Approvals

If you only supply your food products through retail or direct to the final consumer, you will not need to apply for approval.

There may also be other exemptions depending on the extent to which the business wishes to supply food of animal origin to other businesses. Some businesses may be exempted based on supplying other retailers on the following basis:

• Marginal – This is interpreted as a small part of your establishment’s business, usually up to a quarter (25%) of the business in terms of food, or less than 2 tonnes in terms of meat per week.
• Localised – This is interpreted as meaning sales within the supplying establishments own county, plus the greater of either the neighbouring county or counties, or 30 miles from the boundary of the supplying establishments county.
• Restricted – This is interpreted as concerning only certain types of products being made or establishments being supplied.

Businesses must meet all three of the above exemption criteria to be exempt from requiring approval.

Multiple establishments constituting a single establishment (satellite operations)

There may be circumstances where it is considered by the local authority that your business’s separate sites/locations are part of a wider establishment, and therefore, a single (retail) establishment for the purposes of registration under Regulation (EC) No. 852/2004.

This flexibility may only be applied where the focus of the establishment’s activities is that of a retail business (i.e. the business must involve the supply of food direct to the final consumer). Ealing Council will consider such businesses on a case-by-case basis to ensure that all three of the following criteria are satisfied:

1. The operation is under a single ‘controlling mind’ i.e., there is one natural or legal person who is responsible for the implementation of food safety management procedures at all sites
2. A single food safety management system covers all stages and units of the operation within the wider establishment
3. All the activities undertaken at the various locations or units within the ‘wider’ establishment are within a close enough proximity that it can be reasonably expected that the single controlling mind can effectively manage the food safety management controls at all sites.

If all three of the above criteria are met and at the discretion of the council, the sites may be considered as the same establishment and therefore subject to registration, rather than approval.

Whether a business is exempt can be complicated and will depend on actual business arrangements. If you have any doubts about whether these exemptions apply to your business, please contact the food safety team.