Delivering chilled food from a van

Plenty of small food businesses start out delivering from the family car, with cool bags in the boot. As the round grows, some move to a van with a fridge unit. Either way, the food has to reach the customer cold and safe to eat.

Keeping food cold on the way

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) says anyone delivering food orders must deliver them in a way that keeps the food safe and fit to eat. Food that needs refrigerating must be kept cool while it is being transported. The FSA says the food may need to be packed in an insulated box with a coolant gel, or in a cool bag.

A business using a domestic car, or a vehicle from outside the food trade, has particular hygiene requirements and vehicle specifications to meet, according to the FSA.

In the van

GOV.UK's food hygiene guide says businesses should keep chilled and frozen food at the right temperature during transport and storage. The food should travel in packaging or containers that protect it from contamination and are marked as "for food contact".

Registering the business

A new food business must register with its local council at least 28 days before it starts trading. That includes businesses trading from home, from a stall or van, or only online.

The FSA asks a business that starts a new delivery service to tell its local authority about the change.

When a van is fitted out

Owners must update a vehicle's log book (V5C) when they change certain details, and the body type is one of them. DVLA's example is converting a van to a campervan. DVLA gives the body type description from the vehicle's outside appearance, and it will say if it needs to inspect the change.

An owner whose fridge conversion changes how the van looks from outside may need to update the V5C.

Records on the round

Every food business needs a food safety management system. It is a written set of processes, checks, rules and records, and it usually includes temperature checks. The system must follow the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles.

GOV.UK says a business involved in a food safety incident will need to show its records as evidence of how it keeps food safe.

Safer food, better business

In England and Wales, the FSA's Safer food, better business (SFBB) packs help small businesses keep these records. There are packs for caterers and for retailers, with sections on chilling and a diary for daily records.

The diary can be kept on paper or on a device. The business keeps the completed pages until the next visit from a food safety officer, who may want to see them.

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