Food Service Plan
There are specific legal obligations placed on local authorities in regard to delivering food safety official controls. Section 1 of the Food Law Code of Practice (Scotland) requires the statutory obligations covered to be brought to the attention of local authority officials and or elected member bodies responsible for agreeing budgets or other service arrangements relevant to the delivery of official controls.
The obligations that apply to the delivery of official controls by local authorities include ensuring:
- The effectiveness and appropriateness of official controls.
- That controls are applied at an appropriate risk-based frequency.
- That they have a sufficient number of suitably qualified and experienced competent staff and adequate facilities and equipment to carry out their duties properly.
- That staff are free from conflicts of interest.
- That they have access to an adequate laboratory capacity and capability for testing.
The Food Service Plan outlines how these obligations are being met and pursued within West Lothian.
Safe food and drink is something which the vast majority of the population take for granted. The safety of this fundamental human need relies on a competent, trustworthy and properly regulated and managed supply monitored mainly by environmental health professionals working within local authorities. This essential work often goes unnoticed.
The consequences of a failure in the safety of the food and drink we consume can be catastrophic in costs to human health, the food industry, governments, public confidence and trust. The purpose of the food service plan is to outline how such controls are delivered in West Lothian within current resources.
The food service plan also incorporates other closely linked elements of public health protection undertaken by officers within the environmental health service.
