Food Hygiene Ratings

The Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS) is a UK system run by the Food Standards Agency in partnership with local authorities to assess and publish food hygiene standards in businesses. This helps people to choose where to eat out or shop for food by providing clear information about businesses’ hygiene standards.

A food safety officer from the local authority inspects a business to check that it follows food hygiene law so that the food is safe to eat.

At the inspection, the officer will check the following three elements:

• how hygienically the food is handled – how it is prepared, cooked, re-heated, cooled and stored

• the physical condition of the business –including cleanliness, layout, lighting, ventilation, pest control and other facilities

• how the business manages ways of keeping food safe, looking at processes, training and systems to ensure good hygiene is maintained.

The officer can then assess the level of confidence in standards being maintained in the future.

The scheme gives businesses a rating from 5 to 0 which is displayed at their premises and online so that consumers can make more informed choices about where to buy and eat food.

• 5 – hygiene standards are very good and fully comply with the law

• 4 – hygiene standards are good

• 3 – hygiene standards are generally satisfactory

• 2 – some improvement is necessary

• 1 – major improvement is necessary

• 0 – urgent improvement is required

Ratings are not a guide to food quality, but are a snapshot of the standards of food hygiene found at the time of inspection. It is the responsibility of the business to comply with food hygiene law at all times. Ratings will move on a regular basis, and values shown on the Food Hygiene Ratings website are updated daily.

This includes:

• handling of food

• how food is stored

• how food is prepared

• cleanliness of facilities

• how food safety is managed

The food hygiene rating scheme does not provide information on the following factors:

• quality of the food

• customer service

• culinary skill

• presentation

• comfort

Ratings are published online as a searchable tool here: Search for ratings | Food Hygiene Ratings and as open data here:

Download ratings data | title

There are two groups of exempt businesses which are inspected by the local authority food safety officer but are not given a food hygiene rating:

• businesses that are low-risk to public health, for example, newsagents, chemist shops or visitor centres selling pre-wrapped goods that do not require refrigeration; and

• childminders and businesses that offer caring services at home.

As a single snapshot, for illustrative purposes, taken on 5th October 2026, Surrey has a total of 9,142 food businesses under the scheme. 491 are exempt from a rating ( ), 1 is awaiting publication of inspection, and 745 are awaiting inspection. Of those with a Food Hygiene Rating awarded (8,175) 80% are rated as grade 5 ('very good') and 92% rated as grade 4 or above ('good' or 'very good'). See table beneath for this particular snapshot:

Again, as a single snapshot, for illustrative purposes, taken on 5th October 2026, the breakdown of food businesses by categorisations and current grading in the county is given beneath: