Safe Management Measures for F&B Food and Beverage

From 21 June 2021, F&B establishments are allowed to resume food service operations, with the exception of establishments with Pubs, Bars, Nightclubs, Discos and Karaoke SFA license categories or SSIC codes starting with 5613. They must comply with the following:

F&B establishments are only permitted to seat dining groups of up to 2 persons.

F&B establishments must ensure that a safe distance of at least one metre is maintained between groups of diners to mitigate the risk of transmission. This refers to the distance between the edges of every group (of up to 2 persons) or person. In addition, F&B establishments must ensure that the furniture is arranged in such a way to facilitate safe distancing between groups – for example, the distance measured between the backs of chairs used by diners in different groups, or the legs of chairs if there is no back, must also be at least one metre apart.

Sale and consumption of alcohol in all F&B establishments are prohibited after 2230hrs daily.

This includes consumption at any outdoor refreshment area and/or tables/chairs owned or managed by such establishment. As a best practice, by around 2200hrs, F&B operators should cease the sale of alcohol as a dine-in service and remind customers to consume their alcohol by 2230hrs.

F&B establishments may serve as venues for marriage solemnisations and/or work-related events by third parties and are required to comply with the SMMs for these events (refer to Annex B for SMMs at work-related events).

Food and drinks are not permitted at these events.

F&B establishments are not allowed to play any form of recorded music or sounds, including background music.

F&B establishments providing dine-in services are to place all employees on a regular Fast and Easy Testing (FET) regime using tests such as antigen rapid test (ART), regardless of their vaccination status. The regular 14-day FET requirement will be progressively rolled out from 21 June 2021 and will be made mandatory from mid-July 2021. This can be done through employer-led supervised self-swabs.

All F&B establishments are also to note the following measures:

Ventilate and improve the indoor air quality where possible.

F&B establishments should proactively manage potential contacts of COVID-19 cases at the workplace. Refer to www.gobusiness.gov.sg/covid-faqs for more details.

Observe the protocol on disinfection for premises visited by positive COVID-19 cases. Refer to www.gobusiness.gov.sg/covid-faqs for more details.

This includes consumption by all individuals (such as customers, staff and vendors) within the F&B establishment.

The furniture should be kept/secured after close of business in such manner to prevent use.

Refer to Annex B for the SMMs on work-related events. Refer to the requirements at the GoBusiness portal for the SMMs on Marriage Solemnisations and Wedding Receptions.

The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) will be sending out notices to relevant F&B licensees required to conduct FET for their employees.

Safe management measures – Customer-facing operations/front-of-house

The following measures apply to all customer-facing operations of F&B establishments:

Queue management

Clearly demarcate queue lines, put up signage to guide customers on where to queue to order and collect food, and ensure at least one-metre spacing between individual customers at areas such as entrances and cashier counters (e.g. through floor markers).

One-metre spacing must also be maintained between queues and seated customers (e.g. remove seats that are too close to the queue if required).

Demarcate a waiting area for customers and delivery personnel to pick up their food.

Implement pre-ordering and pre-payment solutions where possible to minimise physical clustering of customers waiting to place or pick up their orders. Encourage the use of self-checkouts, cashless or contactless payment methods to reduce contact between employees and customers.

Implement contactless pick-up of food where possible to minimise interactions.

Ensure that customers and delivery personnel observe at least one-metre spacing at all times and do not cluster together.

Table and seating management

Each group must be limited to 2 or fewer persons.

F&B establishments must ensure that a safe distance of at least one metre is maintained between groups of diners to mitigate the risk of transmission.

Except for solemnisations, F&B establishments should not accept reservations or walk-ins, or allow in their premises gatherings with more than 2 persons, even if they are split across multiple tables.

There must be no mixing or intermingling between groups.

Where tables/seats are fixed, tables/seats should be marked out to accommodate groups of no more than 2 persons, while ensuring at least one-metre spacing between groups.

Self-service buffet lines are not allowed8. Food lines where diners can queue and be served by F&B employees are allowed with the necessary measures in place.

F&B establishments may use the bar counters to seat and serve meals to dine-in customers, but must ensure there is at least one-metre spacing between groups of customers.

This refers to the distance between the edges of every group (of up to 2 persons) or person. In addition, F&B establishments must ensure that the furniture is arranged in such a way to facilitate safe distancing between groups (e.g. the distance measured between the backs of chairs used by diners in different groups, or the legs of chairs if there is no back, must also be at least one metre apart).

