Food Act 2014

Consequential provisions

Schedule 5: Public registers

You could also call this:

"Lists of food businesses and what they do, available for you to look at"

The Food Act 2014 has a schedule about public registers. You can think of a public register like a big book that lists information about food businesses. The chief executive must keep and maintain these registers.

The public registers have information about food control plans, food businesses, importers, and review decisions. You can look at these registers for free at the Ministry's head office. The chief executive must also give you a copy of any entry on the register if you ask for it and pay a reasonable charge.

The public registers are kept so you can know who is running a food business and what they are doing. They also help the Ministry make sure food is safe. The chief executive can update the registers if information changes or if there is a mistake. In some cases, the chief executive can leave out personal information, like a person's home address, if it would invade their privacy.

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This page was last updated on 5 June 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM2996847.

Topics:

Health and wellbeing > Food and water safetyBusiness > Industry rules

Schedule 4: Miscellaneous provisions relating to registrations, or

"Rules for renewing, suspending, or cancelling food business registrations"

Schedule 6: Material incorporated by reference, or

"Important rules and information from other documents that are part of the Food Act 2014"

5Public registers Empowered by ss 3(11), 8(1), 59, 88, 166, 443

1Preliminary

1Overview

Part 2 of this schedule contains provisions relating to the public registers of food control plans.
Part 3 of this schedule contains provisions relating to the public register of food businesses subject to a national programme.
Part 4 of this schedule contains provisions relating to the public register of recognised agencies, recognised persons, and recognised classes.
Part 5 of this schedule contains provisions relating to the public register of importers.
Part 6 of this schedule contains provisions relating to the public register of review decisions.
Part 7 of this schedule contains provisions common to all of those public registers.

2Public registers of food control plans

2Requirement for, and purpose of, public registers of food control plans

The chief executive must keep and maintain, or arrange to be kept and maintained, 1 or more public registers of food control plans that record all food control plans registered under subpart 2 of Part 2 of this Act.
The purpose of the public registers is—
to enable members of the public to know—
1. what business operations are subject to food control plans; and
2. who the operators of those plans are and the position or designation of the persons who are responsible for the day-to-day management of those plans; and
to facilitate the ability of the chief executive and territorial authorities to achieve the safety and suitability of food; and
to facilitate the compliance, audit, and other supporting and administrative functions of the Ministry and territorial authorities under this Act.

3Inspection of public register of food control plans

The chief executive must—
make the public register of food control plans available for public inspection, free of charge, at reasonable hours at the head office of the Ministry; and
supply to any person, on request and on payment of a reasonable charge (if there is one), a copy of any entry on the public register.

4Contents of public registers of food control plans

A public register of food control plans must contain all of the following information in relation to each registered food control plan:
the name, trading name, and business address (including the electronic address, if available) of—
1. the food business or businesses covered by the plan; and
2. if the plan applies to only 1 food business, the operator of the food business; and
3. if the plan applies to more than 1 food business, the operator of the plan and the operator of each food business covered by the plan; and
the operators' physical and electronic addresses for the purposes of section 378(3)(a); and
the position or designation of the person who is responsible for the day-to-day management of the plan, as nominated by the person in control of the food business or businesses:
the date on which the plan was first registered, the date on which registration expires, and the registration number or other unique identifier allocated to the plan:
the scope of the operations to which the plan applies:
the physical address or, if appropriate, the location of the food business or its nominated home base:
the name of the registration authority:
any other particulars that may be prescribed in regulations:
the name of the verifier or verification agency that will carry out verification functions in respect of the plan.

3Public register of food businesses subject to national programme

5Requirement for, and purpose of, public register of food businesses subject to national programme

The chief executive must keep and maintain a public register of food businesses subject to a national programme that are registered under subpart 3 of Part 2 of this Act.
The purpose of the public register is—
to enable members of the public to know—
1. what business operations are subject to a national programme; and
2. who the operators of those food businesses are and the position or designation of the persons who are responsible for the day-to-day management of those businesses; and
to facilitate the ability of the chief executive and territorial authorities to achieve the safety and suitability of food; and
to facilitate the compliance, audit, and other supporting and administrative functions of the Ministry under this Act.

6Inspection of public register of food businesses subject to national programme

The chief executive must—
make the public register of food businesses that are subject to a national programme available for public inspection, free of charge, at reasonable hours at the head office of the Ministry; and
supply to any person, on request and on payment of a reasonable charge (if there is one), a copy of any entry on the public register.

7Contents of public register of food businesses subject to national programme

The public register of food businesses that are subject to a national programme must contain all of the following information in relation to each food business:
the full name and business address (including the electronic address, if available) of—
1. the owner of the food business; or
2. the person in control of the food business:
the trading name of the food business:
the position or designation of the person who is responsible for the day-to-day management of the food business, as nominated by the person in control of the food business:
the date on which the food business was first registered, and the registration number or other unique identifier allocated to it:
the scope of the operations of the food business:
the physical address or, if appropriate, the location of the food business or its nominated home base:
the name of the registration authority:
the name of the verifier or verification agency (if any):
the duration of registration specified in regulations made under section 76(1)(e) (if any):
any other particulars that may be prescribed in regulations.

4Public register of recognised agencies, recognised persons, and recognised classes

8Requirement for, and purpose of, public register of recognised agencies, recognised persons, and recognised classes

The chief executive must keep and maintain a public register of the following that are recognised under subpart 1 of Part 4 of this Act:
recognised agencies:
recognised persons:
recognised classes.

