Safety rules
Food safety rules
Rizq Rasan sells food rather than giving it away, so Pakistan's food laws apply in full. These are the rules every listing and every pickup will follow.
What can be listed
We start with low-risk food
Food categories open in stages. Cooked food waits until the pilot has shown the rules work.
From the start of the pilot
- Tandoor breads: naan, roti, paratha, sheermal
- Plain bakery: bread, buns, rusk, plain cake
- Mithai and desserts without cream
- Fruit and vegetables
- Packaged and dry goods: atta, rice, daal, oil, biscuits
- Drinks and juices
From 1 February 2027
Cooked food opens 4 weeks after the pilot starts, but only if there has been no food incident in that time:
- Cooked rice: biryani, pulao
- Curries, daal, haleem, nihari, salan
- Fried snacks and iftar items: samosa, pakora, rolls
Later, in Phase 2
Foods that need a strict cold chain open after launch:
- Bakery with cream, custard or filling
- Dairy: milk, dahi, paneer, lassi
Never allowed
What can't be listed
Some food is never allowed, whatever the category. Raw meat, poultry and fish are also left out while the platform starts.
Before publishing, every vendor confirms two statements: "This food was never served to customers and is not a plate return" and "This food has been stored correctly and is safe to eat."
Not allowed on Rizq Rasan
- Food past its use-by date
- Home-cooked food
- Plate returns or part-eaten food
- Opened dairy drinks
- Recalled products
- Alcohol and tobacco
- Raw meat, poultry and fish, for now
- Frozen food, except packaged goods up to their label date
Time limits
How long each kind of food can be listed
Each category sets the longest time food can be listed for, by how it's stored. The safe-until time fills itself in from these limits. A vendor can shorten it, but never extend it.
| Food | Room temperature | Hot-held, 60°C or more | Chilled, 5°C or less | Opens |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tandoor breads (naan, roti, paratha, sheermal) | 18 hours | Not allowed | 18 hours | Pilot start |
| Plain bakery (bread, buns, rusk, plain cake) | 24 hours | Not allowed | 24 hours | Pilot start |
| Bakery with cream, custard or filling | Not allowed | Not allowed | 6 hours | Phase 2 |
| Cooked rice (biryani, pulao) | 2 hours | 4 hours | 24 hours, if chilled within 2 hours of cooking | 1 February 2027 |
| Curries, daal, haleem, nihari, salan | 2 hours | 4 hours | 24 hours, if chilled within 2 hours of cooking | 1 February 2027 |
| Fried snacks and iftar items (samosa, pakora, rolls) | 2 hours | 4 hours | 24 hours, if chilled within 2 hours of cooking | 1 February 2027 |
| Mithai and desserts without cream | 48 hours | Not allowed | 48 hours | Pilot start |
| Fruit and vegetables | 72 hours | Not allowed | 72 hours | Pilot start |
| Dairy (milk, dahi, paneer, lassi) | Not allowed | Not allowed | Label date | Phase 2 |
| Packaged and dry goods (atta, rice, daal, oil, biscuits) | Label date | Not allowed | Label date | Pilot start |
| Drinks and juices | Label date | Not allowed | Label date | Pilot start |
When the clock starts
Cooked food, bakery and mithai count from the time they were cooked or baked. Fruit and vegetables count from when the listing is published. Packaged goods, dairy and drinks follow the use-by or best-before date on the pack.
Cooked food left at room temperature gets at most 2 hours, counted from when it was set out. This follows the 2-hour rule of Food Standards Australia New Zealand for food between 5°C and 60°C. Hot-held food is capped at 4 hours as our own quality limit.
Mixed trays
A tray with more than one kind of food takes the strictest limit of anything in it. The vendor ticks which categories the tray contains.
These limits follow the WHO Five Keys to Safer Food and the FSANZ 2-hour and 4-hour rule. They will be confirmed with a food-safety adviser or the Islamabad Food Authority before launch.
Hot months rule. From May to September, cooked food can't be listed at room temperature at all. It must be hot-held at 60°C or more, or chilled to 5°C or less, because 2 hours at 40°C is not safe.
For vendors
Rules for vendors
The vendor is responsible for the food until it's handed over. These rules apply to every listing.
Before you list
- Hold a valid Islamabad Food Authority licence. We check it before you can list.
- List only food that was never served to customers.
