Freshcare FSQ5: what is actually confirmed

FSQ5 has not been released. This page contains only what Freshcare has published — the transition dates and their own list of what is changing — plus a plain statement of what nobody outside Freshcare knows yet.

The confirmed dates

Freshcare's published transition timeline. The wording is theirs; the source is freshcare.com.au/fsq5, which at the time of writing describes itself as “a work in progress”.

Two practical consequences. If you are certifying for the first time, the FSQ5 deadline that matters to you is 1 March 2027, not July. And FSQ4.2 has a defined end: 30 June 2027 is the last day it can be audited at all.

What Freshcare says is changing

Six changes are listed on their page. These are Freshcare's own headings, quoted exactly — we have added no interpretation of what any of them will require, because that detail is not published.

• “Food Safety and Supply Chain programs become a single unified standard”
• “Improved structure and clearer requirements”
• “Strengthened Food Safety Management System”
• “Stronger emphasis on risk assessment”
• “Enhanced Food Safety Culture”
• “Biosecurity requirements introduced”

Freshcare has also said that most changes clarify existing requirements rather than introduce entirely new obligations, and that most of what a certified business already does puts it well on the way.

What nobody knows yet

Everything below is genuinely open until the standard is published:

• The requirements themselves — no clause text has been published.
• The element numbering, and whether anything maps cleanly onto FSQ4.2's M and F elements.
• Which records and forms change, and what new evidence an auditor will ask for.
• What the biosecurity requirements involve.
• What the supply chain merge means for a grower who has never held SCS2.

What is worth doing now

The records underneath any edition of a food safety standard are the same ones: what was applied, to which block, by whom, under what withholding period, with which calibrated equipment, and whether you can trace a carton back to it. Those are FSQ4.2 requirements today and they are not going to stop mattering.

If those records currently live in a diary in the ute, the transition will be a much bigger job than it needs to be. If they are already captured as the work happens, a new edition is a change of forms. See how AgriGrid handles FSQ 4.2 record keeping — that is the standard being audited today.

What AgriGrid will do

We will implement FSQ5 once it is published and we can read it. We are not going to announce coverage of requirements we have not seen, and we will not claim FSQ5 readiness before the standard exists. What AgriGrid implements today is FSQ4.2 — all 44 elements, with the audit pack built from your own records.

If you would like a note when FSQ5 lands and we have read it, email us and we will put you on the list.

Common questions

Has FSQ5 been released?

No. Freshcare's own FSQ5 page describes itself as “a work in progress”, with release scheduled for 1 September 2026. Until it is published, nobody outside Freshcare knows what it requires — and you should be sceptical of any software vendor who tells you otherwise.

When do I have to be audited against FSQ5?

Freshcare's published timeline: initial certification audits must be conducted to FSQ5 from 1 March 2027, the last date for audits to FSQ4.2 and SCS2 is 30 June 2027, and from 1 July 2027 all audits must be conducted to FSQ5.

Should I stop working on FSQ4.2?

No. FSQ4.2 is the standard you are audited against today, and it stays that way until at least 30 June 2027 depending on where you sit in your certification cycle. A certification you earn in the meantime is a certification.

Will AgriGrid support FSQ5?

Yes. AgriGrid is built around Freshcare compliance, and we will implement FSQ5 once the standard is published and we can read it. What AgriGrid implements today is FSQ4.2.

What can I usefully do before it lands?

Keep the records that any edition of a food safety standard is built on: what was applied, where, by whom, with which withholding period and which calibrated equipment. Freshcare has said the changes largely clarify existing requirements rather than replace them, so records kept properly now are not wasted work.

Last reviewed 27 July 2026. Dates and change list are Freshcare's and may be revised by them — check freshcare.com.au/fsq5 for the current position. AgriGrid is not affiliated with Freshcare Ltd.