Exceptions can only be made if all members of the group are from the same household, i.e. have the same place of residence (families living in different places of residence are not from the same household). However, they will need to be seated at multiple tables, with no more than 2 persons per table, and with at least one-metre spacing maintained between these groups. Establishments are required to verify customers’ claims that they are from the same household, and can reject entry of customers at their discretion.

This also applies to catering companies, where they are not allowed to provide self-service buffet lines. Catering companies should also reference SMMs for MICE, weddings and work-related events.

Crowd management

Radio broadcasts, all forms of television, film and video screenings and the provision or allowance of other forms of public entertainment activities such as live music, dancing and singing (by employees or customers), amusement devices, darts, billiards, pool, snooker, karaoke, gambling and/or gaming instruments (e.g. dice, mahjong tiles, playing cards) in the F&B premises are not permitted. F&B operators should make clear to customers, for instance, that singing songs, including birthday songs, is not permitted.

F&B establishments are not allowed to play any form of recorded music or sounds, including background music.

Emphatic toasting with food or drinks is disallowed, by both employees and customers. Operators should also ensure that their employees refrain from conduct that could encourage customers to make emphatic verbal toasts.

Operators of common play areas for children/toddlers/infants in F&B establishments must ensure at least one-metre spacing between groups customers.

Except for advisory videos related to safe management measures. Static images and a carousel of static images on a digital screen (e.g. of menus and promotional items) without sound are not considered to be TV/video screenings.

The list of gaming instruments is as stated in the Common Gaming House (Instruments and Appliances for Gaming) Rules.

These play areas refer to the facilities provided free-of-charge in the establishments.

Contact tracing

F&B establishments must implement SafeEntry via TraceTogether-only SafeEntry for customers and visitors, with the exception of those that only provide takeaway and/or delivery, with no dine-in services.

F&B establishments required to deploy SafeEntry for customers and visitors need to provide the SafeEntry Gateway (SEGW) as an additional option for SafeEntry check-in. SEGW is available as a feature within the SafeEntry (Business) App (updated to the latest version) and as a physical standalone device (SEGW Box). These F&B establishments may apply for a free SEGW Box.

Refer to Annex C for more details.

However, all F&B establishments must require their employees and vendors to do SafeEntry check-in via TraceTogether-only SafeEntry.

The SEGW enables contactless detection of both the TraceTogether App and Token, and serves as an additional means of SafeEntry check-in that is quicker and more seamless. It also allows users to check if their Token has run out of battery or is not working.

Refer to go.gov.sg/gateway-overview for how to implement the SEGW and apply for a free SEGW Box.

Health checks

F&B establishments must conduct temperature screening and checks on visible symptoms for customers at entrances, and advise those with fever and/or who appear unwell to visit a doctor before turning them away. Those that only provide takeaway and/or delivery are not required to do so.

Individuals with temperatures above 38 degrees Celsius are considered to be having a fever. F&B establishments with seated diners in malls need not conduct temperature screening and checks on visible symptoms for customers if the mall is already doing so. They should however do so, if they operate outside the mall hours.

Notable visible symptoms to look out for include: (a) coughing; (b) sneezing; (c) breathlessness; and (d) a runny nose.

Cleanliness and hygiene

F&B establishments must ensure that all employees, delivery personnel and other onsite personnel wear their masks properly at all times. Employees who eat or drink onsite must wear their masks immediately after doing so. Establishments should also ensure that on-site diners wear their masks before food is served and immediately after their meals, as well as when diners move around the establishment.

F&B establishments must ensure that common spaces and items, high-touch surfaces (e.g. counters, menus), interactive components (e.g. tablets, smart kiosks) as well as play areas for children/toddlers/infants are frequently cleaned/disinfected.

Communal amenities for self-service (e.g. drink dispensers and condiment stations) must not be used.

Self-service food samples are not allowed.

Hand sanitisers should be made available to employees and customers at common touchpoints (e.g. entry/exit doors, cashiers). Employees handling cash and other payment modes (e.g. credit cards) should clean or sanitise their hands before handling food and food packaging.

F&B establishments should put up clear signages to remind customers to comply with safe management requirements where applicable, and train and deploy service personnel to provide clear communication to customers on safe management measures.

