Food hygiene rating scheme

Introduction

The Food Hygiene Rating Scheme is operated by our food safety and port health officers in partnership with the Food Standard Agency.

The Scheme is designed to help consumers make an informed choice by providing information regarding the hygiene standards in restaurants, cafes, takeaways, hotels, supermarkets and other food shops. 

As part of the Scheme, food businesses are provided with a sticker with a food hygiene rating between zero and five for them to display.

• Check food hygiene ratings for businesses in Belfast (link opens in new window)

How does it work?

Food premises are inspected by our food safety officers and during the inspection we check that the hygiene standards meet legal requirements and cover areas such as: 

• how hygienically food is handled - how it’s prepared, cooked, re-heated, cooled and stored
• the condition of the structure of the buildings - cleanliness, layout, lighting, ventilation and other facilities 
• how the business manages and records what it does to make sure food is safe - including having a completed safe catering pack or equivalent, the previous history of compliance and staff training. 

The hygiene standards found at the time of inspection are then rated on a scale of zero to five:

• 5 - Very Good
• 4 - Good
• 3 - Generally satisfactory 
• 2 – Improvement necessary 
• 1 – Major improvement necessary 
• 0 – Urgent improvement necessary

Following the inspection, the food business will receive a food hygiene rating sticker, which can be displayed at each entrance to the premises. 

More information

• For more information about the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme, visit the Food Standards Agency at www.food.gov.uk (link opens in new window). You can also call our Food Safety team on 028 9027 0468.
• Find information for businesses (link opens in new window)