FionaJill.. just to add into this mix.

Legislation is changing/changed in reference to Food Safety Standards.

I'm a Food Safety Supervisor/Chef for a childcare centre, and whilst we are deemed a "vunerable population", the rules I must follow are ALOT more stringent than the canteen.

Having said that, the canteen MUST abide by 3.2.2 & 3.2.3 within the Australian New Zealand Food Standards Code.

Go to... Food Standards Australia New Zealand and you can download a copy of the code. I great thing for your friend who is the head honcho at canteen to have on hand to refer to often!

Also.. as per the NSW Food Authority

A food business is defined as any food preparation, food storage or food distribution activity which
handles food for sale. All food businesses must be ‘notified’ to the NSW Food Authority before they start operating and there are penalties for food businesses which are not properly notified. That means that the domestic kitchen as well as the school canteen must be notified to the Authority and both must comply with food safety standards generally.

Preparing food at home for sale in a canteen (or elsewhere) must also be approved by your local council. Some Councils may not approve home-based operations involving high risk foods. Remember, if the handling of food for sale in school canteens occurs in a domestic kitchen there are also special food safety issues to consider. These relate to kitchen design and construction, food handling and hygiene, product labelling and record keeping. The NSW Food Authority or your local
Council will be able to help you with this.

So.. nothing can come in from home prepared.. FULL STOP. this is legislation. No jelly cups, nothing.

With the frozen bread coming in, that is fine..

BUT

Under Standard 3.2.2 Food Safety Practices and General Requirements, food businesses are expected to take all practicable measures to ensure that they do not receive unsafe or unsuitable food. This means that they must make sure that the food they receive:

1. is protected from contamination;
2. can be identified while it is on the premises; and
3. is at the correct temperature when it arrives, if it is potentially hazardous.

Given you have no idea on the state that the lady who is freezing her bread keeps her kitchen in.. not a good idea. It all comes down the the particular council officer that inspects, and yours and their interpretation of the act/code. But, reciecing it like that is not a good idea.

If I was your friend.. as the head honcho.. i would approach Bakers Delight and ask them to supply you directly. That way you know the date of collection, and you can not that on the bags. You can ask Bakers Delight what Food Safety Programs they have in place.. or.. if they are HACCP approved? HACCP is a pretty high level of food safety to achieve. If they are HACCP approved, all you need to worry about is transportation from the shop to your storage facilities.

Also.. if they are this lax.. i would strongly suggest your friend does a food handlers audit and ensure that EVERY volunteer is up to date with the procedures that MUST be in place as a food handler. Most councils offer a 2hr free course to help her with that..

It seems over kill.. but... it is all in place to reduce potential cross contamination and illness.

If you have any questions regarding food safety, feel free to PM me..