3.10 Food and catering Food and catering (Reg. 3.

.2) Basic requirements Food and drinking water must be of appropriate quality, nutritional value and quantity, taking into account the requirements of the ship and the differing cultural and religious backgrounds of seafarers on the ship. Food is to be provided free of charge to seafarers during the period of engagement. Seafarers employed as ships cooks* with responsibility for preparing food must be trained and qualified for their positions. Seafarers working as ships cooks must not be less than 18 years old (Standard A3.2, paragraph 8). Frequent and documented inspections of food, water and catering facilities are carried out by the master or a designate (Standard A3.2, paragraph 7). * Ships cook means a seafarer with responsibility for food preparation (Regulation 3.2, paragraph 3; Standard A3.2, paragraphs 3 and 4).

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10. Food and catering Regulation 3.2 A.3.2.2.a Verification that seafarers are provided with adequate, varied and nutritious meals taking into account the differing cultural and religious backgrounds; Confirmation that provisions are in satisfactory condition with no spoilage or unsanitary conditions in stowage or galley. Document: Drinking water analysis, Menu records Requirement: Each Member shall ensure that ships that fly its flag meet the following minimum standard: food and drinking water supplies, having regard to the number of seafarers on board, their religious requirements and cultural practices as they pertain to food, and the duration and nature of the voyage, shall be suitable in respect of quantity, nutritive value, quality and variety; A.3.2.2. Verification that seafarers are provided with onboard food free of charge Requirement: Seafarers on board a ship shall be provided with food free of charge during the period of engagement.

A.3.2.2.b GALLEYS Confirmation that the catering equipment and facilities including food preparation areas and galleys are in satisfactory condition and adequate for preparing hot meals in all sea and weather conditions Verification that the shielding devices of naked flames are satisfactory (if applicable) Verification that the stowage of LPG bottles is satisfactory Verification of the galley's cleanliness, special attention being given on areas around furniture and appliances which are not flush with walls and floors Confirmation that furniture and accessories are made of a corrosion resistant material. Verification that the floor in galleys is in satisfactory condition and made of impervious material Verification that floor gutters and scuppers are in place and that water and grease traps are in satisfactory condition.

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Verification that the area available for washing-up is provided with a sink and supplied with hot and cold drinking water Confirmation that the fresh water hose connexion available for washing down is supplied. Verification and test of the lighting and ventilation Confirmation that grease traps in exhaust ducts, if any, are clean. Confirmation that the lighting is satisfactory DRY PROVISION STORE Confirmation that spaces for the storage of provisions are in satisfactory condition, clean and only used for that purpose Verification that the insulation is maintained in satisfactory condition, if applicable. Confirmation that shelves, bins and drawers are clean and in satisfactory condition Verification and test of the lighting and ventilation REEFER PROVISION STORES Confirmation that refrigerated provision rooms are in satisfactory condition, clean and only used for that purpose Confirmation that the insulation, refrigeration arrangements and machinery are in satisfactory condition and capable of maintaining the provisions at an adequate temperature at all time Confirmation that the lighting in the refrigerated chambers is satisfactory Verification that the doors can be opened from inside spaces Verification that the pushbutton installed inside the spaces activates an alarm easily noticed by the crew, when applicable FRESH WATER SUPPLY Confirmation that drinking is available at galleys and near the crew mess room Requirement: Each Member shall ensure that ships that fly its flag meet the following minimum standards: the organization and equipment of the catering department shall be such as to permit the provision to the seafarers of adequate, varied and nutritious meals prepared and served in hygienic conditions;

