Approval of food businesses dealing with products of animal origin

Croydon Council is required to inspect and grant permission for premises to handle, process and manufacture products of animal origin such as meat, dairy, egg or fish.

Who needs to apply

We are required to inspect and grant permission for food premises to handle, process and manufacture products of animal origin such as meat, dairy, egg or fish. This is called the process of approval.

Food premises approved under these regulations must meet additional requirements above the general requirements for food premises as they involve more high risk operations.

Food businesses must not start any business activity which requires approval, unless they have received conditional or full approval for the proposed activity from the Food and Safety team. To start business without approval is an offence for which the business is likely to be prosecuted.

Eligibility criteria

You do not need to be approved if you are a manufacturer but also sell direct to the public or retailers like caterers, pubs and restaurants, as long as:

  • food is less than 25% of your trade
  • you do not sell food outside the M25 area (when registered in Croydon, restricted to the local area)
  • you handle other products not just meat, dairy, egg and fish products combined with your products

There are lots of exceptions so please check with the Food and Safety team.

Food and Safety team
Bernard Weatherill House
8 Mint Walk
Croydon, CR0 1EA.
Telephone: 020 8726 6000
Email: food.safety@croydon.gov.uk