For any food business, safety is non-negotiable. However, even with the best intentions, unforeseen incidents can occur. This is where the concept of \"Due Diligence\" becomes the most critical pillar of your food safety management system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At its core, due diligence is the legal principle of taking all reasonable precautions and exercising all due care<\/strong> to avoid committing an offence. It is about demonstrating that you have proactively identified risks and taken every necessary step to prevent them from happening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the context of a food business, due diligence means you can prove you have done everything humanly possible to ensure the food you produce, serve and sell is safe for consumption. It is about moving from \"hoping nothing goes wrong\" to \"having a documented, verifiable system that prevents things from going wrong.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the UK, the Food Safety Act 1990<\/strong> is the primary legislation that codifies the due diligence defence. Section 21 of the Act states that it is a defence for a person to prove that they took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of an offence. This is supported by the Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013<\/strong> and equivalent legislation in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, which mandate the implementation of a food management system run on HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point) principles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Proving due diligence relies entirely on documentation and evidence<\/strong>. To build a robust defence, your business must demonstrate:<\/p>\n\n\n\n A due diligence defence is a legal argument that is used in court if a food business is prosecuted for a food safety breach. If a business can provide sufficient evidence that they followed their own documented procedures, trained their staff, and maintained all safety logs, a judge may find that they acted with due diligence despite the incident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Essentially, it is your business\u2019s \"safety net.\" By embedding due diligence into your daily culture rather than just viewing it as paperwork, you don't just protect yourself legally; you also protect your customers and the reputation of your brand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How strong are your defences?<\/strong> If you need help building or reviewing your due diligence documentation, The Safer Food Group is here to help. We specialise in training that makes compliance clear and achievable, including Food Safety and Hygiene<\/a>, HACCP<\/a> and How to achieve a 5 rating.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" For any food business, safety is non-negotiable. However, even with the best intentions, unforeseen incidents […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1720,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1987","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food-safety"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhat does due diligence mean in food safety?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What food safety laws refer to due diligence?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
How does a food business prove due diligence?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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What is a due diligence defence?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n