What share of UK mobile caterers have a 5-star food hygiene rating?

88.2% of UK mobile caterers hold the top 5-star Food Standards Agency hygiene rating — 20,501 of 23,235 rated premises in England, Wales and Northern Ireland — with an average rating of 4.82 out of 5. That is above the all-business-type UK average of 78.2%. Data as of 2026-06-12.

How many UK mobile caterers have a low (0 or 1 star) hygiene rating?

0.6% of rated UK mobile caterers (151 premises) score 0 or 1 star, the FSA's lowest bands. A low share here means most lower-rated premises sit at 3–4 stars, not at the bottom.

What do UK mobile caterers score worst on at inspection?

Across the FSA's three inspection components — Hygiene (food handling), Structural (cleanliness and condition) and Confidence in Management — UK mobile caterers score worst, relative to each band, on confidence in management. Lower component scores are better; this reflects where inspectors most often note room for improvement, not unsafe food.

UK Mobile caterers Food Hygiene Ratings 2026

Quick answer

88.2% of UK mobile caterers hold the top 5-star food hygiene rating.

Across 23,235 rated mobile caterers, 20,501 (88.2%) carry the maximum 5-star Food Standards Agency rating and the average rating is 4.82 out of 5. That is above the all-business-type UK average of 78.2% (+10 percentage points). 0.6% (151) score 0 or 1 star.

Rating distribution

Every one of the 23,235 rated mobile caterers, by their 0–5 Food Hygiene Rating.

5 — Very good

20,501 (88.2%)

4 — Good

1,870 (8%)

3 — Generally satisfactory

554 (2.4%)

2 — Improvement necessary

159 (0.7%)

1 — Major improvement necessary

140 (0.6%)

0 — Urgent improvement necessary

11 (0%)

Where mobile caterers score worst

The FSA scores three things at every inspection. Each bar is the mean sub-score for mobile caterers — lower is better (0 = no issues found). Computed over 23,110 rated premises that carried all three sub-scores.

Hygiene (food handling, storage, cooking)2.1 / 25

Structural (cleanliness, layout, condition)2.5 / 25

Confidence in management (record-keeping, controls)3.1 / 30

For mobile caterers, the component dragging ratings down most — relative to its own scoring band — is confidence in management. A higher sub-score there means more inspections flagged that area for improvement. It does not mean the food is unsafe: only 0.6% of rated mobile caterers sit at 0–1 star.

Compare

UK Food Hygiene by Business Type 2026 — all 14 categories ranked, restaurants vs takeaways and more.
The State of UK Restaurant Hygiene 2026 — national pass rate, best and worst local authorities.
UK Food Hygiene Ratings Directory — search the full dataset by local authority and postcode.
GeraCompliance — food safety and regulatory checks for businesses.

Methodology

Figures are computed directly from the Food Standards Agency Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS) public register, restricted to premises the FSA classifies as "Mobile caterer" in England, Wales and Northern Ireland that carry a published 0–5 rating (23,235 premises). Percentages are over rated premises only. Scotland's separate FHIS pass/fail scheme is excluded so the five-star metric stays comparable. The average rating is the count-weighted mean of the 0–5 ratings. The three component sub-scores are the FSA's own Hygiene (0–25), Structural (0–25) and Confidence-in-Management (0–30) bands, where a lower score is better; the means shown are count-weighted over premises carrying all three. No figures are estimated or modelled. Food hygiene data © Crown copyright, Food Standards Agency, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Data as of 2026-06-12.