How to choose the right food safety app for your business

Maintaining strong food safety practices is essential for any hospitality business, not just for operational consistency but for meeting legal requirements under UK food safety law. 

With digital tools becoming the standard, choosing the right food safety app can make everyday compliance more efficient, organised, and transparent. But with a growing number of platforms available, knowing what to look for is key.

Below are the core elements that define a reliable digital food safety tool - along with how an app like Hubl aligns with these expectations without overcomplicating the process.

Simplicity and usability for all staff

The most effective food safety systems are the ones your team will actually use. A good app should be intuitive enough that staff can complete checks without the need for formal training or technical knowledge. 

This supports consistency, reduces user error, and helps you meet the Food Standards Agency’s expectations for clear, accurate, and timely record-keeping.

Hubl has been designed with simplicity at its core. Staff can log in and complete their checks immediately, making it suitable for teams of all experience levels.

Customisable checklists built around your operation

Every operation has slightly different procedures, so the app you choose should allow you to tailor your checklists. This is particularly important when aligning digital processes with your HACCP plan or Food Safety Management System (FSMS).

A good app should let you customise things like:

• Cleaning schedules

• Opening/closing procedures

• Managerial checks

• Operational tasks

• Site-specific workflows

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Hubl allows full customisation, supporting the legal requirement to maintain procedures based on HACCP principles.

This flexibility makes it easier to align your digital checklists with your HACCP or Food Safety Management System, helping you meet legal requirements under Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 and the FSA’s, Safer Food Better Business, guidance.

Hubl offers this level of customisation, allowing businesses to build checklists that suit their exact workflows.

Deliveries, allergens & temperature checks: essential for UK compliance

In the UK, accurate temperature monitoring, allergen documentation and delivery checks are critical elements of food safety law. 

The FSA requires businesses to:

• Check deliveries for temperature and conditions

• Provide allergen information for customers

• Monitor hot holding, cold holding, and storage temperatures

• Record all of this information accurately and consistently

  
  

A reliable food safety app should make these checks easy to complete and store.

Hubl includes dedicated tools for:

• Hot and cold temperature checks (meeting all UK laws)

• Fridge/freezer monitoring

• Delivery records and acceptance checks (including temperatures for ambient, chilled and frozen foods)

• A full allergen matrix with the 14 major allergens for customer and staff reference

  
  

All data is timestamped and stored automatically, helping you maintain the legally required evidence of safe food handling accurately. 

This ensures that, during an inspection, you can demonstrate for example that chilled and hot foods have been stored and handled within safe limits.

Multi-user access without restrictions

Food safety is a shared responsibility, so the system you choose should allow multiple staff members to log in and complete tasks without additional charges or account limitations.

This ensures every team member can play their part in maintaining daily compliance.

Hubl supports unlimited users per site, enabling full team accountability and smoother operations.

A central space for your food safety compliance documentation

A well-designed app should double as a digital filing system for essential food safety documents such as:

• HACCP/FSMS paperwork

• Staff training certificates

• EHO inspection reports

• Policies and risk assessments

  
  

Digitally storing these documents on the app not only keeps them secure but also ensures they are available when needed - particularly during an inspection. 

Hubl allows you to upload and store all key files within the app so nothing is misplaced or forgotten.

Notifications and prompts for consistent record-keeping

Checks must be carried out at the right times and recorded accurately, therefore built-in notifications help staff stay on track by prompting them to complete tasks throughout the day.

Hubl uses scheduled reminders to support consistent completion of checks, reducing the risk of missed records or non-compliance.

Quick, transparent access for EHO visits

An Environmental Health Officer will expect to see clear, organised records covering all your food safety activities. A good app should make this easy, ideally with a simple calendar view that allows anyone to pull up records for any given day.

With Hubl, EHOs can tap on a date and view all activity instantly, which helps demonstrate compliance and reduces the stress of inspections.

Oversight and reporting for management

For managers - especially those overseeing multiple sites - visibility is crucial. Reporting tools should highlight gaps, trends, and areas requiring attention, helping you maintain consistent standards across locations.

Hubl includes a reporting dashboard that offers an overview of checks, allows customisation of checklists, and sends a weekly summary directly to management.

Choosing the right food safety app is ultimately about finding a tool that supports your legal obligations, strengthens consistency, and fits naturally into your operation. 

Prioritising usability, customisation, strong documentation storage, and clear reporting will help you select a system that enhances both compliance and daily workflow.