Question

Do you know what regulation or law impose to online food delivery business in Singapore?

Answer 1

The online food delivery business means delivery of cooked food from retail outlet like hotels,restaurants etc to the consumers upon their order placed in online food delivery websites.Currently the food delivery business do not require a licence for its operation as they are not carrying out many cooking,backing,handling or other forms of processing of foods.

But as per regulations of Singapore food agency the online food delivery service operators have to ensure that the food being delivered and transported should be in a hygienic manner and shall not dialute its responsibility in delivering hygienic and high quality food to consumers.The online food delivery service operators has to ensure the following while operating self services.

a.The vehicle used for delivery of foods has to be maintained in cleanliness manner

b.The carrier bag or kit and other equipments used for keeping the food and transportation of the same also need to be maintained in a hygienic conditions and prevent food from being contaminated through the said carrier bag.

The rules and regulations applicable in Singapore to control the operators of online food delivery services are incorporated under the legislation like Sale of Food Act (SOFA) and Environmental Public Health Act(EPHA).The said legislations insisted for food safty and hygienic requirements of online food delivery businesses,especialy the regulation 16(3) and16(4) of the EPHA regulates the transport of food in covering materials such as carrier bag and kit used in the course of transportation and its hygienity.

Selling of unsafe or unsuitable food , articles of food unfit for human consumption would attracting the penal privisions of the legislations called SOFA(please refer section 15) and EPHA(pls refer section 40) as which constitute an offence under those legislation.