Businesses interactions with Local Authorities
All businesses were asked whether they were aware all food businesses, including online businesses need to be registered with the Local Authority. Nearly all businesses were aware (95%). Businesses that were aware they needed to be registered were asked whether they registered using the online or paper form. Nearly a third used the paper form to register (31%), around a quarter registered online (24%) but nearly half did not know (45%).
After businesses had registered, just over half received any guidance information (51%). A slightly smaller proportion had received an advisory visit (45%) or received a visit within one month of starting to trade (34%). Only 9% of businesses experienced none of those.
Written procedures
Just under six in ten businesses (59%) reported having written procedures in place for managing a recall or withdrawal. As Figure 6 shows, businesses with written procedures in place were most likely to conduct procedure reviews at least every three years (78%). Just under two thirds of businesses with written procedures in place also conducted training at least every three years (63%). Of the activities listed, businesses were least likely to conduct mock recall exercises, with less than a third (27%) conducting them at least every three years and half (51%) never doing so.
Figure 6. Frequency of activities conducted by businesses that have written procedures in place
Here is a visual only chart of: Bar chart showing frequency of activities conducted by businesses that have written procedures in place. 78% of businesses with written procedures in place about recall or withdrawal conduct a procedure review at least every three years, 63% run training at least every three years, and 27% do mock recall exercises at least every three years.
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Bar chart showing frequency of activities conducted by businesses that have written procedures in place.
78% of businesses with written procedures in place about recall or withdrawal conduct a procedure review at least every three years, 63% run training at least every three years, and 27% do mock recall exercises at least every three years.
D5. And thinking about these procedures to deal with a recall or withdrawal, how regularly do you conduct…? Base: Businesses with written procedures in place to guide them on how to deal with a recall or withdrawal (83).
Point of sale notices
Retailers and businesses selling food directly to the public were asked how they would describe their approach to displaying point of sale notices for a recall or withdrawal. This question applied to 30 businesses so caution should be taken when interpreting these results. The most common way that businesses displayed Point of Sale Notices was at the till or point of sale signage (9 out of 30), followed by using external signage and putting details on social media (both 6 out of 30). Only 4 out of 30 businesses displayed a notice in writing but did not specify how, and the same proportion removed the product from sale. Of the 30 businesses that answered the question, seven said it was not applicable to them or they’d never needed to.
Awareness of FSS guidance
Just under a third (32%) of all FBOs had heard of FSS’s online guidance and templates for dealing with recalls and withdrawals, while nearly seven in ten (68%) had not heard of the online guidance. Businesses in the service activities sector were more likely to have not head of the online guidance and templates (76%).