About food safety

North Somerset Council Regulatory Services together with colleagues from Avon and Somerset Police are regularly monitoring businesses to ensure compliance with the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) Regulations 2020.

If you see something in a workplace that you think is breaking health and safety law and is likely to cause serious harm, including failure to provide PPE or enforce social distancing policies, you should report it using the HSE online form.

If you wish to report a business who you suspect is not complying with the law in relation to business closures or to health and safety practices relating to social distancing, email details to trading.standards@n-somerset.gov.uk. Do not use this email address for anything else.

If you have any price inflation concerns (known as ‘price-gouging’), or if you think competition law might have been broken or you’re concerned there’s a problem in a market sector, you can report this on the GOV.UK website.

We work with businesses in our district to make sure high levels of food hygiene are achieved and maintained.

Our food safety guide can help business owners understand what their responsibilities are and how to comply.

Our work with food businesses is in line with our food safety service plan and is carried out so that it’s as clear and transparent as possible.

All of our investigations are based on risk, making sure businesses that present the highest risk to public health get help to reduce and minimise that risk. This means that we can give businesses the appropriate level of support to allow their business to grow.

To trade hygienically you must have, and follow, a documented food safety management procedure. Guidance documents, template procedures and diary sheets are available from the food standards agency website.

Download a copy and fill in the part related to cross contamination, cleaning, chilling, cooking and management to show what you do in your business. Keep records in the diary of your daily checks and keep them for inspection for 12 months.

We’ll make sure that all of our communication with you is clear and easy to understand, and that you can distinguish between requirements for the business and recommendations for good practice. 

All food premises are inspected to make sure they meet legal rules and their food is safe to eat.

After an inspection, we’ll let you know what your proposed hygiene rating is and how to appeal it if you think the rating is incorrect.

Food Crime Confidential is a reporting facility where anyone with suspicions about food crime can report them safely and in confidence, over the phone or through email. Run by the National Food Crime Unit, the facility is particularly targeted at those working in or around the UK food industry.

For the latest news advice on food safety and feed, visit the Food Standard Agency’s beta website.

The Trading Standards South West Guide has advice for bakers, bread makers and confectioners who are running a home-based business.