Mar 26th, 2020
5 mins
Updated 30.03.20 FSA publishes guidance for food businesses on coronavirus (COVID-19)
The FSA has today published guidance to assist food businesses in responding to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. The new guidance has been developed with Defra and covers a range of areas including good hygiene practice, management of employee sickness, and social distancing for specific food business settings.
It is very unlikely that people can catch COVID-19 from food. COVID-19 is a respiratory illness and not known to be transmitted by exposure to food or food packaging.
Social distancing measures are steps you can take to reduce the social interaction between people. As a country, we all need to do what we can to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 virus. That is why the government has given clear guidance on social distancing. This guidance is helping reduce the spread of the virus and reduce the mounting pressure on our National Health Service, allowing those most acutely affected with COVID-19 to access the care they need.
The advice on social distancing measures applies to everyone. You need to minimise opportunities for the virus to spread by maintaining a distance of 2 metres between individuals. This advice applies to both inside the food business and in the external public areas where customers may need to queue. People should be reminded to wash their hands for 20 seconds and more frequently than normal.
Practical Implementation in Wholesalers
The practical implementation of this advice will depend on each location. This may be best evaluated by the location manager with input from the health & safety team, however a few general indicators may be relevant to the majority of wholesale sites:
- use additional signage to ask customers not to enter the depot if they have symptoms
- regulate entry so that the premises do not become overcrowded
- use floor markings inside the commercial spaces to facilitate compliance with the social distancing advice of 2 metres, particularly in the most crowded areas, such as serving counters and payment terminals
- use vertical signage to direct customers into lanes if feasible to facilitate movement within the premises while maintaining 2 metre distance
- make regular announcements to remind customers to follow social distancing advice and clean their hands regularly
- place plexiglass barriers at payment areas and counters if feasible, as an additional element of protection for workers and customers
- encourage the use of contactless payments where possible, without disadvantaging older or vulnerable customers
- provide additional pop-up handwashing stations or facilities if possible, providing soap, water and hand sanitiser
- Consider separation by using crowd control barriers with directional signage at the recommended distance
The English government has since updated this guidance as from 11/05/2020 please see:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19/vehicles
