Food Safety Risk Management Unit (FSRMU)
Several regions around Malta and Gozo are responsible for the monitoring and verifying of compliance with, and enforcement of, the requirements of the relevant EU regulations and the Food Safety Act and its subsidiary regulations.
The services provided by this unit are:
- Risk based Assessment inspections of Food Premises (RAI) to ensure compliance with EU Regulations, the Food Safety Act and regulations made there under,
- Investigations and follow up of food borne incidences by monitoring the hygiene and medical conditions of food handlers, hygienic conditions of food preparation areas, as well as through sampling of suspected food items,
- Investigation of complaints regarding food control issues such as labelling of food products, product recall, unhygienic premises and other irregularities regarding Hygiene of Food Regulations, durability dates of food items, unfit food for human consumption and follow-up inspections in connection with contravention reports,
- Market surveillance to ascertain the quality of food items exposed or intended for sale by ensuring traceability, monitoring of best before/use by dates and the labelling and presentation of pre-packed foods and Special Inspections such as irregularly labelled food and traceability of meat and poultry products,
- Inspections to Food premises for the purpose of issuing a Health Certificate,
- Sampling of food, drink and water from all types of food establishments when sampling has not been carried out by the Food Surveillance Unit,
- Auditing of Food Safety Management Systems (HACCP) implemented by Food Establishments.
Organisation, Management and Resources
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North Region |
North East Region |
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East Region |
Central Region |
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West Region |
South Region |
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One Executive Environmental Health Practitioner (EEHP) is in charge of the Food Safety Risk Management Unit and has direct responsibility for the regional offices in Malta.
The two Senior Environmental Health Practitioner (EEHP)s with responsibility for Food Safety Risk Management coordinate their work with other EEHPs in charge of other units depending on the work that is required.
Background info for IOS:
In its commitment to reduce bureaucracy, the Government has put forward several initiatives. One of them is the reform in the way inspections are conducted by government entities. This reform aims to reduce the burden on businesses and make inspections more transparent and effective. In order to achieve this, Chapter 568 — the Coordination of Government Inspections Act was enacted, and the Inspections Coordination Office established to coordinate such inspections.
The scope of the Act and the objectives of this Office are to introduce, amongst other things, the data collection by an inspector on behalf of more than one inspectorate, data sharing amongst competent authorities and the use of risk analysis and risk-based assessments. This reform is thus eliminating the collection of the same data by multiple entities and significantly reducing the number of inspections.
By virtue of the powers conferred on it by article 7(1) of the Coordination of Government Inspections Act (Cap. 568), the Inspections Coordination Office conferred on the Environmental Health Directorate (Food and Non-Food) the power to conduct inspections on behalf of the Commission for the Rights of Persons with Disability (CRPD) and the Department for Industrial and Employment Relations (DIER), the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture, the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA), Jobsplus, the Lands Authority, the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority (MCCAA), the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA), the Occupational Health and Safety Authority (OHSA), the Regulator for Energy and Water Services (REWS) and the Water Services Corporation (WSC).
In such cases, the officers who are tasked by the inspectorate with conducting such inspections shall act, and shall be regarded for all purposes at law, as officers of the inspectorate on behalf of which the inspections are conducted. The officers in question shall assume all powers granted by law to the officers of the inspectorate on behalf of which the inspections are conducted and are thus empowered to collect any information from inspected entities and/or individuals on behalf of those bodies as may be required by law in relation to the same.
Self Assessment Checklist:
Last Updated on March 28, 2025