Any food product sold to the public is bound by food safety laws. It’s important to understand your obligations when making cakes to sell from your home kitchen. A common area of confusion is if you need a food hygiene certificate for home baking. Our guide looks at guidelines for safe home baking, and which qualifications are needed for selling cakes from home.
When you have a small business selling home baking, it’s sensible to get a food hygiene certificate. This certificate proves that your knowledge is up to date with all the latest food safety legislation.
Food hygiene certificates should be refreshed every 3 years to ensure you remain compliant with the latest guidance.
Which Food Hygiene Certificate Do I Need for Home Baking?
Home baking and cake making businesses need Level 2 in Food Hygiene. This qualification meets all UK legal requirements and covers all you need to know when handling, preparing and selling food.
Getting this qualification gives understanding of hygiene and health and safety practices in the kitchen.
Food Hygiene & Safety For Retail Level 2 – Online Training Course
- This course can be completed online in just 3 hours.
- Download your certificate instantly.
- Compliant with all UK regulations & Laws.
- Meets all legal requirements for food handlers.
- Course content can be played as audio.
£20+ VAT
Bulk discounts available for multiple team members.
Why Food Hygiene Certificates are Important
While it is not set out as a legal requirement, it is encouraged by the FSA to have a food hygiene certificate for home baking sales.
These courses make sure you have this knowledge to apply to your home baking business. Understanding kitchen health and safety from the perspective of food safety is part of this.
Selling cakes as a business means having knowledge of safety issues such as the 14 Allergens, and having food safety procedures in place, and following the appropriate cooking and cleaning requirements. By completing your Food Hygiene qualifications, you are able to show you are actively following correct protocols during an EHO home visit.
Do I Need a Food Hygiene Certificate to Sell Baking at a Fete or Fundraiser?
Are you planning to sell cakes for village fetes, fayres, or fundraisers? Not too sure what, if any, training you’d need in regards to food certificates?
When you are baking for one-off causes such, you are still best to carry out a Food Hygiene course. At the end of the day, you have a duty to be aware of the 14 allergens at the very least. Level 1 or 2 will be suitable, depending on your situation.
Registered food businesses regularly preparing and baking cakes to sell would need a Level 2 course as detailed below.
Our guide on food hygiene certificates for churches has more detailed information for community organisations.
Do You Need a Food Hygiene Certificates to Sell Cakes as a Business?
A food hygiene certificate is not a legal requirement to sell cakes. However a level 2 food hygiene course is an easy way to show compliance and understanding of food safety law. This is particularly important when you have your environmental health officer visit.
For more on the legal requirements of selling cakes as a business, see our easy to understand guide on the steps to get set up.
Key Features Of Level 2 Food Hygiene
A level 2 in Food Hygiene will cover the following:
- Good practices with food hygiene.
- All regulations you should be aware of and follow.
- The dangers and implications of Cross-Contamination.
- How to store food safely.
- Evaluating risks involved with handling and preparing food.
- How to maintain good personal hygiene.
- Appropriate cleaning methods and how often to carry out these methods.
- Pest control.
- All legal requirements.
- How best to preserve foods and keep them fit for consumption.
You can read about other legal requirements, as well as Food Hygiene, in our How To Start A Business Selling Cakes From Home article.
Other Food Training Courses for Home Baking Businesses
We have covered in some detail Food Hygiene Certificates so let’s now take a look at other appropriate food training courses you can do online to keep you knowledgeable of the UK requirements.
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP)
Any business dealing with food needs to have effective food safety measures in place on a day-to-day basis. These courses will further your knowledge in identifying food safety hazards and how you can ensure all food remains safe to consume. Knowledge of HACCP principles and having a HACCP plan in place is vital within a food business.
Food Allergens
Selling cakes or home baking makes you directly responsible for meeting a customer’s requirements which can often include allergies.
Having a robust plan in place for customers with allergies and being aware of the 14 Allergens is vital in a cake-making environment. Food hygiene will cover these briefly but extending your knowledge is never a bad thing.
Setting Up A Food Business From Home
Completing a Food Business From Home course will ensure you are aware of all the regulations you must follow as per UK laws.
As well as covering food safety, it also focuses on how to write an effective business plan. It also looks at market research and how to manage your accounts and the financial side of your business. Our guide on selling cakes from home and legal requirements around this type of business will also help.
FAQs
If you still have niggling questions about food hygiene certificates for home baking, we’ve rounded up some of the more frequently asked questions to help you understand what you need.
To make and sell cakes a level 2 food hygiene certificate will be sufficient to ensure compliance with food rules and regulations.
It’s not a legal requirement, however the FSA highly recommend that a food hygiene certificate is obtained in order to sell cakes.
