Commercial Kitchen Flooring: Requirements and Options

Food-premises rules in Australia require kitchen floors that can be cleaned effectively, do not absorb grease, food particles or water, and do not allow ponding. Councils usually point to Food Standards Code Standard 3.2.3 and the AS 4674 design guide. Check the current texts and your own council before you choose a floor.

What the rules ask for

The sources we found, which are trade articles and council guides rather than the legal text, summarise the floor provisions of Standard 3.2.3 (Food Premises and Equipment) like this: floors must suit the activities in the premises, be able to be effectively cleaned, be unable to absorb grease, food particles or water, have no ponding, and as far as practicable be unable to harbour pests. A council guide describes a smooth, waterproof, durable finish with no open joints. Councils usually refer to AS 4674-2004 as the companion design guide. We did not confirm the current edition of either document.

Coving, cracks and slip

• Coving. A Victorian council guide says floor coving should be sealed, rounded and carried up the walls and partitions to a height of 75 mm. Requirements differ between councils, so ask yours.
• Cracks. Damaged concrete should be repaired promptly because concrete is porous and can harbour bacteria. See concrete crack repair.
• Slip resistance. Floors in food facilities need to be non-slip, with the level matched to the activity. AS 4586 rates wet slip resistance from P1 to P5. Which rating suits a kitchen is a question for the designer and council, not for this page.

Floor options

Options include seamless resin systems and tiles, among others. Our sources describe the requirements above but do not rank the options, so we do not. Epoxy is covered in what is epoxy flooring, and resin choices in polyaspartic vs epoxy garage floor. Slab moisture should be tested first: epoxy moisture barrier.

Who to ask

Your local council's environmental health officer reviews food-premises fit-outs. In NSW the relevant council guidance varies by council, so check with the council that will approve the premises.

Find contractors

NSW Flooring lists 56 businesses with a confirmed epoxy service, from Google Maps, retrieved 22 October 2026. The directory does not tag commercial kitchen experience, so ask each. Examples: epoxy flooring western sydney, epoxy flooring south west sydney and epoxy flooring newcastle & hunter. See the directory's methodology.

Quick answers

Is epoxy approved for kitchens? Standards do not approve products by name in the sources we read. Ask the installer how the system meets the floor requirements.

What coving height applies in NSW? We only found a Victorian figure. Ask your NSW council.