Customary food activities
Food prepared and served on marae for customary activities such as tangi is outside the scope of the Food Act 2014. This means you do not have to register and follow a food safety plan or programme for these activities. This is because the food is not sold or traded.
Fundraising
If you're fundraising on a marae, you do not need to register under the Food Act 2014, as long as they're doing it less than 20 times per year.
A marae with a food control plan can fundraise as much as it wants.
We've prepared marae food safety guide that has more information on food safety and an explanation of tikanga in this context.
Download Te Kai Manawa Ora: Marae Food Safety Guide [PDF, 13 MB]
We also have a brochure available covering the basics of food safety.
Download the English version – Be food safe [PDF, 1.3 MB]
Download the te reo Māori version – Te whakamaru kai [PDF, 1.9 MB]
When you do have to register under the Food Act
Food businesses that are selling food on a marae (for example, a food cart) need to follow Food Act rules like any other food business. If a marae is selling food to visitors (including tourists), it would also need to register under the Food Act.
For information on the food rules that marae need to follow, use the My Food Rules tool to find out:
- the plan or programme needed
- where to register
- who can verify.
Who to contact
If you have questions about marae food safety requirements, email info@mpi.govt.nz
