Hygiene and HACCP · EU · AT · DE

Documentation commensurate with nature and size

You must be able to show the authority that your HACCP procedure works, in a form that suits the nature and size of your business. Keep documents up to date and keep records for an appropriate period. The EU Hygiene Regulation sets no fixed period. The European Commission expressly accepts electronic records.

Legal basis

EU — applies in Austria and Germany: Reg. (EC) 852/2004 Art. 5(4): provide evidence in the form the authority requires, taking account of the nature and size of the business; keep documents up to date at all times; keep records “for an appropriate period”.12
EU — applies in Austria and Germany: Recital 15: the record-keeping requirement should be flexible so that very small businesses are not overburdened. According to the Commission’s guidance, records may be limited to deviations, and electronic records are allowed.34
AT — Austria: No national period found. § 35 (2) LMSVG: inspectors may inspect and copy business documents on paper and on data carriers.5
DE — Germany: No national period found. § 42 (2) LFGB: access to all business documents and data carriers, in particular records.6
Retention: An “appropriate period”, not a number. The Commission’s guidance: long enough for the information to still be available if a warning about a food is issued.17

What the inspector wants to see

Can you provide the evidence in the required form?1
Do the documents match the business as it is today?1
Show your documents and computer-based systems.568
Where are deviations and corrective actions recorded?47

Common mistakes

Trying to record everything and neglecting monitoring; according to the guidance, effective monitoring usually matters more than recording it.4
Out-of-date documents: the old menu, equipment removed long ago.1
Records destroyed while a warning could still concern the food.7

Practise, read, print

The guide is in German for now.

Practise · 5 minWhat inspectors want to see GuideWie lange HACCP- und Reinigungsnachweise aufbewahren?

Sources

We read every source in the original on the date shown and checked it against the text: EU law in its German-language version, the links lead to the English one. All sources and what has changed (in German)

1Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffs, Art. 5(4)(a)–(c) · checked 23 September 2026
2Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffs, Art. 5(2)(g) · checked 23 September 2026
3Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffs, recital 15 (2004 version) · checked 23 September 2026
4Commission Notice 2022/C 355/01 on good hygiene practice and HACCP (guidance, not law), Annex I, point 5 (documentation of good hygiene practice) · checked 23 September 2026
5AT — applies in AustriaLebensmittelsicherheits- und Verbraucherschutzgesetz (LMSVG), the Food Safety and Consumer Protection Act, Austria, § 35 (2) and (3) · in German, checked 23 September 2026
6DE — applies in GermanyLebensmittel- und Futtermittelgesetzbuch (LFGB), the Food and Feed Code, Germany, § 42 (2) and § 44 (1) · in German, checked 23 September 2026
7Commission Notice 2022/C 355/01 on good hygiene practice and HACCP (guidance, not law), Annex II, point 11 (documentation) · checked 23 September 2026
8Regulation (EU) 2017/625 on official controls, Art. 15(1) · checked 23 September 2026

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