Red tape off the menu for foodie businesses
SA’s food safety laws are being reviewed for the first time in decades, as apps like Uber Eats change the game.
South Australia’s food safety laws are set to be updated after about 25 years to keep up with apps like Uber Eats and new food and manufacturing trends changing the industry.
SA is the only state in the country without a centralised system to register and inspect food businesses, and a recent Auditor-General’s report found businesses were falling through the cracks.
Health and Wellbeing Minister Blair Boyer announced today the existing laws would be reviewed and eventually updated to slash red tape and streamline the system, making it easier for businesses and safer for patrons.
“As well as protecting the reputation of SA’s food business sector, updating the laws will ensure the requirements remain clear and contemporary to support SA businesses to handle food safely,” Boyer said.
Currently, under the Food Safety Act, when restaurateurs open a business, they are required to notify their local council, and businesses like food trucks are expected to notify each council for every event they attend.
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The review will put this under the microscope to make sure the laws are fit-for-purpose given the increasing popularity of food trucks and growing numbers of food businesses.
The Act broadly gives officers the power to inspect food businesses, conduct audits and recall food items if needed, with the laws designed to prevent businesses from selling unsafe or unsuitable food and manage public health risks.
A recent report from SA’s public sector watchdog found restaurants, food trucks and home caterers “often fail” to properly register with councils, meaning they have not passed the proper food safety checks.
The Auditor-General’s report, released in May, also found health inspectors were struggling to keep up with the state’s foodie boom, with more restaurants opening, but the number of health officers staying stagnant for the past seven years.
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It found there were more than 18,000 registered South Australian food businesses in 2024-2025, up from 16,000 in 2018-19.
The review announced by Boyer today was supported by the Australian Services Union (ASU), which represents health inspectors in the council sector, and the SA Hotels Association.
ASU Assistant Secretary Ella Waters said this review was “an important opportunity” to reduce unnecessary administration as SA health officers face “significant workload pressures”.
“ASU members say the current system is placing increasing demands on an already stretched workforce, as the number and diversity of food businesses continues to grow,” Waters said.
“Frontline workers understand where the system is creating pressure, and their experience must be central to designing reforms that deliver a sustainable workload and a stronger workforce.”
Australian Hotels Association SA CEO Anna Moeller also backed the review, saying it would benefit small and family businesses.
“As an already heavily regulated industry, any attempt to streamline requirements and minimise red tape for our hotels, many of whom are small and family businesses, can only be a positive thing,” Moeller said.
“Importantly it will provide the opportunity to strike a real balance between the pressures on the food retail market, a rapidly changing environment and the safety of the patrons that enjoy the hospitality provided by all of our hotels across the state.”
Business owners and the community will be able to give feedback for the review via the YourSay website in the coming months. The review will be used to develop changes to the Act, which will
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