Following a request by the European Commission ("EC"), the European Food Safety Authority ("EFSA") has developed a simplified approach to food safety management in small food retail businesses, such as grocery shops, butchers, and bakeries. The approach includes guidelines to help small food retail businesses identify the most relevant biological, chemical, and physical hazards at each stage of the food production process, the activities or practices that make hazards more likely to occur, and the appropriate control measures. The simplified approach means, for example, that small food retailers are not required to have detailed knowledge of specific hazards. However, small food retailers need to be aware of the biological, chemical, and physical hazards or allergens that may be present in the production process, and need to know that a failure to undertake key control activities—such as correct chilled storage or separation of raw from cooked products—could increase consumer exposure to hazards. The traditional approach of food business operators—ranking and prioritizing hazards as required by current European Union ("EU") hygiene legislation before decisions on control measures can be taken—would not apply to small food retailers per EFSA's simplified approach.
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