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Overview
There are many diseases that can be spread through food, known as food-borne illnesses. They can be caused by biological (i.e., bacteria, viruses, protozoa and fungi), physical and chemical hazards. They can contaminate food in many ways. All food handlers should know the basics of safe food handling to greatly reduce the risk of contamination and the spread of food-borne illness.
General food safety seminar
The Department of Health offers a free, general food safety seminar based on the "The ABC’s of Food Safety" introductory guide. This optional seminar is perfect for food handlers who want to expand their knowledge on food safety but do not require formal training or certification. It is available to any group upon request. While the written guide is available in English, French (PDF 8.9 MB) and Korean (PDF 1.9 MB), please note that the live seminar is not offered in Korean.
Training and certification requirements
The Department of Health requires certain staff in licenced food premises to have up-to-date food safety training and certification.
Class 4 food premises shall ensure that both the manager of the premises and at least one person present at all times in the area where food is prepared holds a certificate confirming successful completion of a food handling program.
Recognized courses
The following courses are equivalent to national guidelines on food safety and are accepted in New Brunswick, per the Public Health Act and Food Premises Regulation.
This list is subject to change. The Department of Health reserves the right to conduct a course review at any time.
| Course | Provider | Website |
| Province of British Columbia | www.foodsafe.ca (website in English only) |
| FoodWise | Retail Council of Canada | www.retailcouncil.org |
| National Restaurant Association | www.servsafeinternational.com |
| Traincan, Inc. | www.traincan.com (website in English only) |
| Food Handler Certification Course | Food Safety Training | www.foodsafetytraining.ca (website in English only) |
| SafeCheck™ Advanced Food Safety courses | Canadian Food Safety | www.canadianfoodsafety.com |
| Food Handler Certification | Probe IT | www.probeit.ca (website in English only) |
| Managing Food Safety (MFS) | FoodSafetyMarket.com, Freeborn & Associates Inc. | www.foodsafetymarket.com |
| Food Handler Certification Course | Canadian Institute of Food Safety | www.foodsafetytraining.ca (website in English only) |
| FoodPrep Food Handler Certification Course | FoodPrep Inc. | www.jobtrain.ca (website in English only) |
| Food Safety for Food Handlers | KnowledgeWare Communications Corp | www.kccsoft.com (website in English only) |
| Food Handler Training and Certification Course | A Poetic Health | www.apoetichealth.com (website in English only) |
| Food Handler Certification | Train Food Safety | www.trainfoodsafety.ca (website in English only) |
| Food Handler Training and Certificate | FoodSafe4U by ExcellentLearning | www.foodsafe4u.com |
| Safe Food Handler Certification Training Program | Dunk and Associates Inc./Systems 24-7 | www.systems24-7.com (website in English only) |
| Food Handler Certificate Training | INDOCERT Inc. | www.indocert.ca |
Food safety training program equivalency review
Training programs must be reviewed by Public Health on an individual basis to assess whether they meet all of the requirements under the Food Premises Regulation.
Organizations or businesses must submit an application package for each course they are requesting to be reviewed for recognition in New Brunswick. If a training program meets the requirements, it will be added to the recognized course list above.
Get help
If you have questions or need help, you can contact us Monday to Friday between 8:15 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., excluding holidays.
Health Protection Services
Phone: 506-453-3992
Email: [email protected]