Hygiene Ratings for Safe and Happy Eating

FSSAI’s Hygiene Rating Scheme is an online, transparent scoring and rating process which certify food businesses on the basis of their food safety compliance and allow consumers to make informed choices. This scheme aims to –

1. Encourage food businesses to improve their hygiene and safety standards.
2. Allow consumers to make informed choices pertaining to food outlets they eat or procure food.

Following food businesses can apply for Hygiene Rating Scheme:

• Food service establishments (such as hotels, restaurants, cafeteria, dhabhas, etc), sweet shops, bakeries and meat retail stores.
• Meat Retail Shop.
• Sweet Shops.
• Bakery Shops

The Food Business Operator applying for Hygiene Rating must comply with the following requirement :

1. Have an active FSSAI License/ Registration, follow schedule 4 requirements and display FSDBs.
2. Appoint FoSTaC trained Food Safety Supervisors.
3. Get food and water samples tested periodically (applicable for licensed FBOs only)

The food businesses compliant with the hygiene rating requirements should follow the following steps to apply for the Hygiene Rating Scheme:

1. FBO selects the HRAA and schedule an audit to verify compliance with Hygiene Rating Scheme
2. HRAA to update details of the audit and assign Hygiene Rating Auditor online on the website
3. Auditor visits the food premises and audit to assess compliance with Hygiene Rating Scheme requirements.
4. Audit will submit report to Hygiene Rating Audit Agency
5. HRAA will approve the report.
6. Once the report is approved HRAA can download the certificate and send to FBO

1. Indicated marks for each question marked yes, will be added to arrive at the total score. (In case, any question is not applicable then the total score will be revised to reduce the score of the question)
2. Questions marked with “Asterisk” are critical and impact food safety. Failure to comply with these will lead to non-issuance of ratings.
3. Score achieved is converted to percentage via the formula below:

Score received/ Total Score = Percent Score

HOW TO INTERPRET THE SCORES?

Refer to the table below to find out the Hygiene Rating for the percent score awarded by the Hygiene Rating Auditor:

Any FBO desirous of improving their ratings can do so by taking following steps:

• Check the practices not followed as per the above audit checklist and arrive at the issues. Some pointers to reflect on the ideal hygiene practices, are available here.
• Take clear, concrete steps to ensure and demonstrate compliance for each of these issues.
• Redo self-assessment and select HRAA for verification.
• Print the new verified rating certificate online.