Safe Food Victoria monitors compliance with dairy food safety requirements in the interests of public health and to support safe dairy food production in Victoria.
Licensed dairy businesses must comply with their relevant legal requirements, licence conditions and approved food safety program. The requirement to be audited is set out in a licensee's licence conditions. An audit determines whether the food safety program has been complied with during the period covered by the audit and remains adequate at the date of the audit.
Audit requirements vary by licence type:
- dairy manufacturers must be audited at intervals no greater than seven months
- dairy farmers and dairy food carriers must meet the audit requirements set out in their licence conditions
- dairy distributors may be audited at Safe Food Victoria's discretion to check compliance with food safety requirements or licence conditions
Safe Food Victoria takes a risk-based, graduated and proportionate approach when responding to non-compliance. This approach is informed by national food regulatory policy, including the Australia and New Zealand Food Regulation Compliance, Monitoring and Enforcement Strategy.
Licence holder responsibilities
Licence holders are responsible for understanding and meeting their legal requirements.
They must:
- follow their approved food safety program
- comply with all relevant licence conditions
- act promptly when a food safety or compliance issue is identified
When something goes wrong, licence holders must act swiftly and transparently to reduce the risk of a public health event. This includes:
- taking corrective action as soon as possible
- providing accurate and timely information
- cooperating with Safe Food Victoria
Safe Food Victoria considers the risk to public health, the seriousness of the issue and the licence holder's response when deciding what action is appropriate.
How non-compliance may be identified
Safe Food Victoria may identify non-compliance in a number of ways, including:
- audits
- a licensee's test results or sampling programs
- incident notifications, such as a pathogen detection reported by a licensee
- complaint investigations
- foodborne illness notifications
- other information received by Safe Food Victoria
Safe Food Victoria assesses all information it receives to determine the risk to public health and the appropriate response.
Audit findings and corrective action requests
Audits check whether a licensed dairy business is:
- following its approved food safety program
- meeting its licence conditions
- complying with the Dairy and Food Innovation Act 2000, the Food Act 1984 and the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code
Audits may be conducted by a Safe Food Victoria authorised officer or an approved auditor. The frequency and scope of audits depend on the licence type, the business activity, licence conditions and any additional requirements set by Safe Food Victoria.
If an auditor identifies a non-compliance, they may issue a corrective action request, also known as a CAR.
A corrective action request tells the licence holder:
- what non-compliance was identified
- what action is needed to fix the issue
- when the action must be completed by
- what evidence may be needed to show the issue has been fixed
Licence holders must provide enough evidence by the due date to close each corrective action request.
How corrective action requests are classified
Corrective action requests are classified according to food safety risk.
Minor non-conformance
A minor non-conformance is a low-risk issue. It does not pose an immediate risk to food safety or public health and is not likely to lead to unsafe food.
Major non-conformance
A major non-conformance is an issue that may lead to unsafe food unless corrective action is taken within a specified period.
Critical non-conformance
A critical non-conformance is an issue that presents an imminent and serious risk to food safety, or may cause food to be significantly unsuitable for sale or processing.
If a critical non-conformance is identified, the auditor must immediately escalate the matter within Safe Food Victoria. Additional notification requirements may apply for export-registered businesses.
Closing corrective action requests
Licence holders must address the non-conformance within the required timeframe.
Safe Food Victoria or the auditor will review the evidence provided to confirm the issue has been resolved. This may involve:
- reviewing documents or records
- assessing photos or other evidence
- conducting a follow-up audit or inspection
If a corrective action request is not closed by the due date, Safe Food Victoria may escalate its compliance response.
This may include increased oversight, further audit activity, written directions, formal orders or other enforcement action, depending on the seriousness of the issue and the risk to public health.
Other compliance and enforcement responses
Not all compliance issues are identified through audits. Safe Food Victoria may also respond to:
- complaints
- food safety incidents
- notifications
- sampling results
- information from other regulators or agencies
Safe Food Victoria uses a graduated and proportionate approach to enforcement. Actions may include:
- education and guidance
- verbal or written directions
- written warnings
- corrective action requests
- increased audit frequency or regulatory oversight
- formal orders under legislation
- suspension or cancellation of approvals or licences
- prosecution, where appropriate
Safe Food Victoria may work with other government agencies where responsibilities are shared. For export-registered dairy businesses, audit activities may be carried out under arrangements with the Commonwealth Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.
If a matter falls outside Safe Food Victoria's responsibilities, it may be referred to the relevant authority.
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