Dairy Processor

If you process dairy products in Queensland with the intent to sell or supply for human or animal consumption, then you require an accreditation with Safe Food Production Queensland (Safe Food). ‘Processing’ includes activities such as:

• pasteurising and bottling milk or flavoured milk
• producing cream, butter, cheese, yoghurt, ice-cream, whey or dairy powders (e.g. skim milk powder, whey powder and milk protein powder)

These activities are classified as Processing under the Dairy Scheme of the Food Production (Safety) Regulation 2014.

Note: If you hold an export registration with the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, you must still be accredited with Safe Food for processing of dairy in order to comply with Queensland law.

Other licenses you may need

If you have a café, restaurant or retail outlet attached to your site, please seek advice from your local council on whether these activities require a license.

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If you intend to process dairy products, you must do so in an approved facility that meets the requirements of:

• Food Standards Code (Primary Production and Processing Standard for Dairy Products) Standard 4.2.4
  AND
• Food Standards Code (Food Premises and Equipment) Standard 3.2.3

If your food premise complies with these requirements and you wish to proceed with an application for accreditation, please see below for what you need to submit.

Submit your completed application to [email protected] or PO Box 221, Greenslopes, Brisbane, QLD 4120.

Under the Food Production (Safety) Act 2000, it is unlawful to engage in certain activities relating to primary production or processing of food until you have been granted an accreditation by Safe Food. As such, you should allow adequate time for your application to be reviewed by Safe Food before you begin operating.

Your application will aim to be assessed within 14 days, although applications submitted in their entirety (with all the items outlined above) are likely to be processed faster.

Upon submission of your application, a member of our Central Assessment Team will contact you for payment (if paying by credit card). Once payment has been received, your application will be assessed, and we will contact you if we require any further information.

You will be notified in writing about the outcome of your application (approved or refused).

Temporary Accreditations

As a dairy processor, you will be undertaking activities deemed to be high risk under the Food Production (Safety) Regulation 2014. As such, if your application is approved, you will be issued a temporary accreditation to start with.

A temporary accreditation is issued for a period of up to two months, prior to being considered for an open accreditation. Under a temporary accreditation, must have your food production system approved by Safe Food before you can begin supplying dairy products.

If issued a temporary accreditation, you will be required to submit additional technical information to demonstrate that your nominated food safety controls are effective in maintaining compliance with the requirements of the Dairy Scheme. This required information is in addition to the application process and will incur additional costs. You will be notified in writing if you are issued a temporary accreditation and what you need to supply.

For more information about temporary accreditation requirements, please contact us.

Fees are based on the activities you are carrying out and are outlined in the Application form.

New applications will incur a one-time application fee that is non-refundable.

Our accreditation period runs from 1^st January – 31^st December*. You will therefore need to renew your accreditation on an annual basis.

For more information, please refer to our fees & charges.

*Our fees are not pro-rata.

Food Production (Safety) Regulation 2014
Food Production (Safety) Act 2000
Food Standards Code (Primary Production and Processing Standard for Dairy Products) Standard 4.2.4
Food Standards Code, Standard 3.2.3 (Food Premises and Equipment)
Safe Food Notifications Protocol
FSANZ Compendium of Micro Criteria in Food
FSANZ Schedule 27 Microbiological Limits in Food
ADASC Minimum Sampling Guidelines or Dairy Products

FSANZ
Food Safety Standards (Chapter 3 of the Food Standards Code)
Food Regulation Secretariat
Federal Register of Legislation
NATA Laboratories
ANZDAC – Australian Manual for the Validation and Verification of Heat Treatment Equipment and Processes
Dairy Australia online training courses for Dairy Manufacturers