What Safer Food Scores does

Safer Food Scores Ltd is a UK-based food safety and health & safety consultancy headquartered in Berkhamsted, founded in 2009. The company combines three integrated lines of business: (1) bespoke food safety, allergen, H&S, labelling, and accreditation-membership (SALSA, BRCGS, Coeliac UK) consultancy delivered through recurring service contracts and one-off projects; (2) accredited training from Level 1 to Level 4 across food safety, health & safety, HACCP, allergens, fire safety, and (more recently) IEMA environmental sustainability, delivered face-to-face at seven UK regional venues, on-site at client premises, via live virtual classroom, and through an e-learning platform with volume-based pricing; and (3) the proprietary A Safer Risk SaaS platform — a cloud-based compliance management system with modules for audit, HACCP, incident, training, and risk management, plus iOS/Android mobile apps and an SFS Hub client portal. The company is the Government-approved Primary Authority Co-ordinating Partner with Milton Keynes Council (MKC), which gives its clients legal protection against inconsistent Environmental Health Officer enforcement across England.

Customers span enterprise hotels and hospitality (The Stafford London, Langham Hotels, Pentahotels, Hawksmoor, Hurlingham Club, Salisbury Pubs), food manufacturing (Fooditude, Global Infusion Group, Body Plus Nutrition), contract catering and central/dark kitchens, multi-site schools and government catering (Hertfordshire County Council — 400+ school kitchens), healthcare settings, retail, and trade-association-affiliated craft bakers and butchers. The company structures go-to-market around long-term service contracts (typically 6-monthly audit cycles with dedicated consultants), enterprise field sales, and self-serve e-learning for volume buyers. Pricing models include recurring consultancy retainers, SaaS subscriptions for A Safer Risk, per-course training fees (£4-£675 depending on level and format), tiered e-learning with minimum 10-course commitments valid for two years, and unit-priced physical products such as pre-printed shelf-life labels.

Revenue is generated primarily through subscription and recurring service contracts (consultancy retainers, software subscriptions, e-learning credits), supplemented by one-time training fees, per-event and on-site training, accreditation-membership mentorship project fees, and Physical product sales (shelf-life labels). Distribution runs through direct website and phone sales, on-site consultancy, the regional training venue network, a self-serve e-learning platform, and channel partnerships with the Craft Bakers Association and National Craft Butchers trade associations.

Name

Safer Food Scores

Legal name

Safer Food Scores Ltd

Website

https://saferfoodscores.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Safer Food Scores is a UK-based food safety and health & safety consultancy, accredited training provider, and SaaS vendor (A Safer Risk) serving hospitality, food manufacturing, education catering, healthcare, and trade association members across the United Kingdom.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Food Safety Consulting

akta.pro primary industry

Food Safety Auditing & Inspection Services (GFSI/Third-Party Audits) (AFALAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Pre-Assessment, Gap Assessment & Certification Readiness Services (AFALACAE), Regulatory Compliance Testing (Microbiological, Chemical, Allergen) (AFALADAA), Labeling & Claims Compliance Review (Nutrition, Allergen, Country-of-Origin) (AFALADAF), Sanitation & Hygienic Design Compliance (SSOPs, GMPs) (AFALADAJ), Food Safety, Compliance & Quality Assurance (EDALADAK)

Keywords

• Food safety consulting
• Compliance management software
• HACCP training
• Health safety audits
• Food hygiene ratings