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A.3.2.6 Confirmation that a dispensation has been issued, permitting the non-fully qualified cook to serve in a specified ship for a specified limited period, if applicable Document: Cook dispensation Requirement: In circumstances of exceptional necessity, the competent authority may issue a dispensation permitting a non-fully qualified cook to serve in a specified ship for a specified limited period, until the next convenient port of call or for a period not exceeding one month, provided that the person to whom the dispensation is issued is trained or instructed in areas including food and personal hygene as well as handling and storage of food on board ship. A.3.2.7 Confirmation that frequent and documented inspections are carried out with respect to: - the supplies of food and drinking water - spaces and equipment used for the storage and handling of food and drinking water - galley and other equipment for the preparation and the service of meals Document:Inspection record Requirement: In accordance with the ongoing compliance procedures under Title 5, the competent authority shall require that frequent documented inspections be carried out on board ships, by or under the authority of the master with respect to: a) supplies of food and drinking water b) all spaces and equipment used for the storage and handling of food and drinking water; and c) galley and other equipment for the preparation and service of meals

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The following paragraph is a guideline intended to give additional information to shipowners with the aim of establishing a simple and efficient system for control and management of food and water onboard. Some requirements are based on HACCAP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point) being an international standard specifying requirements for management of activities related to food and water handling Company documents Food and water To comply with the MLC regulation 3.2 Food and Catering, 2 and 3 / Standard. The requirements from the competent authority, as presented in the DMLC Part 1, may differ from those expressed as shall always be taken as the reference for compliance. The shipowner / ship should file printed or electronic copies of orders / invoices / receipts for food and drinking water supplies onboard, demonstrating their full participation to the food and drink costs in order to comply with Reg. 3.2 2. To help the shipowner comply with the standards adopted by the competent authorities, as presented in the DMLC Part 1, for the quality and quantity of food and water onboard as required by the MLC 2006 Standard A.3.2 Food and Catering, 1 and 2 (a) (b). The shipowner / ship should file printed or electronic copies of the food and drinking water consumption records. The provenance of food and water should be mentioned. Forms similar to those provided in Annex I and Annex II may be used A form similar to the one provided in Annex I may be used for this purpose. These records may be presented in terms of descriptive statistics so that they provide a good / quick overview of the main trends regarding the different periods of the year as well as the different categories of aliments. The ship should keep a daily updated document describing the food and water stocks along with the recommended consumption date for the perishable food on board. A form similar to the one provided in Annex I may be used for this purpose. The ship should keep a monthly (or weekly) updated document describing the stock review of chemicals required for water treatment and conditioning. A form similar to the one provided in Annex I may be used for this purpose. To help the shipowner comply with the standards adopted by the competent authorities, as presented in the DMLC Part 1, for hygiene and food and water safety as required by the MLC 2006 Standard A.3.2 Food and Catering, 2 (b).

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The ship owner and ship should make available, as part of its Safety Management System a food safety plan or equivalent document setting / describing the policies, risk management programmes, rules, procedures and other means engaged for food and water safety. In the same way the ship owner and ship should make available a water safety plan or equivalent (See section 2.1 for more information). There may be a unique plan dealing with both food and water safety onboard. The ship should make available onboard formatted documents for the reporting of hygiene related observation/issues for food and water safety. The shipowner / ship should file printed or electronic copies of the reports dealing with hygiene related observations / issues in the view of enriching its quality management system. Forms similar to the one provided in Annex III may be used for this purpose.

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Maintenance / Inspection reports To help the shipowner comply with the standards adopted by the competent authorities, as presented in the DMLC Part 1, for the hygiene related inspections as required by the MLC 2006 Standard A.3.2 Food and Catering, 7 (a), (b) and (c). As basic suggestion / general rule for the frequent inspections required by the 7 of Standard A.3.2. , weekly inspections should be adopted unless otherwise specified by the requirements of the competent Authority as stated in the DMLC Part 1. Concerning the maintenance operations: The ship should make available the maintenance plans for the galley, the food and catering equipment, drinking water production, treatment, and distribution systems. The ship should keep record documents for the observations / issues highlighted during the maintenance of the galley, the food and catering equipment, drinking water production, treatment, and distribution systems ( 7 (a), (b), (c)). A form similar to the one provided in Annex III may be used for this purpose. Maintenance operations mentioned in the recommendation above include inspection, cleaning, flushing out, replacing items, for water tanks, filters, pumps, calorifiers, pressure tanks, etc. More precisely, some critical maintenance items such as water quality analysis records / results (every 2 month, 6 months, after cleaning, 2 years, depending on the type of analysis required) should be filed and made available.

