Course Facts

How Long?

The online component of the course takes approximately 18-24 hours to complete depending on your existing knowledge. Plus the projects, and the completion of the supervisor reports. Please read the assessment tab carefully for more information. No need to finish the course in one session! Log in and out as many times as you like, the system remembers which questions you answered correctly.

You have 6 weeks from the date of enrolment to complete your course. After that, your course will expire, and you will not be able to access it.

Please note there are no refunds if you do not complete your course within this timeframe; however, you can purchase a 14-day extension to extend access to the course which will provide additional time to complete the training. This option is available for 90 days from the original date of expiry. 

How Does it Work?

Click Start Now button, enter your details, and proceed to the payment page and pay. After payment, you have immediate access to your My Courses. Click on the name of the course to start. No need to wait for an email with log in details.

The course is broken down into small, manageable sections designed to improve your learning. At the end of each section is a multiple choice quiz. Please read the assessment tab for more information on how the assessment works.

What You Will Learn

In this course, you will learn:

• The obligations of food handlers under current legislation
• The correct ways of food handling and storage
• Potential hygiene risks
• Correct methods of cleaning and sanitising
• The standards of personal hygiene for food handlers
• The risk of food-borne illness (food poisoning)
• Implement and monitor the food safety program
• Identify food hazards
• Monitor food safety hazards
• Record results and monitoring information
• How to communicate food safety requirements and procedures to others in the workplace
• How to ensure that personnel in the food area are supported to meet food safety requirements.
• The recording requirements in relation to food safety according to regulatory standards
• Operational policies and procedures to ensure food safety

Completion requirements

A unique email address not previously used by another student.

A driver’s licence, passport, another form of photo-identity, such as an 18+ card or a student card that includes DOB and photo.

Unique student identifier (USI) – a federal government requirement. You can get a USI as part of your registration. Click here to visit the USI website.

Device – computer/laptop/tablet/smartphone with internet access and current internet browser.

A commercial kitchen with food ingredients and ready-to-eat food items.

A qualified Food Safety Supervisor to supervise your practical activity.

Supervisor Report

As part of your assessment, you are to demonstrate how to use hygiene practices for food safety within the workplace. Please read the assessment tab for full details. There are no refunds if you complete this course but then cannot get the Supervisor Report signed off. There is no Statement of Attainment without the Supervisor Report.

Assessment
You are assessed using the following methods:

• Multiple-choice questions;
• Written questions;
• Project-based assessment including:
  • Non-conformance action plan
  • Food safety meeting
• Three (3) Supervisor Reports

To be deemed competent in this subject, you are required to answer ALL questions in ALL sections correctly.

Multiple-Choice Questions

There are a number of sections in this course. At the end of each section is an assessment. You are required to study each section in sequence and answer every question correctly to move onto the next section.

How it works:

1. Read the question;
2. Select your answer/s from the selection of answers given;
3. Press “Submit”;
4. Move to the next question;
5. At the end of the questions, you will receive the result of your assessment. If you answer all questions correctly, you will progress to the next section. If you answer any questions incorrectly, you will have repeat all the questions for that section.  You will be given feedback on which question you answered incorrectly. You will then be returned to the beginning of the assessment for that section. When you complete all sections, you can move onto the written questions.

Written Short Answer Questions

For this part of the assessment, you are required to look at a series of photographs and identify the food hazard or incorrect procedure.

Written answers to food safety problems

There are 13 food safety problems to address including

• Reviewing the temperature log provided and identifying breach or non-conformance and the actions to take
• Identifying how to respond to the provided food safety issues, including the actions to take and the reporting or recording.

Project-Based Assessment Non-Conformance Action Plan

For this part of the assessment, you are required to review the results of an internal food safety audit and complete a non-conformance action plan To assist you, there is one example of a non-conformance already on the plan. You are required to identify two (2) further non-conformances from the audit, and describe how you will:

• investigate the breaches
• revise or develop policies/procedures to prevent further breaches
• communicate the changes, and whom you will communicate the changes to.

