UK food safety records
Can food safety records be kept digitally in the UK?
Yes. UK food businesses can use digital systems to manage food-safety records. What matters is having suitable food-safety procedures, maintaining the records and evidence your system relies on, and being able to retrieve them when needed.
Digital versus paper records
Paper is familiar, but it is not the only way to organise food-safety evidence. Digital records can make checks easier to retrieve, reduce lost paperwork and give managers better visibility of missed checks and corrective actions.
The system still needs to reflect what actually happens in the kitchen. Moving a checklist onto a screen does not replace good procedures, staff instruction, supervision or management review.
What should a digital system record?
- Temperature checks
- Opening and closing checks
- Cleaning records
- Delivery checks
- Heating, cooling and reheating
- Allergen information
- Corrective actions
- SFBB/HACCP evidence
What should you be able to show an inspector?
Your records should help demonstrate that food-safety procedures are understood and followed in practice. Useful evidence includes completed checks, dates and times where relevant, who completed work, problems identified and the corrective action taken.
Requirements vary according to the business and risks involved, so current Food Standards Agency guidance and advice from your local authority should take priority where there is uncertainty.
Using TKEG for digital food-safety records
TKEG brings routine kitchen compliance records into one system, including temperatures, cleaning, deliveries, allergens, SFBB support, COSHH, corrective actions and management reporting.
Frequently asked questions
Can UK restaurants keep food safety records digitally?
Yes. Food businesses can use digital systems for food-safety records. The important point is that the business has appropriate food-safety procedures and can maintain and retrieve the evidence it relies on.
Do food safety records have to be on paper?
There is no general requirement that routine food-safety records must be paper-only. Businesses should use a system that is appropriate to their operation and supports their food-safety management procedures.
Can digital records support an inspection?
Yes. A well-maintained digital record can help a business show its procedures, completed checks, corrective actions and historical evidence when requested.
Primary sources: Food Standards Agency — SFBB and Food Standards Agency — HACCP.
TKEG is independent of the Food Standards Agency and local authorities. This page is practical guidance, not legal advice.