No one ever ordered a side of salmonella with their salmon

Whether you’re NZ’s hottest home baker or a Master Chef addict wanting to share your edible talents with the whole country, there are some vital ingredients to consider before you take a big bite out of the Trade Me market.

Here in the home country of the mighty Pav, we have some rules around where the food and drinks we buy can be processed and made.

This is largely to do with food safety, handling and hygiene (no one ever ordered a side of salmonella with their salmon), you’ll need to make sure you’re compliant with:

• the Food Act 1981,
• the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code and
• the Animal Products Act 1999.

Food and beverages made for sale need to be produced by a registered business, and be made in a registered kitchen that meets with the Food Hygiene Regulations.

Your local council is responsible for checking out premises and registration, or you can develop a Food Safety Programme that’s registered with the Ministry of Primary Industries.

If you’re making an entrée into food production, whether you’re starting fresh or have bought an existing business it’s a good idea to get in touch with your local council first up, they’ll be able to advise you of any requirements.

Alternatively you can develop a Food Safety Programme and register this with MPI. You won’t need to register with your local authority, instead an approved New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) auditor will regularly check you out.

Your local Public Health Unit’s ‘Health Protection Officer’ will be able to garnish you with information.

All foods need to be labelled with:

• Date created and packed
• List of ingredients. There are requirements for how to list these with respect to the composition of the food.
• If asked whether an ingredient is present, you must be able to answer

Labelling helps all consumers make decisions about the foods they buy but is particularly important for those with dietary needs or who suffer allergic reaction to certain ingredients.

Check out the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) guide to Starting a small business selling food, and general requirements and programmes.

If you’re making wine there are rules for that too, check out MPI’s food safety website, although there are restrictions to selling wine on Trade Me as well.

If you’re a beekeeping hobbyist or in fully fledged honey production mode there are standards for you too so check out our guide to selling honey on Trade Me.

Creative Commons image used courtesy Lars Plougmann on Flickr.