- Pick the right category, so the right time limit applies.
- Tell us within 24 hours about any food incident or action by the Islamabad Food Authority.
Describe it honestly
- Add 1 to 3 real photos of the food. The first photo is required.
- Give the quantity and an estimated weight.
- Enter when it was cooked or baked, and copy the use-by or best-before date from the pack for packaged goods and drinks.
- Mark allergens and whether it contains beef, mutton, chicken or fish, so NGOs can serve it safely. Halal shows as "vendor-declared" unless you upload a halal certificate.
Store and pack it safely
- Keep chilled food at 5°C or below and hot-held food at 60°C or above until handover.
- Say how it's packed: sealed containers, foil trays, or loose, in which case the NGO brings its own containers.
- Cooked food stored chilled must have been chilled within 2 hours of cooking.
Set a safe pickup window
- The window must be at least 30 minutes long.
- Pickup must end at least 30 minutes before the food's safe-until time.
- Pickup must end at least 60 minutes after you publish, so NGOs have time to claim, pay and travel.
- Hand food over only when the collector gives the right 4-digit code, and let them check it first.
For NGOs
Rules for NGOs
Once the food is handed over, the NGO is responsible for it. These rules apply to every pickup.
Check it at pickup
- Look at the food, smell it and check its temperature before the pickup code is entered.
- If anything seems unsafe, don't take it. Tap "Refuse food" and add a photo. You're refunded in full straight away.
- If the listing says the food is loose, bring your own clean containers.
Carry it safely
- Take the food straight to your kitchen or distribution point.
- Keep chilled food cold and hot food hot on the way.
Serve it in time
- Serve or refrigerate cooked food as soon as it arrives.
- Never serve food after its safe-until time.
- If you cook or reheat food, you may need your own Islamabad Food Authority licence. We'll confirm this before launch.
Give it, never sell it
- Food claimed through Rizq Rasan is for the people you serve. Reselling it means permanent removal.
- Keep a simple log of where the food went.
- Report any problem with the food within 24 hours of pickup.
Responsibility
Who is responsible for what
Food safety sits with the vendor until handover and with the NGO after it. Rizq Rasan doesn't prepare, store, transport or inspect food.
| Who | Responsible for |
|---|---|
| Vendor | Holding valid licences. Food that is safe, within date, correctly described and labelled. Storing it safely until handover. Any defect in the food at handover. |
| NGO | Inspecting the food at pickup and refusing it if it's unsafe. Carrying it safely. Serving it within its time limit. Keeping a simple distribution log. Never reselling it. |
| Rizq Rasan | Checking every business and NGO before they join. Setting and enforcing these rules, including suspending anyone who breaks them. Handling disputes fairly. Rizq Rasan is a technology platform that connects the two sides. It never prepares, stores, transports or inspects food. |
Incidents
How to report a food safety problem
Food-safety cases go to the top of our queue. We expect most pickups between 8 pm and midnight, so someone from our team will be on call every evening.
Until the platform opens, or if you can't use it, email us at hello@rizqrasan.pk.
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Get help first
If someone may be ill from the food, get medical help before anything else.
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Report it
On the platform, use "Report a problem" on the order, with what went wrong, up to 3 photos and how much you received. Or email us.
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We act on it
With one action, our team can freeze every live listing from that vendor in the same category and warn every NGO that collected food from the same batch. We keep the photos and timeline and cooperate with the Islamabad Food Authority.
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We decide
Both sides are heard, and the decision goes to both in writing. An upheld complaint means a full or partial refund for the NGO and a strike for the vendor.
FAQ
Questions about safety
How do you keep the food safe?
Every category has a time limit, cooked food can spend at most 2 hours at room temperature, and we start with low-risk food such as bread, bakery, produce and packaged goods. Vendors must hold a food licence, and collectors check the food before taking it.
What if the food looks unsafe at pickup?
Don't take it. Tap "Refuse food" on the collector pass and add a photo. You are refunded in full straight away, and our team looks into it.
Is the food halal?
Vendors declare whether food is halal. Listings show "halal-certified" only when the vendor has uploaded a halal certificate. Listings show any allergens and meat types the vendor declares.
Good food deserves a second chance.
Rizq Rasan launches across Islamabad on 22 March 2027. Register your interest and we'll invite you as soon as there's a place.