Our partnerships

We strive to build strategic, collaborative partnerships in the UK and abroad.

Our Food Hygiene Rating Scheme is delivered in partnership with about 330 local authorities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. They carry out hygiene inspections in about 600,000 premises – enabling consumer choice and improving hygiene standards in food.

Scientific partnerships across government and with academia are critical to meeting our science and evidence needs. We lead on the Pathogen Surveillance in Agriculture, Food and the Environment (PATH-SAFE) programme, a £24 million cross-government programme, funded by HM Treasury, to explore novel methods for improved detection and tracking of foodborne pathogens and antimicrobial resistance through the whole agri-food system.

Strong partnership working also helps us to understand and reach the consumers we seek to protect. For example, partnering with online platforms like Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats has helped us to increase transparency of information on hygiene in food businesses, enabling consumers to consider food safety when ordering food online. Collaborating with charities like Allergy UK and Anaphylaxis UK helps us to better understand and support people living with food hypersensitivities.

We work with other government departments on projects which can support food safety, authenticity, health or sustainability.  For example, in England we have worked closely with colleagues in the Department for Education, Department for Health and Social Care, and local authorities on a pilot that might help to assess and improve the level of compliance with School Food Standards. In Northern Ireland we have produced a guide to healthier and more sustainable vending and introduced nutritional standards for snacks and drinks.

We work in international fora to safeguard food entering the UK and to be at the forefront of international developments in food safety. Read about our work with partners to influence international food safety standards.