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SFBB for Mobile Caterers: Safer Food Better Business Guide

What the Food Standards Agency's Safer Food Better Business approach means for food trucks, catering vans and other small mobile food businesses.

What is Safer Food Better Business?

Safer Food Better Business (SFBB) is a Food Standards Agency food safety management approach designed to help smaller food businesses follow practical safe methods and keep appropriate records. The FSA says businesses should work through the sections that apply to their operation and make sure the diary is completed every day.

SFBB is based on the principles of HACCP, but presents them in practical, plain-language safe methods. The right pack depends on the type of food business and the processes you carry out.

Important: SFBB is a food safety management approach, not a guarantee that every business has identical requirements. Your procedures and records should match your operation, and your local authority can advise on specific requirements.

What does an SFBB diary record?

The diary is intended to provide evidence that your safe methods are being followed. Depending on your operation, your records may include daily checks, temperature monitoring, cleaning and other controls.

The FSA's introduction to SFBB says businesses should fill in the diary every day and keep additional records where the size or nature of the business means they are needed to demonstrate that food is being made safely.

SFBB for a food truck

A mobile caterer might need to manage:

Chilling and refrigeration
Cooking and reheating
Hot holding
Cleaning and disinfection
Cross-contamination
Personal hygiene
Allergen management
Deliveries and traceability
Opening and closing procedures

The exact controls depend on what you prepare and sell. A coffee trailer will not have the same food-safety controls as a mobile kitchen cooking raw meat.

Can SFBB records be digital?

The FSA guidance recognises that records need to be appropriate to the business and explains that documentation may be stored in hard copy or electronically. That means a digital system can be a practical way to organise records, provided it supports the controls your business needs.

VanGuard is designed around that principle: keep the checks you actually need, record them consistently and make the history easy to retrieve.

Move your daily records onto your phone

Use VanGuard alongside your food safety management system to record daily checks, temperatures and cleaning evidence without carrying a paper diary.

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SFBB, HACCP and VanGuard — how do they fit together?

Part	Purpose
HACCP principles	Identify hazards and control the food-safety risks in your process.
SFBB	A practical FSA approach for smaller food businesses to manage food safety.
Daily records	Evidence that relevant controls and checks are being followed.
VanGuard	A digital way to capture and organise selected records on a phone.

Free official guidance

Start with the Food Standards Agency's SFBB introduction and use the pack that matches your business. If your operation is more complex, the FSA also provides MyHACCP guidance for developing a food safety management system.

Related VanGuard guides

Food safety records for mobile caterers
Daily food safety diary
EHO inspection checklist
Food truck cleaning checklist
Food safety app for mobile caterers

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