Dispose of Food Safely
Why disposal is a food safety control
Disposing of food is not just waste management; it is a contamination and pest control activity. Candidates must understand condemned or recalled food, segregation, labelling of waste, pest attraction, and the difference between food that is unsafe and food that is simply unsellable. Food that is unsafe must be made unusable, kept separate from food for sale or donation, and recorded.
How to dispose
Place waste in bins that are lined, lidded, pest-proof and emptied regularly. Keep bins away from food preparation and storage areas. Wash hands after handling waste. Never donate or sell food that has been temperature abused, contaminated or recalled. For recalled stock, follow the recall procedure: isolate, label clearly, record quantities, and dispose of as directed. Do not put unsafe food back into general stock, and do not feed it to animals unless permitted.
Traps that appear in questions
- Believing food that looks and smells fine can be sold after a temperature breach. It cannot.
- Returning unsafe food to the cool room for later disposal, where it can cross-contaminate other stock.
- Putting unsafe food in an unlabelled bin or leaving it accessible to staff or pests.
- Assuming donation is always acceptable. Unsafe food must not be donated.
- Forgetting to record disposal. Records support the food safety program and any recall.
- Handling waste then preparing food without washing hands.
Worked example / rule of thumb
A fridge fails overnight and 12 kg of ready-to-eat meat is above 5°C with no time record. Rule of thumb: if you cannot prove it was safe, it is not safe. Isolate and label the meat, record the quantity and reason, discard it so it cannot re-enter the food supply, clean and sanitise the fridge, and report the fault.