F&B establishments should allow customers to use their own clean and reusable containers when ordering takeaways. This will help to reduce the amount of waste generated and ease the demand for disposable food containers.

Refer to Annex B for other recommended guidelines.

F&B establishments are allowed to place condiments and cutleries at their stall counters, as long as these are within sight of and managed directly by the employees.

Food lines served by employees

F&B establishments must cover food at the food lines with shields or other forms of barriers to minimise exposure and mitigate food contamination risk.

Employees must pick the food for customers, and ensure that customers do not have contact with the food line.

Employees must not handle food with bare hands. They must use a clean fork, tongs, scoop or other suitable utensil.

Employees must ensure that individuals queuing for food have their masks on at all times and maintain a safe distance of one-metre between individuals.

These would be on top of the existing additional SMMs that are mandated at work-related events and MICE events. For instance, each food line must not be used to serve participants from different zones at the same time. Separate food lines must be set up for each zone, where practicable. Please refer to the Safe Business Events Framework for details.

Food lines are not permitted at weddings and funerals. For funerals, F&B should not be consumed, with the exception of individually packed drinks and titbits, and individual bento boxes for family members of the deceased who keep vigil for the duration of the funeral wake. There should strictly be no sharing of drinks/ titbits at funerals.

If the use of suitable utensils is not feasible, staff must wear clean gloves to handle the food. Appropriate hand hygiene practices must be observed; for more information on hand hygiene in food handling, please refer to www.sfa.gov.sg/food-information/risk-at-a-glance/hand-hygiene-in-food-handling

Ventilation and improving indoor air quality

F&B establishments are strongly encouraged to improve ventilation and improve indoor air quality in all premises.

For premises with centrally controlled air-conditioning (e.g. in malls), F&B establishments should work with premise owners to ensure that ventilation systems are in good working order, minimise indoor air re-circulation, maximise fresh air intake and purge indoor air daily.

For all other enclosed air-conditioned spaces, F&B establishments should open operable doors and windows and keep exhaust fans (e.g. in kitchens and toilets) at full capacity to enhance air flow. Window-mounted exhaust fans should be installed where possible and portable air cleaners equipped with high-efficiency air filters such as HEPA filters may be considered as an interim measure if the windows are not operable. As a longer-term measure, establishments should also consider installing dedicated outdoor air supply such as ducted air conditioning or window mounted exhaust fans.

For naturally ventilated spaces (e.g. coffeeshops), F&B establishments should enhance ventilation with fans and similarly keep the space as open as possible.

F&B establishments may wish to refer to the Guidance Note on improving ventilation and indoor air quality in buildings issued by the Building and Construction Authority (BCA), National Environment Agency (NEA) and Ministry of Health (MOH).

This Guidance Note provides building owners and facilities managers with updated recommended measures to enhance ventilation and air quality in indoor spaces.

Refer to BCA’s website for the note.

Safe management measures – workplace premises/back of house/kitchen

To ensure COVID-safe workplaces, F&B establishments should adhere to measures as outlined in MOM’s Requirements for Safe Management Measures at the workplace, and take care of their workers, workplaces and those who may become unwell at their workplaces.

Employers must ensure no cross-deployment across worksites , i.e. no employee should work at more than one worksite.

If cross-deployment cannot be avoided (e.g. due to the nature of the job), additional safeguards must be taken to minimise the risk of cross infection.

For venues that have been visited by positive COVID-19 cases and asked to close by the Ministry of Health (MOH), employees should not be redeployed to other worksites at all for the period of closure. If instructed to go for swabs, employers must ensure that their employees from these venues visit the designated Regional Screening Centre, “Swab and Send Home” (SASH) Public Health Preparedness Clinics or mobile swab sites for the COVID-19 test offered by MOH. These employees should stay at home and minimise social interactions during the period of closure even if their swab results are negative. They should also monitor their health closely, and visit a doctor immediately if unwell.

This information is from https://www.enterprisesg.gov.sg/covid-19/safe-distance

So that you can develop and implement the safe management measures. We all need to do our part to keep everyone safe.

Your company can also send its staff for Safety Management Officer Courses at https://www.simplysafety.com.sg/safe-management-officer-courseOr use the free Safe Management Measures toolkit athttps://safemanagementmeasures.com/