Yes — in most cases, aged care facilities in Australia are required to have at least one certified Food Safety Supervisor on staff. Aged care providers serve some of the most vulnerable members of our community, making food safety compliance not just a legal obligation but a moral one.
Under Standard 3.2.2A of the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code, any food business that handles unpackaged ready-to-eat food — including aged care facilities — must ensure at least one staff member holds a nationally recognised Food Safety Supervisor Certificate. The certificate consists of two units: SITXFSA005 and SITXFSA006. These cover temperature control, personal hygiene, cross-contamination prevention, and proper food handling practices.
Melbourne Tech Institute (RTO #45799) offers this qualification 100% online for $129. It delivers the hospitality units SITXFSA005 and SITXFSA006, so check the next section first: in Victoria, Queensland and the ACT an aged care kitchen needs the health units HLTFSE001, HLTFSE005 and HLTFSE007 instead, and this course is not the right one there. Where the hospitality units do suit your facility, aged care managers, kitchen supervisors and care workers can complete the course in their own time - most people need about 6-8 hours, and the certificate is emailed within 1 business day of your assessment and your observer's report landing. Not sure which applies? Contact us and we will tell you straight, or see the aged care guide.
Exactly how that plays out depends on your state. Victoria classifies aged care as a class 1 premises — one that serves food to vulnerable people — and requires Victorian aged care kitchens to appoint a Food Safety Supervisor, with no fixed renewal period under the state's current guidance. New South Wales applies its rule to retail and hospitality businesses serving unpackaged, ready-to-eat food, requiring at least one supervisor per premises — but licensed aged care facilities are expressly exempt from it — and it layers its own NSW Food Safety Supervisor certificate on top of the national units — see how that affects aged care providers in NSW. In Queensland, every category 1 and category 2 licensed food business needs a certified supervisor, and for Queensland aged care facilities the units are HLTFSE001, HLTFSE005 and HLTFSE007, not the two hospitality units, and Western Australia and South Australia apply the equivalent category 1 and 2 rule under Standard 3.2.2A, in force in both states since 8 December 2023 — our WA and SA aged care pages set out what each expects. One detail to know before you enrol: this course delivers the hospitality units SITXFSA005 and SITXFSA006. Victoria, Queensland and the ACT require the health units HLTFSE001, HLTFSE005 and HLTFSE007 for aged care, which Melbourne Tech Institute does not deliver, so it is not the right course for an aged care kitchen in those states. NSW aged care is licensed with the Food Authority and is exempt from the NSW supervisor rule altogether. Contact us if you're not sure which applies to your facility.
Ready to get certified? Melbourne Tech Institute (RTO #45799) delivers the nationally recognised Food Safety Supervisor course (SITXFSA005 & SITXFSA006) 100% online for $129 — with your certificate issued within one business day.
More detail for your sector: Food Safety Supervisor requirements for aged care →