Manage a Food Safety Meeting

You are required to run a staff food safety meeting within your workplace and submit the minutes of the meeting. You may use the template provided or your own workplace minutes. If possible, this should be conducted as a real workplace food safety meeting that you have run and managed. Requirements for the meeting:

• Minimum three (3) people including yourself
• You must address a minimum of three (3) food safety topics. See below for suggested topics
• You must minute the meeting and submit the minutes.

Suggested topics to be covered in your meeting:

• Communicating changes to the food safety program (e.g. new documentation)
• Complaints or identified non-conformances and how they’re being investigated or addressed
• Updates on any ongoing or previous investigations
• Review of policies or procedures (e.g. the cleaning schedule)
• Schedule or run a brief training session on a specific food safety topic
• Communication of any changes to Food Safety legislation
• Communication of any changes to organisational menus, allergen management or suppliers

Supervisor Report

After completing the online assessment, you are required to complete and return 3 Supervisor Reports – one for each unit of competency covered in this course. The reports are part of the overall assessment. The reports are located in the final assessment of the course. No statement of attainment is issued until all 3 reports are returned.

What is this report for?

As part of the assessment for this unit, you are required to provide evidence from an employer or supervisor. This evidence is used to validate your skills and knowledge.

What do I have to do?

For each of the three (3) supervisor reports:

• Work a minimum of THREE (3) separate shifts, for a minimum of 3 hours per shift, shift dates after you start this online course. This means you must complete a total of NINE (9) shifts.
• Be observed by a supervisor qualified to complete this report (see below); and
• Complete all the tasks listed in the report.

The tasks require you to demonstrate that you can work following the organisation’s food safety procedures and legislation and includes: Tasks: 

HLTFSE001

• Implement procedures for food safety
• Store food safely
• Prepare food safely
• Provide safe single-use items
• Maintain a clean environment
• Dispose of food safely
• Access and interpret workplace hygiene procedures

HLTFSE005

• Use two (2) monitoring methods for implementing the food safety program
• Identify two (2) unsafe food items
• Implement corrective action and report to supervisor
• Identify two (2) potential or actual food safety hazards through applying and monitoring procedures
• Investigate processes and recommend corrective action

HLTFSE007

• Supervise workplace food safety program implementation to legal requirements
• Supervise at least two (2) kitchen staff over each of the three (3) shifts
• Identify and revise at least two (2) policies or procedures that may result in a food safety breach
• Communicate changes to kitchen and service staff
• Investigate at least two (2) breaches or complaints and implement corrective action and controls

After the completion of your supervisor report, you must also:

• Identify (two) 2 monitoring methods
• Identify (two) 2 unsafe food items and the actions taken
• Identify (two) 2 food safety records and describe their importance and the procedure to ensure the record is maintained.

Where can I work?

You must work in a real food production workplace. It can be a kitchen in an aged care facility, hospital, community food service or childcare centre. The workplace must have:

• A commercial food preparation area
• Large and small equipment
• Real workplace documentation that complies with the requirements of Safety Standard 3.2.2 Food Safety Practices and General Requirements as per Food Standards Australia New Zealand.

If you are not currently working within the industry, you may be able to volunteer at another workplace to complete your assessment tasks.

Who can sign this report?

The most appropriate person to complete this supervisor report is your workplace supervisor or someone with whom you currently work. If a supervisor is not available, any person with at least one of the following qualifications is suitable:

• A manager of a food business; OR ;
• A person with at least 2 years of commercial food preparation experience; OR
• A Food Safety Supervisor or Head Chef; OR
• A person with any of the following food safety qualifications:
• Participate in safe food handling practices (SITXFSA201 or SITXFSA002)
• Apply retail food safety practices (SIRRFSA001A)
• Or equivalent.

Verification of this report

The supervisor completing this report may be contacted by our assessment team to verify the authenticity of the report, and to confirm their food production experience. Please ensure that the supervisor’s correct contact details are provided. Failure to provide the supervisors correct contact details may result in a delay of your certificate being issued.

HLTFSE001 – Follow Basic Food Safety Practices

This unit describes the skills and knowledge required to comply with personal hygiene, maintain food safety, contribute to cleanliness of food handling areas and dispose of food. This unit applies to food services workers who work under supervision and within defined guidelines. The skills in this unit must be applied in accordance with Commonwealth and State/Territory legislation, Australian/New Zealand standards and industry codes of practice.

1. Comply with personal hygiene standards as required by the food safety program

1.1. Follow personal hygiene procedures
1.2. Report health conditions and/or illness and follow organisation procedures for continuing participation in food services
1.3. Follow organisation requirements for wearing bandages and dressings
1.4. Wear appropriate clothing, personal protective clothing and footwear and maintain cleanliness to avoid contamination
1.5. Follow hand washing procedures and use required facilities

2. Contribute to the cleanliness of food handling areas according to the food safety program

2.1. Maintain the workplace in a clean and tidy order to meet workplace requirements
2.2. Comply with workplace measures to prevent pests entering food premises
2.3. Identify and report indicators of pest presence

3. Follow food safety program

3.1. Handle and store food according to the food safety program
3.2. Store, use and dispose of single use items appropriately to avoid damage and contamination
3.3. Keep food for disposal separate and follow procedures for food disposal
3.4. Identify and report processes and practices which are not consistent with the food safety program

3.5. Take corrective action within level of responsibility
3.6. Report any corrective action to supervisor and according to legislative and organisation documentation requirements

HLTFSE005 – Apply and monitor food safety requirements

This unit of competency describes the skills and knowledge required to control and monitor food safety and respond to non-conformance as required by the food safety program. This unit applies to food services workers who implement the requirements of the food safety plan. Work is performed under supervision and within defined guidelines. The skills in this unit must be applied in accordance with Commonwealth and State/Territory legislation, Australian/New Zealand standards and industry codes of practice.

1. Implement and monitor the food safety program

1.1. Identify food safety hazards and respond to unsafe food and complaints
1.2. Monitor and control food safety hazards in accordance with food safety program requirements

1.3. Follow procedures to identify and separate product which is or may be non-conforming and/or implement other necessary corrective action
1.4. Promptly report non-conformance where food safety control requirements are not met
1.5. Record results of monitoring and maintain records in accordance with food safety program requirements

2. Assist in the identification of breaches of food safety procedures

2.1. Assist in identifying potential and actual unmet food safety requirements
2.2. Identify practices or processes in own work that could result in unsafe food
2.3. Participate in investigating and reporting on unsafe food as identified by internal monitoring and/or customer complaints

HLTFSE007 – Oversee the day-to-day implementation of food safety in the workplace

This unit describes the skills and knowledge required to supervise the day-to-day implementation of the food safety program across the entire business, process or food handling area. This unit applies to workers who oversee and support others to implement the requirements of the food safety plan. The skills in this unit must be applied in accordance with Commonwealth and State/Territory legislation, Australian/New Zealand standards and industry codes of practice.

1. Support colleagues to implement the food safety program

1.1. Communicate food safety requirements and procedures to others in the workplace
1.2. Support people in the food area to meet food safety requirements
1.3. Instruct food handlers on food safety program and legal requirements for completing food safety records

2. Control food safety in the workplace

2.1. Identify processes and procedures that have or could result in a food safety breach
2.2. Implement procedures and controls for responding to and preventing food safety breaches
2.3. Investigate actual and potential non-conformance and complaints from clients relating to food safety
2.4. Respond to non-conformance and follow procedures to identify, separate and/or recall non-conforming food
2.5. Develop or revise procedures to support food safety control and prevent further breaches
2.6. Communicate all additional and/or revised processes and procedures to food handlers