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Certificates, attestations Ships cook and catering personnel To help the shipowner comply with the standards adopted by the competent authorities, as presented in the DMLC Part 1, competences and qualifications of ships cook and catering personnel as required by the MLC 2006 Standard A3.2, 2, c) (for the catering personnel) and 3 to 6 and 8 (for the ships cook). The ship should have onboard training certificates for the cook and the catering personnel that should comply with the flag states regulations issued by one of the entities recognised by the competent authority or complying with the requirements for issuance of recognised certificated. Unless otherwise specified in the requirements of the competent authority in DMLC Part 1: the certificates should show that the cook is at least 18 years old, that he/she is fully qualified; and the training of cook and the catering personnel should address the hygienic precautions for handling and preparing food as well as maintaining the galley and catering equipment. The shipowner may not be required to provide the aforementioned certificates and attestations for the ships cook and catering personnel under certain circumstances as defined by the competent authorities through the MLC 2006 Standard A3.2, 4 and 5: 5. On ships operating with a prescribed manning of less than ten which, by virtue of the size of the crew or the trading pattern, may not be required by the competent authority to carry a fully qualified cook, anyone processing food in the galley shall be trained or instructed in areas including food and personal hygiene as well as handling and storage of food on board ship. 6. In circumstances of exceptional necessity, the competent authority may issue a dispensation permitting a non-fully qualified cook to serve in a specified ship for a specified limited period, until the next convenient port of call or for a period not exceeding one month, provided that the person to whom the dispensation is issued is trained or instructed in areas including food and personal hygiene as well as handling and storage of food on board ship. Seafarers in charge of maintenance, inspection, etc. on hygiene facilities and equipment related to food or water hygiene. As far as hygiene is concerned, not only the cook and catering personnel should be trained on food and water safety but also seafarers in charge of the maintenance and inspection of facilities and equipment related to food and water hygiene. The guidance below aims to help the shipowner comply with the guideline B3.2.1, 2 (facilitation of the maintenance of a proper standard of hygiene).

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The ship should have onboard training certificates for seafarers in charge of laying or repairing pipes. The training should inter alia address the hygienic precautions for the aforementioned activities, and the detection of the personal symptoms indicating a potential waterborne disease. The ship should have onboard training certificates for seafarers in charge of inspecting the drums and pumps. The training should address the identification of faults that may occur during these operations and may lead to a contamination of the drinking water.

PREPARE PROCEDURES, TRAININGS, (PREVENTION) PLANS, POSTERS, SIGNAGE, ETC. Procedures, plans Food and water safety plans, risk management In order to fulfil the requirements of the competent authority about food and water safety as defined in the DMLC Part 1 referring to MLC 2006 Standard A3.2 and Guideline B3.2, the shipowner is encouraged to set / develop / adopt a Food Safety Plan or Programme (FSP) as well as a Water Safety Plan (WSP) for dealing with all health and safety issues associated with food and catering onboard their ship(s). These plans are intended to provide the frameworks against which to audit respectively food safety and water safety onboard. The elements of these plans are presented in various reference documents such as the Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality - Guide to Ship Sanitation (See References section) from the World Health Organisation (WHO); the ISO standard 22000 (See References section); or Bureau Veritas Guidance Note NI516 entitled Health Onboard Manual. They are based on the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) approach. The shipowner may use another formalised support than the two afore mentioned programmes but in any case, it is recommended that it complies at least with the following main principles from HACCP as presented in the WHO guidelines (See References section):

