Cleaning and sanitising

If you operate a food business in the Northern Territory, you must ensure premises are kept clean and sanitised so food does not get contaminated.

You should keep the premises clean by ensuring no:

• accumulation of garbage, recycled matter, food waste,, grease or other visible matter
• visible dirt, dust or food particles
• unpleasant smells.

You should also ensure surfaces are sanitised with heat or chemicals to reduce bacteria to a safe level after cleaning.

Guidelines

Cleaning and sanitising should be done as separate processes by following these steps.

Step 1. Pre clean - remove dirt and food by sweeping, scraping, wiping or rinsing with water.

Step 2. Wash with warm water and detergent. Soak if necessary.

Step 3. Rinse off detergent and any remaining food or dirt.

Step 4. Sanitise to eliminate/reduce micro-organisms to safe levels.

Step 5. Rinse off sanitiser (if necessary).

Step 6. Air dry or use a single use towel or clean tea towel.

Procedures

Food businesses should have a cleaning procedure which should provide:

• written instructions that describe everything that needs to be done to keep the business clean
• a list of all the tasks of cleaning and sanitising
• details of how often each job should be done, how it should be done, and who should do it.

An example of a cleaning schedule is shown below.

If you would like blank copies of this schedule, contact your local Environmental Health office.

More information

For more information, contact Environmental Health. Get their contact details on the NT Health website.