Everyday food safety for NZ food workers, using MPI's figures: handwashing, staying away when sick, keeping food apart, temperatures, cooling, reheating and date marks.
A colleague comes back after a night of vomiting and says they feel fine. A tray of rice has sat on the bench since lunch. The only free board has just had raw chicken on it. This course shows what to do in moments like these, using the temperatures, times and rules published by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI).
It suits new starters, casuals, volunteers and team leaders in cafés, takeaways, catering, early childhood centres and rest homes. It also explains how the Food Act 2014 works for a worker. Food control plans and national programmes belong to the business. This course does not meet those duties or replace the training your workplace's plan requires.
You can study and sit the assessment free, with no account. MPI, the regulator, also publishes free Food Safety Basics modules, linked on this page, each of which lets you print a certificate of completion at no cost. Our certificate is a private record from an independent provider, not issued or endorsed by MPI. Pay only if you pass and want it, and check first that your employer wants it.
Anyone can check a certificate on our verification page using its ID or QR code. More about the certificate.
In the Food Act 2014, the Food Regulations 2015 and the MPI guidance we read, the duty to train sits with the business, and no certificate is named for everyday food work. We did not find an MPI page that answers this outright, and a workplace can ask for a particular course. Ask your employer before you pay for anything.
MPI is the regulator. Its modules are free and each lets you print a certificate of completion, so they are a good choice on their own. We are independent of MPI. This course puts the temperature figures, the sick rule and the Food Act question in one place. Our certificate is a private record from an independent provider, not issued or endorsed by MPI.
No. An online course cannot do that. The plan belongs to the business, and the business has to train you on its own procedures and check that you apply them. This course can help you understand why those procedures exist.
No. It is an awareness course with an optional certificate of completion. It is not a qualification, it is not a unit standard, and it is not approved by NZQA or MPI. Ask your employer what training it wants before you pay for anything.
Follow your workplace's plan, and ask the person responsible for it about the difference. MPI says the rules you must follow are in your food control plan, and its own documents vary on some details.
MPI's template plan says until 48 hours after your symptoms have stopped, and its national programme guidance gives the same figure. Tell your manager straight away, and check how your workplace's plan words the rule.
Ask them first. Each employer decides what training it accepts, and some may prefer MPI's own modules. You can study and sit the assessment free before deciding whether to buy anything.
The lessons are original summaries of these sources. For your own situation, the source is what counts.
Version 1.1.1, last checked 2026-11-03. Approved for publication by our editor on 2026-11-09. Not reviewed by an external professional. How we check our content.
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Clean before you disinfect, read labels and safety data sheets, never mix products, handle wet floors and lone work, and know what to leave alone and report.
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Infection prevention and control
Clean hands, gloves and masks, coughs and sneezes, staying home when sick, and speaking up. Plain-English infection prevention basics for NZ care and cleaning work.
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Passed 2 or more courses? Buy their certificates together and pay 20% less.
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Free to study.
Certificate NZ$24.90 if you pass.