SDS Register & Chemical Register Software
Keep a chemical register with a current Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for every cleaning product, hazard ratings, storage, SDS expiry, and flags for chemicals missing an SDS.
How to get started with Chemicals & SDS
- Add each cleaning and sanitising chemical with its manufacturer, use, hazard rating and storage location. Work through the cupboard once and your venue's chemical register is complete.
- Link the current Safety Data Sheet to each chemical and set its review date. FoodSafety HQ flags any product still missing a sheet so you can chase it from the supplier.
- Review flagged and ageing sheets, confirm safe storage, and produce a current SDS for any chemical in seconds when an auditor or council officer asks.
Frequently asked questions
What is a Safety Data Sheet (SDS)?
A Safety Data Sheet is the manufacturer's document for a chemical product. It sets out the chemical's hazards, safe handling and storage, first-aid measures, and what to do in a spill or emergency. For a food business, the relevant SDSs cover cleaning and sanitising products, and each should be readily accessible to the staff who use them.
Do food businesses need a chemical register?
Keeping a register of the hazardous chemicals used and stored on site, with a current SDS for each, is good practice and part of Work Health and Safety obligations. For food venues that means listing your cleaning and sanitising chemicals, linking each to its SDS, and storing products safely away from food. FoodSafety HQ gives you that register in a form councils and auditors can review quickly. It supports your food-safety program but is not a substitute for full WHS advice.
How often should an SDS be updated?
An SDS should be kept current, and manufacturers generally reissue Safety Data Sheets at least every five years. A sheet approaching or past five years old is a prompt to check with the supplier for a newer revision. FoodSafety HQ stores a review date against each SDS and highlights sheets that are ageing out so your register stays current.
How does FoodSafety HQ flag chemicals with no SDS?
When you add a chemical to the register without a linked Safety Data Sheet, FoodSafety HQ marks it as missing an SDS. That turns an easy-to-miss gap into a visible task, so you can request the sheet from the manufacturer or supplier before your next audit or council inspection rather than being caught without it.
Where should cleaning chemicals be stored in a food business?
Cleaning and sanitising chemicals must be stored safely and well away from food, packaging and food-contact surfaces to prevent contamination, ideally in a dedicated, clearly identified area. FoodSafety HQ records a storage location against each chemical, giving you a documented answer for auditors and a quick way to confirm hazardous products aren't kept near open stock.
Do I need any special hardware for the chemical register?
No. FoodSafety HQ is software only, there's no scanner, sensor or dedicated device to buy. You build and access the register from any phone, tablet or computer, which is what makes each Safety Data Sheet readily accessible to staff wherever they're working in the venue.