Headquarters

HQ city

Berkhamsted

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Consultancy Services: Ongoing service contracts (Complete Compliance, Food Hygiene, Health & Safety) providing regular audits, telephone assistance, emergency call-out, and legislative updates. Also includes one-off project work for specific compliance needs.
2. Training Courses: Accredited training courses at Levels 1-4 for Food Safety, Health & Safety, Fire Safety, HACCP, Allergens, and more. Delivered face-to-face at venues, on-site, or via live virtual classroom. Course fees range from £85-£675 depending on level and format.
3. E-learning Subscriptions: Online courses with volume-based pricing tiers. Minimum purchase of 10 courses valid for 2 years. Scale-based pricing from £4 per course (100+) to £170 per course (1-4). Includes access to learning management system.
4. Compliance Software (A Safer Risk): SaaS platform subscription for compliance management covering audits, HACCP, training, and risk. Real-time dashboards and cloud-based access for managing multiple sites.
5. Primary Authority Partnership Services: Arrangement and coordination of Primary Authority Partnerships with local authorities, providing legal protection against inconsistent enforcement for clients.
6. Specialist Services: Additional services including food label compliance checks, nutritional analysis, allergen audits, mentoring for SALSA/BRCGS accreditation, fire risk assessments, and legal support.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Safer Food Scores is a UK food safety and health & safety consultancy that delivers on-site audits, HACCP plan development, allergen management, and accreditation mentoring alongside accredited Levels 1–4 training courses and a proprietary cloud-based compliance software platform (A Safer Risk). Services are delivered through service contracts, one-off projects, e-learning, face-to-face training, and live virtual classrooms to food businesses across hospitality, manufacturing, retail, education, and healthcare sectors.

Product overview

Safer Food Scores operates as a unified compliance solutions provider combining consultancy services, accredited training, and proprietary compliance software. The core software platform is A Safer Risk, a cloud-based system that manages audits, HACCP, health & safety, and risk in one place. This platform is complemented by specialized software modules for digital monitoring diaries, audit management, incident management, training management, and risk assessment. The consultancy division delivers food hygiene, allergen management, health & safety, food labelling, and accreditation mentorship (SALSA, BRC) services. Training is delivered through both face-to-face courses (Level 1-4 in food safety, health & safety, HACCP, allergens, fire safety) and a comprehensive e-learning platform. Additional products include food sample testing services, food date labels, and Primary Authority partnerships providing regulatory protection.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• A Safer Risk: Compliance management software platform for audits, HACCP, training and risk management

Products and services

• A Safer Risk Cloud-based compliance management software that consolidates audits, HACCP, health & safety, risk assessments, incident reporting, and corrective actions into one system, replacing spreadsheets and disconnected tools. Targets food businesses needing multi-site compliance visibility.
• HACCP Plans and Food Safety Management Systems Development and review of HACCP plans and food safety management systems tailored to food manufacturing, hospitality, and retail operations, designed to achieve and maintain high food hygiene ratings and pass EHO inspections.
• Food Hygiene Audits Independent food hygiene audits of premises with cloud-based action plans and food hygiene rating predictions, typically delivered on a 6-monthly cycle for ongoing contract clients across hospitality and food service.
• Food Hygiene Consultancy Complete food hygiene service contracts including procedural manuals, audits, enforcement liaison, and ongoing regulatory compliance support for food businesses.
• Food Allergens Consultancy Comprehensive allergen management services including risk assessments, policy development, audits, incident management, and Coeliac UK accreditation support for food businesses.
• Health and Safety Consultancy Health and safety policy development, risk assessments, audits, and ISO 45001 accreditation mentoring services for employers needing workplace compliance support.
• Food Label Compliance Checks Expert review of food labels for legal compliance, covering pre-packaged and PPDS foods under Natasha's Law guidance, plus nutritional analysis services.
• SALSA Accreditation Mentorship End-to-end mentorship for small food manufacturers to achieve SALSA food safety accreditation, including gap analysis, HACCP plans, and audit support.
• BRC Accreditation Mentorship Mentorship and gap analysis services for achieving BRC Global food safety certification for manufacturers and distributors seeking GFSI-recognised standards.
• Food Sample Testing Food sampling, surface swabbing, and shelf-life testing through UKAS accredited laboratory partnerships, with expert interpretation of results for clients.
• Primary Authority Partnership Government-approved partnership arrangement providing legal protection against inconsistent EHO enforcement through MKC (Milton Keynes Council) for Safer Food Scores clients.
• Food Date Labels Pre-printed shelf-life labels for ambient, chilled, frozen, defrosted, and opened foods with peelable adhesive suitable for freezer application, sold in minimum 50-roll batches.
• Food Hygiene Training Courses Accredited food hygiene training from Level 1 to Level 4 awards, including HACCP and auditing courses, certified by Highfield Qualifications and delivered face-to-face, live virtual, or e-learning.
• Health and Safety Training Courses Level 1 to Level 3 health and safety training courses including risk assessment qualifications, certified by Highfield Qualifications.
• Fire Safety Training Courses Level 1 and Level 2 fire safety awareness and management training courses.
• Environmental Sustainability Courses IEMA accredited environmental sustainability skills courses for workforce and managers covering sustainability in business.
• E-Learning Platform Online learning management system with full suite of food hygiene, health & safety, fire, allergen, and personal development courses sold on tiered volume subscriptions.