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HACCP principles Principle 1: Hazard analysis Principle 2: Determine Control Points Principle 3: Establish critical limits for each Critical Control Point (CCP) Principle 4: Establish a monitoring system for each CCP Principle 5: Establish corrective actions Principle 6: Establish verification procedures Principle 7: Establish documentation and record keeping Example of risk control measures for food and water safety The following sub-sections provide examples of typical useful risk control measures that could be implemented in the food and water safety plans (see above section 2.1.1), policies, procedures, requirements, guidelines, etc. as quoted from the Annex of the standard ISO 22000 (see References section), and the Codex Alimentarius (see References section). Food and Water As a general rule, a range of control measures that should be put in place in the food and water safety management plans in order to reduce the risk of food poisoning cover at least the three aspects below: Personal Hygiene Adequate and proper cleaning Purchasing safe supplies and ensuring safe delivery Food The shipowner should have a food stock management plan for recording / managing supplies versus consumptions and traceability of perishable food in particular. The shipowner should have written procedures for checking that short-life perishable food, such as fruits and vegetables, expiry dates are checked on a daily basis. The shipowner / ship should have procedures for galley personnel to check regularly the condition of door seals and closing devices as well as monitor routinely temperature.The schedule for these checks may be an output of the ship maintenance plans. The shipowner should at least implement a range of control measures covering: Temperature control (keep food hot >63C or cold <5C) Segregation of raw and cooked foods Ensuring no risk of cross contamination via hands, cloths etc Thorough cooking

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Water The shipowner should have procedures for regular cleaning and visits of drinking water tanks and to empty, clean, disinfect, and wash these tanks at least once a year. The ship owner should have procedures and instructions available for all elements of the freshwater production, treatment and delivery system including filters, pumps, calorifiers, pressure tanks etc to be inspected, cleaned, flushed out, or items replaced where appropriate, according to the manufacturers instructions and the planned maintenance system. As an example, there should be procedures and instructions for personnel to use effectively boilers or other drinking water treatment system. A non exhaustive list of parts that need to be maintained regularly (monthly, 3 months, 6 months or yearly) would contain filters, UV exposure area, calorifiers, shower heads fresh water hoses, and fresh water storage tanks.

Posters, signs Posters Ship owners should have onboard posters, leaflets, etc published / provided by the competent authority as recommended by the guideline B3.2.1, for encouraging the use of anti bacterial hand cleaners, moisturising cream and barrier creams to reduce the risk of skin infections particularly dermatitis and for encouraging the catering staff to report symptoms of waterborne diseases. The catering staff should have access to educative posters or leaflets presenting the dangers associated with food allergies. Example of some problem ingredients are peanuts, nuts, gluten, fish, soya, celery, mustard, sesame seeds and sulphur dioxide. Same with the risk of allergen cross contamination in situations where a seafarer has asked for food to be free of a certain ingredient that they are allergic or intolerant to. Signs / painting To help the shipowner comply with the standards addressing hygiene and ensuring practicable convenience in working arrangements adopted by the competent authorities, as presented in the DMLC Part 1, as recommended by the MLC 2006 Guideline B3.2.1, 2. The ship owner / ship should put a visible sign saying FOOD STORAGE ONLY (or similar) on the doors of the food storage rooms. The ship owner / ship should place a visible sign for ensuring that all persons accessing the water tanks are aware of the restriction POTABLE WATER or DRINKING WATER ONLY.

