What do you need to know?
• Water can carry harmful bugs and chemicals which can make people sick. You must only use clean, uncontaminated water for food preparation.
• Water can be contaminated when being stored on-site and being distributed around food premises.
• You must have enough clean water available to clean your food preparation areas, equipment and utensils.
• You must have clean water available for staff to wash their hands.
• There is information on the MPI website about accredited labs.
• Your water supply may be subject to other legislation
What do you need to do?
• Always use water which is safe for food preparation, cleaning and washing hands. If your water supply becomes unsafe you must:
◦◦ not use it, or
◦◦ boil it for at least 1 minute before use, or
◦◦ disinfect it with chlorine before use, or
◦◦ use another supply of water which you know is safe (e.g. bottled water).
• Always throw out any food which has become contaminated by unclean water.
• Select where you get your water from:
roof water supply
surface or insecure ground water supply
secure ground water supply (a supply that meets
the definition of ‘secure’ is in the Drinking Water Standards for New Zealand)*
a supply which is currently subject to a Public Health Risk Management Programme*
*You don’t need to do anything more if you choose to use one of these programmes.
• If you choose to supply your own clean water, you must test it at least annually to make sure it is safe to use.
You must test your water:
◦◦ before starting a new business, or
◦◦ if you don’t have any records of self-supplied water testing.
• Your water must meet all of the limits in the table below:
Measurement | Criteria |
Escherichia coli | Less than 1 in any 100 ml sample* *Escherichia coli testing must be performed by an accredited lab |
Turbidity | Must not exceed 5 Nephelometric Turbidity Units |
Chlorine (when chlorinated) | Not less than 0.2mg/l (ppm) free available chlorine with a minimum of 20 minute contact time |
pH (when chlorinated) | 6.5 – 8.0
|
You must retest water no later than 1 week after:
◦◦ getting water from a new self-supplied source, or
◦◦ knowing of a change to the environment or activities that may affect the safety and suitability of water.
• You must use a water treatment system to make sure water for food processing, hand washing and cleaning, is clean at the point of use.
Tick which one you use:
Filtration
Chlorination
UV disinfection
Other __________________________
• You must clearly mark outlet taps, tanks, and pipes that do not contain clean water. These must not be used for food processing, hand washing and cleaning.
For surface and (insecure) groundwater intakes must be:
◦◦ at least 10m away from livestock,
◦◦ at least 50m away from potential sources of
contamination including silage stacks, offal pits, human and animal waste, potential chemical stores and tanks (e.g. fuel tank).
• You must know and list all nearby activities and naturally occurring chemicals that may contaminate your water supply.
What do you need to show?
• Show your verifier a record of:
◦◦ your initial or annual water test results,
◦◦ a list of all nearby activities which might affect the safety of your water.
• Show your verifier how you know your water treatment system is working properly.
