New Zealand Food Safety has published an updated Food Safety Good Governance Guide for Directors, which can be accessed on the New Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries website.

The guide outlines crucial elements of a board's food safety and suitability obligations. Food company boards and directors have a key role in leading food safety culture and capability, and a strong food safety culture is essential for maintaining a company’s reputation.

The updated guide outlines best practices for food companies’ boards of directors when it comes to their food safety and suitability obligations, bolstering consumer trust that a company is adhering to its regulatory requirements and maintaining high standards of food safety. Readers will also find examples of food safety performance measures, showing how a proactive approach to food safety is necessary for success.

Although the guide is written for directors and boards, senior managers and business owners in the wider food industry may also find the content useful.

The guide is structured in two parts: Part One: Food Safety—the Board’s Role and Part Two: A Director’s Briefcase. Part One sets out the case for food safety governance, the legislative requirements, and the leadership role that boards of directors must play in the governance of food safety. At the core of the guide is a four-step food safety governance model to help boards in their food safety activities.

In the governance model, a board has two main roles, which are 1) creating the right environment in which food safety can operate successfully and 2) holding management accountable for implementation of the food safety system. The roles are achieved in four steps:

1. Commit to food safety governance by setting expectations throughout the business
2. Lead food safety culture, making food safety a priority throughout the company
3. Assure food safety risk is identified, assessed, and effectively managed
4. Monitor that food safety system design is fit-for-purpose and responsive to information and data generated from risk-management activities.

Part Two provides support tools and information to assist with developing food safety governance capability. It includes a director’s checklist to measure and incorporate food safety in every part of a business. Part Two also sets out the legal environment, key roles in food safety regulation, what comprises a food safety system, examples of food safety performance measures, and an introduction to food safety risk.