Food hygiene in France: implementing Reg. (EC) 852/2004

This page is the hub for France's implementation of Reg. (EC) 852/2004. It gives the overall picture and links to the detail pages and the other jurisdictions covered in the countries pillar.

DGAL and DDPP: the division of powers

In France food safety is coordinated at national level by the DGAL (Directorate-General for Food), within the Ministry of Agriculture. Enforcement on the ground — processing of applications, official controls, inspections — falls to the DDPP (departmental directorates for the protection of populations) and, in some departments, to the DDETSPP that combine those functions. In our view this is what most often confuses newcomers: the European rule is single, but the actual counterpart is the DDPP of the department with territorial competence, to which sanitary applications must be addressed.

Registration: déclaration d'activité and sanitary approval

Reg. 852/2004 requires every food business operator to notify each establishment to the competent authority for registration Article 6(2) of Regulation (EC) No 852/2004. In France this obligation is met through the déclaration d'activité: the notification of the activity to the department's DDPP, to be made before or at the start of operations. The procedures and forms are described by the public portals service-public / entreprendre.

Distinct from the déclaration is the question of sanitary approval (agrément): the approval required of establishments that handle, process or place on the market products of animal origin, under Reg. (EC) 853/2004 Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 853/2004, save for derogations or exemptions provided for certain local retail activities. The distinction between simple registration and approval is explained in the concept registration vs approval; the conditions and thresholds for the agrément must be checked with the DDPP, since they depend on the type of product and the volumes.

Self-checking and training

Every food business must put in place self-checking procedures based on HACCP principles Article 5(1) of Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 and ensure the training of staff who handle food Annex II, Chapter XII, point 1 of Regulation (EC) No 852/2004. In France commercial catering is subject to a specific obligation: at least one person on the staff must have followed dedicated food-hygiene training. The operational picture, including the settled indications on the duration of the course, is covered in the HACCP training in France page.

Official controls and competent authorities

Official controls are organised under Reg. (EU) 2017/625 Article 4 of Regulation (EU) 2017/625, which repealed the earlier Reg. (EC) 854/2004 and 882/2004. In France enforcement falls to the departmental DDPP, while the DGAL provides national direction and coordination. Penalties in this area rest on the Rural and Maritime Fishing Code (Code rural et de la pêche maritime) and the Consumer Code (Code de la consommation), whose texts are available on Légifrance. For a comparison with a concurrent-competence health model, see the Italy page.