for any other purpose.
It is therefore not advisable to only use the handwash basin in the bathroom, but a handwash basin in the food handling area. You can dedicate one of the basins in the kitchen for handwashing only during food preparation and handling.
Kind regards,
ASC Consultants
Sorry I have a question in this lesson…on the lighting section, what did you mean by ‘EXTERNAL WALLS’?
Good day Loyiso,
External walls are the walls on the outside of the building. Any walls that are in direct contact with the outside environment.
Have a great day!
ASC Support Team