Australian food businesses are governed by the Food Standards Code, and two standards drive most equipment decisions: Standard 3.2.2 covers food safety practices, and Standard 3.2.3 covers premises and equipment. In practice that means potentially hazardous food held at 5°C or below or 60°C or above, an accurate probe thermometer on site, dedicated hand washing facilities, and surfaces and equipment that can genuinely be cleaned and sanitised.
📋 What this guide covers
- The temperature rules and the two-hour, four-hour guidance
- Why you must have an accurate probe thermometer
- Hand washing basins and what makes them compliant
- Surfaces, equipment design and cleanability
- Cleaning, sanitising and separating raw from ready-to-eat
- Records, training and what an inspector asks to see
ℹ️ This is general information, not legal advice
Food safety is enforced by state and territory authorities and by your local council, and requirements vary by jurisdiction and by the kind of business you run. Use this as a starting point and confirm the detail with your local enforcement agency before you rely on it.
1. Temperature control is the core requirement
Potentially hazardous food must be kept at or below 5°C, or at or above 60°C. Everything else in your refrigeration, holding and display equipment exists to make that possible during a real service, with doors opening constantly and hot product going in and out.
The two-hour, four-hour guidance governs food held between those temperatures: under two hours it can go back to refrigeration, between two and four hours it must be used or sold, and beyond four hours it must be discarded. Track the cumulative time, not the time since it last came out.
Choose equipment that can hold temperature under your actual conditions, and give it the clearances it needs. A cabinet that only holds temperature when the kitchen is quiet is not compliant equipment. Browse commercial refrigeration and holding and warming equipment.
2. You must have an accurate thermometer
A food business handling potentially hazardous food is required to have a thermometer that is accurate to plus or minus one degree Celsius and readily accessible. A probe thermometer is the practical choice, because you need to measure the food, not the air.
Check it against a known reference regularly and record that you did. A thermometer nobody has verified is not evidence of anything. See scales and measuring equipment.
🔧 Pro tip, measure the food, not the cabinet
A display reading on a fridge door tells you the air temperature at the sensor. Inspectors check the food. Probe the thickest part of the product, in the warmest part of the cabinet, and log that number.
3. Hand washing facilities
Hand washing basins are a specific requirement, and they are a common reason a premises fails an inspection.
- A hand wash basin must be provided and used only for washing hands, not for rinsing utensils or emptying buckets.
- It must have a supply of warm running water.
- Soap and a hygienic means of drying hands, such as single-use paper towel, must be available at the basin.
- It must be located where food handlers can reach it easily from the areas they work in.
The number and placement required depends on the size and layout of the kitchen, so confirm with your council at the design stage. Browse sinks and hand basins.
4. Surfaces and equipment must be cleanable
Standard 3.2.3 requires food premises and equipment to be designed and constructed so they can be effectively cleaned and, where necessary, sanitised. In practice that means:
| Requirement | What it looks like in a kitchen |
|---|---|
| Non-absorbent, smooth surfaces | Stainless steel benches, sealed splashbacks, no bare timber or absorbent finishes in food contact areas. |
| No dirt traps | Coved junctions, sealed gaps between benches and walls, equipment either sealed to the floor or raised and movable so you can clean underneath. |
| Equipment that strips down | Slicers, processors and mixers that come apart for cleaning without special tools. |
| Adequate washing facilities | Sinks for equipment washing, and a dishwasher or sanitising method appropriate to the volume. |
| Cleanable floors and walls | Durable, non-slip, non-absorbent finishes with fall to a floor waste. |
5. Cleaning versus sanitising
These are two different steps and both are required. Cleaning removes visible soil and grease. Sanitising reduces micro-organisms to a safe level, either by heat or by an approved chemical sanitiser used at the correct concentration and contact time.
A commercial dishwasher that reaches the correct rinse temperature does both in one cycle, which is why it is a far more reliable answer than hand washing for high-volume glass and crockery. Browse commercial dishwashers and cleaning and sanitising supplies.
6. Keep raw and ready-to-eat apart
Cross-contamination is prevented by separation: separate storage, separate boards and utensils, and separate preparation areas or times. Store raw meat below ready-to-eat food so nothing can drip onto it, and use a colour-coded board and knife system so the separation survives a busy service.
See cutting boards and prep equipment and food storage containers.
7. Records, training and the inspection
An inspector generally wants to see evidence, not assurances. Keep temperature logs for refrigeration, freezers and hot holding. Keep cleaning schedules with sign-off. Keep thermometer calibration checks, pest control records, and evidence of food handler training and your food safety supervisor arrangements.
Requirements around food safety supervisors, food handler training and demonstrating your controls have tightened in recent years and vary by jurisdiction and business type. Check what applies to your business with your local enforcement agency rather than assuming.
ℹ️ Other standards that touch your equipment
Beyond food safety, gas installations and commercial kitchen ventilation are governed by their own Australian Standards, and electrical equipment in a workplace may be subject to in-service inspection and testing requirements. Your licensed gas fitter, electrician and mechanical contractor are the right people to confirm what applies.
Final thoughts
Compliance is mostly about being able to prove what you already do. Buy equipment that holds temperature under real conditions, that comes apart to be cleaned, and that lets staff wash their hands easily. Then log it. The kitchens that struggle at inspection are rarely dirty ones — they are the ones with no records.
Frequently Asked Questions
Potentially hazardous food must be kept at or below 5°C, or at or above 60°C. Food held between those temperatures is subject to the two-hour, four-hour guidance: under two hours it can return to refrigeration, two to four hours it must be used or sold, and beyond four hours it must be discarded.
A food business handling potentially hazardous food must have a readily accessible thermometer accurate to within one degree Celsius. A probe thermometer is the practical choice because you need to measure the food rather than the air. Check it against a known reference regularly and record the check.
No. A hand wash basin must be used only for washing hands. It needs warm running water, soap and a hygienic drying method such as single-use paper towel, and it must be easily reachable from where food handlers work. Using it for utensils or emptying buckets is a common inspection failure.
Cleaning removes visible soil and grease. Sanitising reduces micro-organisms to a safe level, using heat or an approved chemical sanitiser at the correct concentration and contact time. Both steps are required. A commercial dishwasher reaching the correct rinse temperature does both in one cycle.
Typically temperature logs for refrigeration, freezers and hot holding, cleaning schedules with sign-off, thermometer calibration checks, pest control records, and evidence of food handler training and food safety supervisor arrangements. Requirements vary by state and business type, so confirm with your local enforcement agency.
