If you are selling food online, such as on social media, on an organised and regular basis, it is a legal requirement to register your business with our Environmental Health Service 28 days before you intend to trade.
If you are already trading and have not registered, you need to do so as soon as possible. Registering your business is free of charge.
Find out more at:
Scottish food law guide
You are responsible for making sure that the food you sell or supply is safe and meets all the requirements of food law.
Food Standards Scotland: Scottish Food Law Guide
If you are selling food online you must ensure the following:
- The food you sell or supply is safe and is fit for human consumption and not injurious to health.
- You must be able to identify where the food used in your business comes from and where the food you produce goes. This helps keep track of food in the food chain. This information will be important if there is ever a product recall or withdrawal.
- Labelling, advertising and presentation of food do not mislead consumers.
Food Standards Agency: Advice to businesses selling food online (PDF 52.6 KB)
Food hygiene requirements
All food businesses must meet basic hygiene requirements, including the need for a food safety management system based on the principles of Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point principles
Examples of food safety management systems can be downloaded and used at Food Standards Scotland: Tools and training.
Selling food for delivery
Information is available for food businesses who sell food for delivery without face-to-face contact. This includes:
- online via your own website or sites such as Just Eat
- by phone call, text or direct messaging
- via social media
Food Standards Agency: Selling food for delivery
Food businesses must:
- provide consumers with the same information when buying food at a distance as they do when buying face-to-face
- ensure mandatory food information, except for the durability date, is available before the purchase is concluded
- ensure all mandatory information is also available at the moment of delivery to the consumer
Where non-prepacked food is sold by means of distance selling such as a takeaway order by telephone, allergen information should be made available by the food business before the purchase is concluded and at point of delivery such as via on a sticker.
Buying food online
If you buy food online, and you’re not using a well known or trusted seller, there are a number of checks you can do to help you buy with confidence.
If you are thinking of buying food online consider the following:
- Does the business you are buying from have a physical address and phone number? The address should be registered as a food business with Environmental Health.
- Check the Food Hygiene Information Scheme for the results of any food hygiene inspection.
Guidance is also available at Food Standards Agency: Advice for buying food online (PDF 135 KB).