Quantifiable outcome

• Achieve 5 out of 5 food hygiene ratings
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers21 records

Segments9 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• MKC (Milton Keynes Council)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary Authority Co-ordinating Partnership providing Government-approved food safety management systems and health & safety management systems. EHOs must consult MKC before requiring alternative procedures from SFS clients.
• UKAS Accredited LaboratoriescoreTechnology or IntegrationPartnership with UKAS accredited laboratories for food sampling, water testing, surface swabbing, and lab testing. Lab facilities used by major UK supermarkets. SFS interprets results and provides expert reports.
• Highfield QualificationscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAwarding body for Safer Food Scores training courses. Highfield Qualifications is highly respected and environmental health officers can be confident that course content meets legal training requirements.
• Craft Bakers Association (CBA)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOfficial food hygiene and health & safety consultants for CBA. Free advisory helpline for members. 10% discount on SFS services for CBA members. Services include training, audits, labelling, allergen management.
• National Craft Butchers (NCB)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOfficial food and health & safety consultants for NCB. Free advisory helpline for members. 10% discount on SFS services for NCB members. Expanded management systems covering food safety, health & safety, and trading standards.
• HSQC SaferpestminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLong-term pest control partnership spanning over 10 years, working together to provide comprehensive food safety services.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• SGS: Global TIC leader providing food testing, certification audits (BRCGS, FSSC 22000), and inspection services. Competes with SFS in food manufacturing and certification mentoring, especially for larger enterprise clients.
• WorkNest: UK health & safety, HR, and employment law consultancy with a SaaS compliance platform. Comparable to SFS on H&S delivery model and software-led customer engagement, but broader scope.
• Ellis Whittam: UK-based employment law, HR, and health & safety compliance provider serving SMEs and mid-market operators. Overlaps with SFS on health & safety but is broader/incumbent in HR and legal.
• Citation Group: Large UK compliance provider covering HR, employment law, health & safety, and food safety with subscription platforms. Wider portfolio than SFS and a meaningfully larger commercial footprint, but with overlapping products in H&S and food safety.
• Bureau Veritas: Global Testing, Inspection & Certification (TIC) major offering food safety audits, certification, and lab testing. Broad incumbent competing with SFS for multi-site enterprise and BRCGS-mandated manufacturers.

Direct peers

• Shield Safety Group: UK-based food safety and health & safety consultancy offering audits, training, and compliance software to hospitality, retail, and care operators. Closely comparable in target customers, service mix, and UK-wide field-consultant model.
• Food Alert: UK food safety and health & safety consultancy providing audits, training, compliance software, and Primary Authority-style services to restaurants, hotels, and food manufacturers. Directly competes across SFS's core verticals.

Emerging players

• SafetyCulture: Global mobile-first inspection and compliance platform (iAuditor) used by food, hospitality, and manufacturing operators. Competes with A Safer Risk on the software side and pressures traditional audit-led consultancies with a self-serve model.

Others

• Highfield Qualifications: UK awarding body that certifies SFS training courses. Acts as a standards-and-accreditation partner rather than competitor, but it is a key dependency for SFS's training revenue and credibility.
• SALSA (Small and Local Supplier Approval): UK food safety certification scheme for small food producers. SFS mentors clients toward SALSA accreditation, so SALSA is both a partnership channel and a structural enabler of SFS's accreditation-mentoring revenue line.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/saferfoodscores

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Safer Food Scores