Classifications for food businesses

Class 1 food premises

A class 1 food premises is:

• A facility at which potentially hazardous food is prepared for, or served to, patients, residents, or other persons receiving services at the facility (other than that part of the premises that is a canteen or other place at which food is available to be served to members of the public or staff of the facility).
• A food premises at which the principal activity is preparing ready-to-eat food for either, or a combination of, the following purposes:
• the food is intended to be served to patients, residents, or other persons receiving services at any of the facilities listed in the table below
• the food is intended to be delivered to aged persons in their homes or other persons who, due to illness, frailty or impairment are unable to prepare their own food, and the food served, or intended to be delivered, includes potentially hazardous food.
• A supported residential service at which potentially hazardous food is prepared for, or served to, residents, and the majority of those residents are aged persons.

Table 1: Class 1 food premises classification

Class 2 food premises

A food premises at which:

• any unpackaged potentially hazardous food is handled or manufactured, or
• low-risk food is manufactured, for which any allergen-free claim is made, other than
  • a class 1 food premises
  • a food premises at which the only handling of unpackaged potentially hazardous food is of a kind which makes the premises a class 3 food premises or a class 4 food premises
  • a home-based business that produces low-risk packaged or unpackaged foods for which an allergen-free claim is made.

Class 3A food premises

A class 3A food premises is on at which one or more of the following food handling activities occurs:

• Preparation and/or cooking of potentially hazardous foods which are served to guests for immediate consumption at an accommodation getaway premises.
• Food is made using a hot-fill process resulting in a product such as chutney, relish, salsa, tomato sauce or any other similar food, that:
• is made at a home-based or temporary food premises, for example, a hired kitchen, and
• has been heat treated to a temperature of not less than 85 °C and then filled and sealed hot into its packaging, and
• is acidic (pH of less than 4.6), and
• has salt or sugar or any other preservative added.

Class 3 food premises

A class 3 food premises is one at which one or more of the following food handling activities occurs:

• the handling of unpackaged low-risk food
• the warehousing or distribution of pre-packaged foods
• the sale of pre-packaged potentially hazardous food
• the sale of shell eggs
• the offering to members of the public a free sample of a potentially hazardous food for immediate consumption if:
• that food is, or will be, available for sale at the premises in a packaged form
• the sale of ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous food by a community group if:
• all the food is cooked on site with the intention of being served immediately
• the majority of persons involved in the handling of the food are volunteers
• this activity takes place at the premises for a maximum of two consecutive days at any one time
• the making of sweet or savory foods, which do not require temperature control for safety for a minimum period of 24 hours, which are:
• uncooked, and that may or may not contain dry nuts (whole or crushed), seeds, dry fruits, protein powder (or similar supplement), and other low-risk ingredients
• after baking, are a low-risk food, including, but not limited to, cakes (including fruit cakes), cupcakes (with or without icing), bread, biscuits, crackers, muffins, croissants, and other pastries where all the ingredients are cooked, and
• have no potentially hazardous foods added to the product after baking, for example, fresh cream, custard.

Class 4 food premises

A class 4 food premises is one at which the only food handling activities are one or more of the following:

• The sale to the public of:
• pre-packaged low-risk food
• sausages that are cooked and served immediately, with or without onions, cooked at the same time, and bread and sauce, when cooked and sold at a temporary food premises or undertaken by a not-for-profit/community group
• packaged or covered cakes (other than cakes with a cream filling) at a temporary premises by a not-for-profit/community group
• biscuits, tea, or coffee (with or without milk or soymilk) at a temporary premises by a not-for-profit/community group.
• A wine tasting for members of the public, which may include the serving of cheese or low-risk food, which has been prepared and is ready-to-eat.
• The sale to the public, or wholesale, of whole (uncut) fruit or vegetables.
• The handling of low-risk food or cut fruit or vegetables and the serving of that food to children at an education and care services facility within the meaning of the Education and Care Services National Law Act 2010, and children’s services within the meaning of the Children’s Services Act 1996 (Victoria).
• The offering to members of the public a free sample of a low-risk food for immediate consumption if that food is, or will be, available for sale at the premises in a packaged form.
• The serving of coffee, tea (with or without milk, soy, almond or any other liquid), alcohol (including the addition of sliced fruit, pasteurised dairy products), water, soft drink (except fermented soft drinks containing a live culture) intended for immediate consumption but does not include unpasteurised processed fruit or vegetables (for example, fresh juice) or any drink which has any other potentially hazardous food added, such as unpasteurised egg.

¹ A class 1 children services excludes after/before school care services, family day care premises or childcare centres that provide cut fruit or any other low-risk food.