Opening and closing food safety checks: a daily routine for the person in charge
Turn your duties as person in charge into two short walks a day, with a one-page record and a plan for when a check fails.
Basic Food Safety Training
Helpful informtion dedicated to Basic Food Safety training for food handlers, persons in charge of food-handling premises, managers and supervisors.
Jewellery, nails, phones and plasters: the personal hygiene rules food handlers break most
The personal hygiene rules food handlers break most often, the reason behind each one, and how to enforce them fairly, including religious and medical exceptions.
No water at your food premises: when to close, how to keep trading safely and how to restart
When the taps run dry, the person in charge must decide whether to trade, cut the menu or close. Here is how to decide, cope and restart safely.
Who is the person in charge on the night shift? Covering R638 duties when the owner is away
R638 duties do not go home with the owner. How to name, train and give authority to a person in charge for every shift, and what the EHP asks when nobody is.
How to pack a commercial fridge: shelf order, covering and labelling to stop cross-contamination
Which food goes on which shelf, how to cover and label it, and a two minute daily fridge check that stops cross-contamination in any kitchen.
A customer says your food made them sick: the first 24 hours for the person in charge
A step by step response for the person in charge when a customer reports food poisoning: what to record, what to keep, when to call the EHP and what to say.
When and how food handlers must wash their hands: the moments, the method and the basin
The moments that need a handwash, the full method step by step, and what a compliant hand wash basin needs under R638. Plus how supervisors make it a habit.
New owner, new address or a renovation: when your Certificate of Acceptability must change
A Certificate of Acceptability is tied to specific premises and a specific person in charge. Here is what to do when the owner, address, layout, menu or manager changes.
Food handler with diarrhoea or vomiting: R638 exclusion, reporting and return to work
What the person in charge must do when a food handler reports stomach symptoms or an infected wound, from sending them home to clearing their return and keeping a lawful record.
How to train new kitchen staff on day one: a food safety induction plan
A new starter should not touch food before a short, structured induction. Here is a timed first day plan with a sign off that counts as a training record.
The EHP found problems at your food premises: what the person in charge must do next
An EHP has written findings against your food premises. Here is how the person in charge sorts them, writes a corrective action plan the EHP can sign off and prepares for the follow up visit.
Complete Food Safety Training in South Africa: ASC’s 4-Tier Curriculum from Food Handler to FSSC 22000, BRCGS, GLOBALG.A.P. and Specialised Compliance
FOOD SAFETY TRAINING CURRICULUM · 2026 PATHWAY GUIDE Most food safety training providers cover one or two rungs of the certification ladder. ASC covers fourteen courses across four tiers: from a R249 entry-level food handler course for the dishwasher in a township kitchen all the way up to FSSC 22000 …
How to Pass Your Spaza Shop COA Inspection First Time: The Complete EHP Inspection Survival Guide (2026)
By: Mthokozisi Nkosi · SAATCA Registered R638:2018 Lead ImplementerUpdated: 3 May 2026Reading time: 18 minutes Your Environmental Health Practitioner (EHP) inspection is the moment of truth for your spaza shop. Get it right and you walk away with a Certificate of Acceptability (COA), a legal trading licence, and confidence to …
How to Start a Restaurant in South Africa: The Complete 2026 Compliance, Cost & Profitability Guide
RESTAURANT STARTUP · COMPLIANCE GUIDE · 2026 South Africa’s restaurant industry is one of the most exciting hospitality markets on the African continent, Sandton fine dining, Cape Town bistros, Durban curry houses, Stellenbosch wine-estate restaurants, V&A Waterfront seafood, and a fast-growing dark-kitchen sector. This guide explains exactly how to start …
HPCSA Accredited Food Safety Training for Spaza Shops, Vendors, and Informal Traders (FS28)
HPCSA accredited Food Safety training for Spaza shops, vendors, and informal traders. This basic-level course introduces the fundamentals of Food Safety and Good Manufacturing Practices to the learner.
Basic Food Hygiene Awareness for Food Handlers Course (FS04)
This 4-hour basic-level course provides a brief overview of the Food Safety practices and hygiene requirements for food handling premises.
HPCSA Accredited Basic Food Safety Training for Food Handlers (FS02)
HPCSA accredited Food Safety training for Food Handlers. This basic-level course introduces the fundamentals of Food Safety and Good Manufacturing Practices to the learner.
SETA Accredited Basic Food Safety Practices for Food Handlers Course (FS30)
FoodBev SETA accredited Food Safety training for food handlers as per Regulation R638. This course introduces the fundamentals of Food Safety practices, GMP and personal safety and wellbeing.
SETA Accredited Food Safety Training for Persons in Charge of Food Premises (FS31)
FoodBev SETA accredited Food Safety training for the person in charge of food premises as per Regulations R638. This course introduces the fundamentals of Food Safety practices, GMP and personal safety and wellbeing in South Africa.
HPCSA Accredited Food Safety Training for Persons in Charge of Food Premises (FS01)
HPCSA accredited Food Safety for the person in charge of food premises course as per Regulation R638. This course introduces the fundamentals of Food Safety practices, GMP and HACCP principles in South Africa.