Registering as an Approved Business
Under EU and Irish legislation, all food business operators must be registered with a competent authority. In addition, particular categories of seafood establishments and freezer or factory vessels are required to be approved by the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA).
If you have a seafood business, it is your responsibility to register your business with the SFPA. The purpose of registration is to let the SFPA know that you are operating a food business, where it is located and what activities you are carrying out.
If your business requires approval, the approval application process also addresses your requirements for registration. Therefore establishments involved in the processing of fish or fisheries products, the purification and/or dispatch of live bivalve molluscs, auction halls and factory or freezer vessels do not need to make a separate application for registration. All other food businesses operating in the seafood sector, such as ice plants, transport operations, cold storage facilities (involved in storage and distribution only), wholesalers and agents are subject to registration.
This section gives guidelines for registering as a food business operator, as well as providing a list of approved businesses and vessels.
If you are a new food business seeking approval or an existing operation seeking food safety assistance, BIM Ireland’s Seafood Development Agency provide a range of Food Safety System Advisory Services and Training courses.
Relevant services and courses include:
Start-up Enterprises, Regulatory Audit Assistance, Review of Food Safety Management System, Traceability and Labelling, HACCP, Factory Layout and Design and Depuration.
BIM can be contacted via the Food Safety Team at foodsafety@bim.ie , BIM website http://www.bim.ie/ or at the following number +3531 2144100.