Section 3 – Food hygiene ratings
5.Section 3 requires a food authority to assess the food hygiene standards of a food business establishment and produce a food hygiene rating, scored against the rating criteria published by the FSA.
6.The food authority must send to the operator of the establishment:
written notification of its food hygiene rating;
a written statement of the reasons for the rating;
a food hygiene rating sticker (the form of the sticker is to be prescribed in regulations); and
any other information which may be set out in regulations.
7.The notification, statement, sticker and information must be sent within 14 days of the inspection by the food authority.
8.The rating ceases to be valid if the food business establishment receives notification of a new food hygiene rating, or when there has been a transfer of ownership or closure of the food business establishment.
9.The Welsh Ministers may make regulations exempting certain categories of establishment from rating.
10.Subsection (2) provides the Welsh Ministers with powers to make regulations to enable ratings to be given for assessments carried out before the commencement of the Act. For example, the findings of a previous inspection undertaken by the food authority as part of the previous voluntary FSA scheme could be relied upon when the food authority issues a rating under the statutory scheme after the Act is commenced.