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The ship owner / ship should label water distribution valves with DRINKING WATER if there is a risk of confusion with a circuit of non potable water. The ship owner / ship should label potable water outlets with POTABLE WATER. All non-potable outlets should be labelled UNFIT FOR DRINKING. Generally, the ship owner / ship should implement a particular marking, painting, labelling of the water circuit as advised by the WHO Guide to Ship Sanitation (Food safety): potable water piping should be painted blue or striped with light blue bands or a light blue stripe at fittings on each side of partitions, decks and bulkheads and at intervals not exceeding 5 m in all spaces except where the dcor would be marred by such markings. Regarding the piping, if the direction of flow is important, this shall be shown by means of an arrow pointing in the respective direction. PREPARE EQUIPMENT AND ROOMS (CHECK, INSPECT) The MLC 2006 Standard A3.2 7 prescribes frequent documented inspections on board ships with respect to food and water supply and storage as well as the galley and catering equipment. The guidance provided in Section 3 aims to help the shipowner comply with this paragraph by providing recommendations for the routine checks to be done by the shipowner, the regular inspections and the design of the food and water related spaces and equipment onboard. Checks The ship owner should check a certain number of items dealing with: Food and water storage conditions Food and water storage facilities Catering equipment Drinking water system equipment Inspection Drinking water system Backflow preventers for potable water systems are critical parts (in terms of potential consequences in terms of failure). The ship owner should have procedures for inspection and service in accordance with the manufacturer instructions and as necessary to provide the devices failure: Regular checks and tests on the adequacy of backflow prevention devices, possible cross connection points, leaks, defective pipes, pressure and disinfectant residuals. This may be best covered as part of a comprehensive sanitary inspection programme.

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Water quality The ship owner /ship should ensure that water quality inspection are regularly carried out: As a guideline, the ship owner may use the following requirements: A complete analysis of the water should be performed when the ship enters into service, before running installations. A complete analysis comprises the items of the routine analysis in which microbiological and physico-chemical parameters are tested, plus complementary items in which chemical and radioactivity indicating parameters are tested [references from the EU or WHO precising the analyses]. Periodic analyses should be then undergone as follows: - A routine water analysis, completed by a metal analysis (lead, copper, nickel) as well as free chlorine analysis every 6 months, if the flow is below 10 m3/day, every 4 months if the flow is comprised between 10 m3/day and 100 m3/day, every 2 months if the flow is comprised between 100 m3/day and 1000 m3/day, and after every cleaning operation, visits or repair operations on tanks. - This analysis should be completed by a complimentary analysis every 2 years if the flow is below 100m3/day and every year if the flow is above 100 m3/day The sample should be taken from a valve used for human consumption When a boiler or any other treatment system is or may be used to produce drinking water, their aptitude should be verified during the ships entry into service, after every important repair operation (complete water analysis), and periodically as defined before. The shipowner / ship should check that chemicals required for water treatment and conditioning are boarded in sufficient quantities and that the equipment for controlling hardness and alkalinity of water is on board. Heterotrophic Plate Counts (HPCs) can be used as an indicator of general water quality within the distribution system. An increase in HPC indicates either posttreatment contamination, regrowth within the water conveyed by the distribution system or the presence of deposits and biofilms in the system. A sudden increase in HPCs above historic baseline values should trigger actions to investigate and, if necessary, remediate the situation.

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The design The design of the ships shall comply will all regulations as required by the competent authorities. However a certain number of very simple design arrangements for places and equipment onboard where hygiene is particularly critical, should be implemented by the shipowner. Galley The ship owner should provide floors (decks) with an easy-to-clean fabric. The ship owner should provide effective water evacuation (drainage) arrangements regarding the necessity of frequent cleaning of the galley. The ship owner should provide dedicated hand wash basins with provision for soap and towels for the use of the catering staff. The ship owner should provide dedicated sinks for food preparation and equipment washing. Drinking water system The ship owner should provide drinking water tanks with an air pipe that no foreign matter/body, or plug drain can be introduced. When potable water is delivered to non-potable systems and supplied under pressure, the ship owner should provide a protection against backflow by either backflow preventers or air gaps. The ship owner should provide drinking water tanks with an opening large enough to allow somebody to enter and clean these tanks. This opening shall be arranged in order to be vacuum-tight closed between two visits The ship owner should provide sounding means that shall not contaminate water The ship owner should provide every water tank with a filling line to which a hose can be attached. This line should not be cross-connected with any line of a non-potable water system. Each line should be clearly identified as such and painted blue with a screw cap or plug fastened by a short chain so that the cap does not touch the deck when hanging free

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