You must keep records about the food you import
You must keep records that:
- show you have confirmed the safety and suitability of the food you import
- show the food is transported and stored in a way that keeps it safe and suitable
- describe the food imported
- enable the food to be traced from the supplier you bought it from, while it’s in your control, and to who you sold it to (unless they are the final consumer)
- detail the name and contact information of the supplier you sourced the food from
- detail the name and contact information of the manufacturer or producer of the food
- detail any recalls that have been undertaken.
You need to keep these records for at least 4 years.
Records must be easily identifiable
Records must be:
- legible
- dated
- signed by the person who made the record or contain a unique identifier that allows identification of who made the record.
Records must be easily accessible
- Records need to be easy for you to access at any time.
- If requested, you must be able to provide the records to a food safety officer as soon as practicable.
- If a food safety officer or a verifier asks for your records and the records are not in English, you might need to pay to have them translated.
Store your records safely
You must store your records in a manner that:
- protects them, so they can be trusted
- prevents any loss or damage
- allows them to be easily accessed when necessary.
For electronic records, you might need to create a system that:
- ensures files cannot be changed without authorisation
- keeps a record of any changes that are made
- makes a regular backup of data.
