If you are running a business selling food either directly or indirectly to the consumer, you must be registered. If a food business has changed ownership, the business must be registered as a new food business.
If you sell food to raise funds for charity (or similar purposes) and do this 20 times or less per calendar year, then your food stall is exempt from registration, but the food must still be safe to eat.
We register and verify food premises, investigates complaints and provide information on making, giving away and selling food.
If any building works are to be carried out, you may need to obtain both resource and building consents before you commence any work.
You will require an alcohol licence if you intend to sell or supply alcohol as part of your business.
An FCP is a written document that sets out what steps a business needs to take to keep food safe. Many businesses can use a template FCP, developed by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) and available from council. Others will need to develop their own FCP and register with MPI not with Council.
If you're not sure if your business will operate under a food control plan, MPI has developed a tool – Where Do I Fit? – to help you work it out.
The types of businesses that will use a template FCP include:
You will need to register your plan each year and have a regular check (verification) to make sure your plan is being followed.
Working with a national programme is the way that lower-risk food businesses operate under the Food Act 2014.
All national programmes require record keeping to show that you are selling safe food and must be registered with council every two years.
There are 3 levels of national programmes, which are based on the food safety risk of the activities a business does:
Information about each level of risk in the national programmes can be found on the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) website.
If you're not sure if your business will operate under a national programme, MPI has a tool—Where Do I Fit?—to help you work it out.
You can apply to register your food business or surrender/suspend operations of a food business in our MyPorirua online portal.
You can find the online forms on the links below:
Please note - you will need a verified user account in order to use the online portal. The verification process can take up to 2-3 working days to complete and you will be notified once your account has been activated. In the meantime - any applications you have started will be saved as Drafts under your login details. Phone our Customer Services Centre on (04) 237 5089 or email [email protected].
If you wish to download a paper copy of the application forms you can do so here:
If you are operating a food stall - whether giving away food as a promotion or selling it - your food should be "safe and suitable" for people to eat. You don't have to register under the Food Act 2014 or pay a fee if you're selling food:
Food safety tips for selling food for fundraising can be found on the Ministry for Primary Industries website.
If you operate a food shop, takeaway, restaurant or cafe bar and want to place furniture on a public place adjacent to your premises for customer or al fresco dining, you must first obtain the Outdoor Dining Permit. Click here to find out more information.
Tīmata i tētahi taraka hoko kai
This is a guide to the registration you will need if you want to start trading as a mobile food operator (e.g. food truck or coffee cart) in Porirua. Mobile food operators can apply for a food control plan or national progamme registration with Porirua City Council provided that the base address (i.e. the food preparation and storage address) is in Porirua. If the base address is outside of Porirua, you will have to register with the appropriate council for that address.
Please think about where you plan to trade before you reach out to us. A current registration certificate must be provided before approval for trading.
Do you need consent to open a food business in your area?
Checklist of the forms you will need to fill out when you apply for food registration:
