Businesses such as restaurants, cafes, takeaway shops, caterers (eg. process & serve food at one fixed location) mobile caterers (eg. process food & transport food to more than one location) bakeries, pubs, clubs hotels, food market stalls, mobile food vendors, supermarkets.
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Use hygienic practices for food safety (SITXFSA005)
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Participate in safe food handling practices (SITXFSA006)
These units are Nationally Recognised.
NSW Guideline to Food Safety Supervisor Requirements
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NSW STATE REQUIREMENTS
The NSW Food Authority has a requirement for a Food Safety Supervisor certificate to be issued in the New South Wales Food Authority format. Each appointed Food Safety Supervisor needs to be trained in specific nationally recognised units of competency as determined by the Food Authority, as well as the Food Authority’s own 4 key focus areas:
- Safe egg handling
- Allergen management
- Cleaning and sanitising practices
- Food Act Offences
Food Safety Australia is a Registered Training Organisation (RTO) approved by the NSW Food Authority to deliver Food Safety Supervisor training and issue NSW FSS certificates (Approval No.24773) The Food Safety Supervisor certificate is valid for five years from the date of issue.
UNITS OF COMPETENCY
There are 2 pathways to choose from to achieve FSS certification in NSW, hospitality, or retail. Businesses should choose the units of competency that are more relevant to their business type. The current national units of competency accepted for the NSW FSS certificate are:
- Two hospitality units:
- SITXFSA005 – Use hygiene practices for food safety
- SITXFSA006 – Participate in safe food handling practices OR
- One retail unit:
- SIRRFSA001 – Handle food safely in a retail environment.
NB. Previous units of competency remain valid up to the expiry date on the FSS certificate.
WHAT IS A FOOD SAFETY SUPERVISOR AND WHY ARE THEY IMPORTANT
A food safety supervisor is a person who is formally trained to recognise and prevent risks associated with food handling in food businesses. They will have advanced food safety skills and knowledge and must have the authority to supervise and give directions about matters relating to food safety to people who handle food in a food business. They have an important role in sharing skills and knowledge, and improving awareness of what can happen if food is unsafe – that is, foodborne illness and injury and its impacts. Therefore, it is their responsibility to make sure the business is handling food safely.
WHO CAN BE A FOOD SAFETY SUPERVISOR
A food safety supervisor might be the business owner, the licensee, a manager, or an employee. A food safety supervisor must be a person who is reasonably available to advise and supervise each food handler at a food business on a day-to-day basis. Businesses with several premises cannot use the same FSS for each premises - they must nominate a different FSS for each premises. Larger businesses, or those that operate longer hours, may choose to nominate several people to be trained and appointed as an FSS to help cover shift work and annual leave.
RESPONSIBILITIES OF A FOOD SAFETY SUPERVISOR
A food safety supervisor must:
- know how to recognise potential food safety hazards of the business and ensure the risks are prevented or managed
- have skills and knowledge of food safety matters that are relevant to the business and share skills and knowledge to improve awareness of foodborne illness
- have the authority to supervise and give directions about food safety matters to other food handlers at the business
- help create a positive food safety culture, where food safety is a top priority
- be reasonably available to be contacted while the food business is operating by
- any food handler at the food business
- the local government that licensed the food business.
HOW OFTEN IS TRAINING REQUIRED
A NSW Food Authority Food Safety Supervisor certificate is valid for five years.
FOR BUSINESS OWNERS AND MANAGERS
Managing food businesses, with multiple staff, operating for extended hours and across jurisdictions, can be complicated. Food safety competencies delivered and assessed by Food Safety Australia may be purchased centrally by you and kept on your Food Safety Australia online account. Our shopping cart allows you to purchase multiple courses in one easy transaction. From there, you are able to allocate the courses you have purchased to the participants whom you require to complete the training.
ARE YOU LOOKING TO RENEW YOUR NSW FOOD SAFETY SUPERVISOR CERTIFICATE?
Please look at our recertification courses. Food Safety Australia offers the complete course at a discounted price for those who have received the qualification previously.
ONLINE MODULES
Each module of the food safety supervisor course will help you to achieve one of the required elements of competence.
You will be provided with a series of presentations and quizzes. Make sure you are completely comfortable with the presentation content before attempting the quiz, you may view them as many times as you feel necessary. You are required to achieve a grade of 100% for each of the seven quizzes in this course and you are allowed up to three attempts for each quiz.
We also provide a PDF of student notes, which you can print out for ready reference whilst completing the course.
Workplace Observation
As well as completing the on-line quizzes satisfactorily, you will also complete and return a Workplace Observation. It is a requirement that you are able to demonstrate the application of the skills you have gained from the on-line course in a practical way in a commercial kitchen.
It is required that you have access to a food workplace (either as an employee or a volunteer). This food workplace should:
- Be an operational commercial food preparation area, bar or kitchen with the fixtures, large and small equipment and workplace documentation defined in the Assessment ; can be a real industry workplace simulated industry environment such as a training kitchen servicing customers
- Have real food ingredients and food items
- Be fully equipped for food preparation (eg. a commercial kitchen, catering production line or food preparation area of a food outlet)
The Workplace Observation can be made by anyone you are working alongside providing they are in the position to make valid observations of your performance. The observer should meet the following requirements:
1. Have 2 years or more experience in a food handling environment in a supervisory role AND either
a) A current Australian Food Safety certificate (eg. Food Handlers Certificate or Food Safety Supervisor)
or
b) A qualification that meets the requirements of Food Handling safety (eg. Commercial Cookery or hospitality qualification or relevant higher education qualification
2. Be prepared to observe your activity in the workplace
3. Be prepared to be contacted by a Food Safety Australia assessor to confirm the Observer information provided.
If you are not currently working within the industry and do not have immediate access to an operational commercial kitchen, here are a few options:
- If you have worked in the food industry before, then you can have a past manager or co-worker complete the form based on past observations (no more than 12 months ago)
- If you have a friend or family member employed in the food industry, they can also make observations
- You can also speak to your local council and ask for a list of food-based charities that you can volunteer for. Many of these organisations deal with food and many of the regular volunteers are able to sign off on your observation report
WORKPLACE ASSIGNMENT
The practical activity is a brief knowledge based assignment, where you demonstrate the application of your learning to a workplace situation. Food Safety Australia is able to structure this activity, to suit participants not yet employed in a working food environment.
