Oral Reply to Parliamentary Questions on Safety of Central Kitchens

Question:

Mr David Hoe: To ask the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment (a) what does the targeted and stepped-up surveillance entail in practice for central kitchens under SFA's risk-based food safety inspection regime; and (b) whether SFA will consider classifying central kitchens supplying school meals as a distinct higher-risk tier and subjecting them to sustained stepped-up surveillance, in view of large volumes served to children and heightened consequences and disruptions from any lapse.

Answer:

Central kitchens are licensed by the Singapore Food Agency (SFA). They are subjected to more frequent inspections as they have a larger scale of food processing or preparation. This is consistently applied to central kitchens and caterers serving all consumers, including other vulnerable consumers such as persons in nursing homes.

In addition, central kitchens are graded under the Safety Assurance for Food Establishment (SAFE) framework. In the event of a major food safety lapse, they will be downgraded upon completion of suspension or court conviction, and inspected more frequently. The up-to-date representation of the establishment’s food safety performance via its SAFE grade allows service buyers and consumers to have peace of mind to make more informed decisions on the food establishment to procure from.

Since August 2025, SFA has stepped up checks on the central kitchens supplying school meals under the Ministry of Education’s (MOE) Central Kitchen Meal Model (CKMM) programme.

SFA and the Communicable Diseases Agency will continue to work closely with MOE schools and their appointed central kitchens to strengthen 1 the food safety management systems from the kitchens to when the food is transported, stored and distributed for consumption.