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2. Check if you need a food control plan or national programme

2. Hihiratia mehemea me whai mahere whakahaere kai, me whai hōtaka ā-motu rānei koe

​You have to register your food business with a registration authority. This can be with us or the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI).

The registration authority will depend on the food business location and the plan/programme it has been registered under.

Go to the Ministry for Primary Industries website and use the 'My Food Rules?' tool to find out which plan suits your business.

Food control plans

There are two types of food control plans.

Most businesses use template food control plans from templates provided by the Ministry for Primary Industries.

National programmes

Businesses that make or sell mid to lower-risk foods are more likely to register under a national programme.

Our tip

For translations of template food control plan and national programme see Forms & templates on the MPI website.

​Verification of food business under template food control plan and national programme

If your business is based in Auckland then you can register your template food control plan and national programme with us.

Verification of food business under template food control plan and limited national programme

You can apply for registration and verification services if you are under a template food control plan or under the following national programmes:

  • Businesses that handle food, but do not prepare or manufacture food.
  • Food service providers to pre-school children, including children under five.
  • Retailers of chilled or frozen food (excluding ice cream, iced confectionery, and iced desserts).
  • Retailers of hot beverages and foods packaged by manufacturer.
  • Retailers of ice cream or iced confectionery packaged by manufacturer.
  • Transporters or distributors of food products.

You need to pay your full registration fee before we can process your application. You will be invoiced for all costs associated with verification after you are verified.     

For verification services for custom food control plan (food service or retail) or a national programme business not listed above see Apply for verification services.

How much it costs

You need to pay for:

  • registration
  • getting checked (known as being verified) and all associated verification costs
  • making changes to registration details
  • renewing the registration
  • enforcement work undertaken by food safety officers.

These costs may vary depending on the level of risk involved in your food business.

Not all the fees listed on the table below may apply to you and you may have to pay other charges not listed here.

Read fee table.
Type of planFee
National Programme - Renewal$186
National Programme 1 and 2 - Verification$372
National Programme 1, 2 or 3 - Registration$279
National Programme 3 - Verification$558
Template food control plan - Registration$372
Template food control plan - Renewal$186
Template food control plan - Verification$744
  • ​We calculate registration and verification fees on a set minimum time. Any time in excess of this will incur an hourly fee.
  • We will charge all corrective follow-up activity per 30 minutes, plus time spent in accessing information and travel time for site visits.
  • We may charge additional hourly charges for appointments cancelled at short notice and, in some cases, where we can't complete the verification.

Timeframes for verifications

For template food control plan, national programme level 1, 2 and 3:

  • for new business, the first verification will be carried within six weeks of registration
  • for existing business, the first verification will be carried within 12 months of registration and within six months if registered under national programme level 3.

For both new and existing businesses, the subsequent verification will depend on the outcome of the previous verification.