Food business registration

Who must register

You must register if you carry on a food business at any fixed premises (even temporarily). This includes:

• Restaurants, cafes, pubs, and takeaways
• Hotels and guest houses
• Supermarkets, shops, and market stalls
• Home-based food businesses — cake makers, caterers, preserves, dog treat makers
• Food delivery businesses and dark kitchens
• Childminders providing food to children
• Community and village hall kitchens used for events
• Mobile food vans and trailers (register with the authority where your vehicle is usually kept)
• Vending machine operators

Retailers selling only pre-packed food they did not prepare (such as a convenience store selling packaged snacks) must still register — registration depends on whether you operate a food business with a degree of continuity and organisation, not on whether you prepare the food. The only situations outside registration are genuinely occasional, small-scale supplies of food, such as a one-off charity bake sale (though best practice is to check with your local authority).

Registration vs approval

Most food businesses only need registration (a simple notification). However, some businesses handling higher-risk products need approval from their local authority before they can operate. Approved premises receive an identification mark.

Businesses that need approval include:

• Manufacturers and processors of meat, fish, shellfish, dairy, eggs, or gelatine
• Cold stores and wholesale markets handling products of animal origin
• Any business placing products of animal origin on the market that another business then processes

If you only sell directly to final consumers (e.g. a butcher's shop, fishmonger, or deli), you generally only need registration, not approval — even if you handle raw meat. The approval requirement applies to businesses in the supply chain before the final consumer.

What happens after registration

After you register, your local authority will arrange an inspection. The timing depends on the risk level of your business and local authority resources.

The inspection covers three areas:

• Hygiene: How you prepare, cook, reheat, cool, and store food. Your cleaning methods, hand washing facilities, and pest control.
• Structure: The condition of your premises, equipment, lighting, ventilation, and facilities (sinks, toilets, changing areas).
• Management: Your food safety management system (HACCP or SFBB), staff training records, temperature monitoring logs, and traceability records.

In England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, the inspector will give you a Food Hygiene Rating from 0 (urgent improvement necessary) to 5 (very good). In Scotland, the Pass/Improvement Required scheme applies instead.

Penalties for not registering

Operating a food business without registering is a criminal offence under Article 6 of Regulation (EC) 852/2004 and regulation 19 of the Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013 (parallel food hygiene regulations apply in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland). The penalties are:

• On summary conviction: an unlimited fine (magistrates' court)
• On conviction on indictment: a fine and/or up to 2 years' imprisonment
• The local authority can also serve a hygiene improvement notice or, in serious cases, a hygiene emergency prohibition notice closing your premises immediately
• An unregistered business will not have a Food Hygiene Rating, which may deter customers and breach platform requirements (Deliveroo, Just Eat, and Uber Eats all require valid registration)

If a local authority discovers you are operating without registration, they will typically require immediate registration and may fast-track an inspection.