Sign a pest control contract

A standing pest control contract, not a one-off spray — covering rodents, cockroaches and flies, running for at least 12 months, with visits at least monthly. This is one of the items on SFA's own pre-licensing checklist, so you need it in place before your Food Shop or Food Stall Licence application, not just before opening.

Evidence of pest activity, or no evidence of a pest control system at all, is one of the fastest ways to fail an inspection and put your SAFE Framework grading and licence at risk. Food premises attract pests a domestic property never would, so this is close to guaranteed to matter eventually, not a theoretical risk.

Watch out for

• Treating pest control as a reactive call-out once something is spotted, rather than a standing contract with regular visits — by the time you see evidence, an infestation is often already established.
• Signing a contract with visits less than monthly to save money — SFA's pre-licensing checklist expects at least monthly visits, and a thinner schedule can be flagged at licence application or inspection.
• Not keeping visit reports on file — an inspector wants to see the contract is live and the visits are actually happening, not just that you signed up once.

Sources

• SFA — Food Shop pre-licensing checklist (PDF) checked 2026-09-08

See also

• Install a grease trap
• Kitchen exhaust duct baseline degrease
• Probes, thermometers and the temperature log