Your food business fitout must comply with:
- the Food Act 1984
- the Food Standards Code Australia New Zealand
- AS 4674-2004 ‘Design, construction and fit out of food premises’.
A fitout must be appropriate for the food handling activities occurring, have adequate space, and allow for effective cleaning. Approval to trade will be based on your final inspection with an environmental health officer.
Flooring
Floors must be finished with a smooth, waterproof, and durable material suited to the work process without any open joints. They must also be able to be cleaned effectively, unable to absorb grease, laid so there is no ponding of water, and unable to harbour pests.
Any floor coving should be sealed and extended up the walls and partitions to a height of 75mm in a way that is concavely rounded off. Aluminium, feather edge or plastic coving strips installed on top of the floor surface are not recommended as food can get trapped underneath gaps.
Where blood or liquid is likely to be spilled, or large amounts of water is required for cleaning, the floor needs to be graded at 1% and drained to a floor waste gully connected to sewer.
Examples of acceptable flooring include:
- ceramic tiles with epoxy grout
- sealed quarry tiles
- poly vinyl sheeting
- epoxy resins
- laminated thermosetting plastic sheeting.
Examples of unacceptable flooring include:
- carpet
- cracked, porous or cork tiles
- unsealed concrete vinyl tiles.
Walls and doors
All wall surfaces, including doors and hatches, need to be appropriate for food handling activities. They must be:
- free from cracks and crevices, with tightly joined junctions
- impervious to grease, moisture and dirt
- made from stainless steel, pre-formed panels, vinyl sheeting or glazed tiles.
For easy cleaning and to avoid providing hiding places for cockroaches, all service fittings such as pipes or electrical conduits should be either concealed in walls or fixed on brackets to provide 25mm clearance between the wall and fitting.
Ceilings
Ceilings must be finished with a smooth, dust-proof, non-porous material constructed free from open joints, cracks and crevices and painted with gloss paint in a light colour.
Suspended panel ceilings or ‘drop-in’ panels are not suitable in food preparation or storage areas as they do not comply with the requirements of the Food Standards Code. Manholes are also not recommended above food preparation areas.
Hand-washing facilities
The Food Standards Code emphasises the importance of hand washing to prevent diseases being spread and contamination of food. All hand wash basins are to be designated for hand, arm and face washing only, you cannot use the handwash basin to prepare food or wash equipment.
Easily accessible hand wash basins are required in each area that food is handled, including servery and preparation areas. Preparation includes chopping, cutting, scooping, or repackaging any opened food.
They must be:
- located immediately adjacent to a toilet, for bathroom use only
- permanent fixtures with hot and cold water, ideally from a hands-free tap
- large enough to wash hands i.e. 500mm x 400mm ‘off the wall’ 11 litre capacity
- provided with mounted liquid soap, paper towel, and a rubbish bin.
IMPORTANT: Easily accessed by food handlers means it must not be obstructed by other equipment, walls, half-walls, partitions, or doorways. They also cannot be too high or low for food handlers to use.
Equipment-washing sinks
Adequate sinks large enough to clean and sanitise all appliances and utensils must be provided. A sink is required for washing your equipment with warm (about 54C to 60C) soapy water, and a sink is required for sanitising dishes with chemicals or heat.
At a minimum, we recommend a double bowl sink of sufficient depth with a spray tap. The bowls should be deep enough to effectively clean and sanitise the largest piece of equipment, a commercial dishwasher is highly recommended as this can sanitise dishes with heat quickly and effectively. You may be required to demonstrate how you intend to wash and sanitise your equipment upon inspection.
If you wash produce regularly or require a preparation sink, you will be required to install this as an additional separate sink to avoid contaminating food.
Toilet facilities
Toilet cubicles should be separate from any area where there is any open food to prevent contamination, or provided with a self-closing mechanism and mechanical exhaust system. Ensure that toilets provided for customers do not require access via food preparation areas.
Waste
Garbage bins should be located so that they can be emptied without being carried through the premises, and any cleaning equipment like mops and brooms be stored in a separate area away from food preparation.
A cleaners sink, sometimes called a mop sink, with access to hot water and sewer is required, or a floor waste drain at a minimum.
External garbage areas should be at least 2m x 2m graded and drained to sewer with bins having close fitting lids. A hose point with hot and cold water should be provided, and all surrounding walls should be made smooth and impervious so they can be cleaned.
You must also contact Greater Western Water to determine whether a grease trap is required and arrange regular trade waste pump outs.
Pest proofing
Rats, mice, flies and cockroaches are disease carriers which are attracted to food establishments as they provide food, shelter and warmth. To make the entire premises pest proof, all potential access points outside and inside the premises must be sealed. Particular attention needs to be paid to service pipes, joints between walls and roof, external doorways, vents, windows and ducts.
IMPORTANT: Air curtains are not recommended for fly proofing as they are generally ineffective, heavy duty plastic strip curtains or plastic flap doors may be used instead. Bi-fold doors, or windows without flyscreens, are not acceptable in a food preparation or service area that is not enclosed.
Cool rooms
Cool rooms and freezer rooms must comply with the National Construction Code of Australia. Doors must be capable of being opened by hand from inside, fitted with internal lighting and an alarm. Seek advice from Wyndham City’s Building Surveyor for permit advice.
The space above cool rooms should be boxed into the ceiling, provided with a suitable access door, and screened ventilation. Without boxing, the top of the cool room is often used as junk storage and will require regular cleaning. Refrigeration motors should be located outside the building in a location which allows general access for cleaning and maintenance.
Mechanical exhaust ventilation
A mechanical exhaust system must be installed above cooking equipment and dishwashers if their total maximum electrical power input is greater than 8kW or total gas input is greater than 29Mj/h. If a mechanical exhaust system is required, you will need to engage the services of a building surveyor.