Environmental Health News 12th May 2006

Ehps and caterers in Yorkshire and the Humber are taking Safer food, better business to their hearts, finds Brian Baker

North-east approval for safer food drive

An informal straw poll of environmental health practitioners at the Yorkshire and the Humber region annual study weekend in York last week revealed more confidence in the Safer food, better business initiative than in HACCP among small and medium-sized enterprises.

Organiser of the vote, Kirstie Trasler from Highfield.co.uk Ltd, said it was not surprising that small premises relied on local authorities to help them comply with new regulations.

She commented : ‘It is an option for helping businesses to understand what they are doing and to comply.  Research shows that small businesses rely on local authorities so why not use the funding while it is available? 

A second round of bids to the Food Standards Agency’s three-year £10m funding programme for SFBB is thought to be imminent.

‘In the first round of SFBB there was wide scope for innovation and partnering, said Ms Trasler.  ‘For example, Stockport and Oldham targeted those businesses with language and literacy issues while, in Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire, a consortium of 17 authorities was formed and that has been set up very well.

Opinions varied on the wisdom of forming consortiums.  Mrs Trasler said ‘You have to have common ground.  Bear in mind that council leaderships may have divergent views on food safety.   In a consortium, there has to be a project manager from each authority.  Members must agree how to undertake the evaluation before submitting their tender documents’.

Although the SFBB coaching-based approach was developed for small catering businesses, Mrs Trasler told EHN: ‘It has become apparent it is suitable for a wide range of businesses which are independent, have up to five staff, and who would never buy in a consultant’s services.

She praised the Hampshire and Isle of Wight consortium authorities for swapping EHPs for the coaching and evaluation to avert difficulties arising from using the same people to carry out coaching and enforcement.

‘The biggest difficulty of using in-house staff as coaches is that individuals are being both coaches and enforcers and this can be confusing for both staff and the business’, she said.

In the first tranche of implementation, some outside contractors brought in for the projects have been private firms while others have been staff from councils’ economic development departments or from colleges.

‘It is critical that local authorities know which individuals a contractor will use.  There are some people in the sector who I do not think are of the appropriate calibre,’ said Ms Trasler.