The purpose of the public register is—
to enable members of the public, and particularly the operators of food control plans, to know who is recognised to carry out particular functions and activities for the purposes of this Act; and
to facilitate the ability of the chief executive and territorial authorities to achieve the safety and suitability of food; and
to facilitate the compliance, audit, and other supporting and administrative functions of the Ministry under this Act.

9Inspection of public register of recognised agencies, recognised persons, and recognised classes

The chief executive must—
make the public register of recognised agencies, recognised persons, and recognised classes available for public inspection, free of charge, at reasonable hours at the head office of the Ministry; and
supply to any person, on request and on payment of a reasonable charge (if there is one), a copy of any entry on the public register.

10Contents of public register of recognised agencies, recognised persons, and recognised classes

The public register of recognised agencies, recognised persons, and recognised classes must contain all of the following information:
for each recognised agency and recognised person,—
1. the full name and the business or other contact address (including the electronic address, if available) of the agency or person; and
2. any suspension of the agency's or person's recognition:
for each recognised class,—
1. a definition of the class that allows the class to be accurately and readily identified; and
2. 1 or more of the following:
  1. a list of the members of the class:
  2. a statement specifying where a copy of a list of the members of the class may be obtained:
  3. a statement specifying where information about the membership of the class may be obtained; and
3. a list of any members, or a description of any categories of members, within the class that are excluded from the recognised class in accordance with section 141(5) ; and
4. any suspension of the class's recognition; and
5. a list of any members of the class whose recognition has been suspended, withdrawn, or surrendered and the date on which the suspension, withdrawal, or surrender takes effect:
the specified functions and activities of each recognised agency, recognised person, and recognised class:
the date on which each agency, person, and class was recognised and the duration of that recognition:
any other particulars that may be prescribed in regulations.

A suspension of recognition that is recorded on the public register must specify—
the date and time the suspension starts; and
the period of the suspension; and
the specified functions and activities that the suspension relates to.

If a person is recognised as both a recognised agency and a recognised person, the information referred to in subclause (1)(a)(i) and (c) to (e) must either—
be recorded twice, once in the recognised person part of the register, and again in the recognised agency part of the register; or
be recorded in one of those areas of the register and cross-referenced in the other area of the register.

5Public register of importers

11Requirement for, and purpose of, public register of importers

The chief executive must keep and maintain a public register of importers who are registered under Part 3 of this Act.
The purpose of the public register is—
to enable members of the public to know who is registered to import food for the purpose of sale; and
to facilitate the compliance, audit, and other supporting and administrative functions of the Ministry under this Act.

12Inspection of public register of importers

The chief executive must—
make the public register of importers available for public inspection, free of charge, at reasonable hours at the head office of the Ministry; and
supply to any person, on request and on payment of a reasonable charge (if there is one), a copy of any entry on the public register.

13Contents of public register of importers

The public register of importers must contain all of the following information in relation to each importer:
the full name, trading name, and business address (including the electronic address, if available) of the importer:
the date of registration of the importer and the date of its expiry:
if applicable, the date on which the suspension, cancellation, or surrender of the importer’s registration took effect and, for a suspension, the period of its duration:
any other particulars that may be prescribed in regulations.

6Public register of review decisions

14Requirement for, and purpose of, public register of review decisions

The chief executive must keep and maintain a public register of decisions on reviews of decisions described in section 354(2) or (4).
The purpose of the public register is to enable members of the public to know the outcome of reviews of decisions described in those sections.

15Inspection of public register of review decisions

The chief executive must—
make the public register of review decisions available for public inspection, free of charge, at reasonable hours at the head office of the Ministry; and
supply to any person, on request and on payment of a reasonable charge (if there is one), a copy of any entry on the public register.

16Contents of public register of review decisions

The public register of review decisions—
may contain any details about a review decision that the chief executive considers appropriate:
must not specify the outcome of a review until—
1. the period specified in section 362(2) for bringing an appeal has expired; or
2. if an appeal under section 362, 364, or 365 is pending, the appeal has been determined.

7Supplementary provisions common to all public registers

17Form of, and access to, public registers

A public register required to be kept under clause 2, 5, 8, 11, or 14 may be kept in any manner the chief executive thinks fit, including, either wholly or partially, by means of a device or facility—
that records or stores information electronically or by other means; and
that permits the information so recorded to be readily inspected or reproduced in usable form; and
that permits the information to be accessed by electronic means, including by means of remote log-on access.

A public register must be operative at all times unless the chief executive suspends the operation of the register, in whole or in part, in accordance with subclause (3).
The chief executive may refuse access to a public register or otherwise suspend the operation of a public register, in whole or in part, if the chief executive considers that it is necessary to do so due to an event or cause beyond the reasonable control of the chief executive.

18Alterations to public registers

The chief executive may, at any time, make any amendments to a public register required to be kept under clause 2, 5, 8, 11, or 14 if they are necessary to—
reflect any changes in the information referred to in clause 4, 7, 10, 13, or 16; or
correct a mistake caused by any error or omission on the part of the chief executive.

19Certain personal information may be excluded from public registers

Despite clause 4, 7, 10, 13, or 16, the chief executive may omit or remove information about the business address of a person from a public register if—
the person requests the chief executive to do so on the basis that the address relates to a dwellinghouse; and
the chief executive considers that the disclosure of the information on the public register would constitute an unreasonable interference with the privacy of any individual.