Last month we had our kitchen inspected, which we happily welcome, by Latrobe City Council. This poses some great questions about the food suppliers you are using. Not just for sweet treats but for anything food related.
Do you ask the right questions? Is your supplier compliant? Do they have your health and safety in their best interest? Or are they just trying to make a few dollars?
There are so many little food businesses run from home these days. We truly congratulate those businesses that make this work, ONLY if they are following the legal requirements. Unfortunately there are so many that aren’t. Not only is this detrimental to the industry they are in, it is dangerous to you!
We pride ourselves on the measures we take to follow the food requirement rules. This includes:
Fully registered with Latrobe City Council - a legal requirement of any food business, even if you are repackaging already produced food or making popcorn at the local cinema
Public liability insurance that covers us for any events, if you have an allergic reaction to our products or if you happen to fall over in our driveway while collecting your order
A high level of house and contents insurance. Yes, this doesn’t directly affect you but if we were to burn down our kitchen while baking biscuits this wouldn’t be covered under standard house insurance. Which means it wouldn’t cover any deposits or payments made for future orders when we can’t use that burnt kitchen
We have a valid food handlers certificate. This means we have been correctly trained in procedures for washing our hands (even more important at the moment), food storage and general food safety
Food grade packaging including our boxes, individual bags, tissue paper, paint brushes (for PYO biscuits), sticks in our bouquets and even the foam used for our bouquet bases. We don’t just pop down to our local discount store for cheap packaging supplies
So lets stop talking about us and let’s focus on what you can do to ensure you, your family and friends are looked after, safely:
Know when the deal is too good to be true. If the price you are quoted sounds ‘cheap’ you are in the wrong place. Firstly, they probably don’t value their time and secondly, they haven’t got the overheads of being a registered business to include in their prices
Don’t purchase food from Marketplace. We all know that is where you snap up a bargain, that’s what it’s for. And registered businesses shouldn’t be selling on there anyway. Enough said.
And most importantly: ask questions. We have never been asked if we are a registered food business. It is included in the FAQs on our website, if you’ve happened to get that far. But we would be more than happy to send anyone a copy of our registration certificate. If your supplier isn’t willing to show you their certificate then they are not a supplier for you (and probably don’t have one either)