F&B Renovation Guide: Kitchen Exhaust, Grease Traps and SFA Requirements
A Singapore F&B renovation guide covering kitchen exhaust design, grease trap sizing and SFA, SCDF and PUB approvals so your outlet passes licensing.
An F&B renovation in Singapore must be planned around three approval bodies from day one: the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) for your food licence, PUB for grease trap and sanitary works, and SCDF for fire safety and the ventilation system. The two items that fail the most inspections are the kitchen exhaust hood and duct (which must capture grease and vent it correctly) and the grease trap (which must be correctly sized and accessible). Get the layout, exhaust and grease interceptor right before you build, because retrofitting them after tiling and equipment install is expensive and delays your opening.
Unlike a home reno, an F&B fit-out is licence-driven. SFA will not issue a food shop or foodstall licence until the premises meet food hygiene requirements, and your landlord or the mall will usually demand approved drawings before handover. This guide walks through what actually gets checked, sensible sizing ranges, and the sequence that keeps your opening date on track.
What approvals does an F&B outlet need in Singapore?
Most food outlets touch several agencies. SFA licenses the food business and inspects hygiene and layout. PUB governs the grease trap, sanitary discharge and any water works. SCDF covers fire safety, and for cooking exhaust the ductwork and any fire suppression. If you change the shopfront, add a mezzanine or alter the structure, URA and BCA may also be involved.
Do not treat these as sequential afterthoughts. Your renovation drawings should already reflect their requirements, because an SFA licence application asks for a scaled layout plan showing the kitchen, wash areas, grease trap and exhaust.
- SFA: food shop or foodstall licence, kitchen layout, hygiene, food prep and wash areas
- PUB: grease trap sizing and location, sanitary plumbing, water supply, trade effluent
- SCDF: fire safety, exhaust duct construction, fire suppression over cooking lines
- URA / BCA: change of use, signage, structural or mezzanine alterations
- Landlord or mall: approved fit-out drawings, M&E capacity, handover conditions
How should the kitchen exhaust and hood be designed?
A commercial kitchen exhaust has to capture grease-laden vapour at the cooking line, move it through a grease-rated duct, and discharge it where it will not become a nuisance. The hood should extend beyond the cooking equipment footprint so it actually captures the plume, and it needs baffle-type grease filters that can be removed and washed. Airflow has to be balanced with make-up air, otherwise the kitchen goes negative, doors slam and the exhaust underperforms.
Ducting for cooking exhaust should be sound, grease-tight and cleanable, with access panels for cleaning. Where the duct passes through the building, fire integrity matters, so this is coordinated with SCDF requirements. Discharge point placement is critical in a shophouse or mixed-use block: venting at low level or toward residential windows invites complaints and enforcement, so plan the riser or termination early.
- Hood overhangs the cooking equipment so it captures the vapour plume
- Baffle grease filters that lift out for regular washing
- Grease-rated duct with access panels for cleaning
- Balanced make-up air so the kitchen is not excessively negative
- Discharge sited away from neighbours, ideally to a proper riser or roof
What are the grease trap requirements?
A grease trap (grease interceptor) stops fats, oils and grease from entering the public sewer, where they cause blockages. PUB requires food premises to install one, and it must be sized for your kitchen's load and kept accessible for cleaning. Undersized or buried traps are a common inspection failure, and a neglected trap causes back-ups that shut your kitchen down.
Sizing depends on your fixtures, cooking type and peak flow, so treat any single number as indicative rather than fixed. Small cafes and stalls often use compact interceptors, while a full production kitchen needs a substantially larger trap. Confirm the sizing with your plumbing contractor and PUB submission rather than guessing.
- Required by PUB for food premises to protect the sewer
- Size to your kitchen load and peak flow, not a generic figure
- Locate it accessible for regular pump-out and cleaning, not sealed under fixed equipment
- Connect only kitchen wastewater, keep toilet or non-greasy discharge separate
- Schedule routine cleaning to avoid odour, back-ups and enforcement
What does SFA check in the kitchen layout?
SFA is looking for a layout that supports clean food handling. That means separation between raw and cooked areas, enough wash-up and hand-washing points, smooth impervious wall and floor finishes that can be cleaned, adequate drainage with floor traps, and pest exclusion. The food prep flow should move logically from delivery and storage through preparation to service without cross-contamination.
Finishes matter more than owners expect. Porous grout, timber in wet zones and open ceiling voids that harbour pests will draw comments. Specify tiled or stainless surfaces in wet and cooking areas, cove skirtings where practical, and washable ceilings so the space holds up to daily cleaning and inspection.
- Separate raw and cooked, and dirty and clean, work zones
- Dedicated hand-wash basin plus adequate wash-up sinks
- Impervious, washable wall, floor and ceiling finishes
- Floor gradients and traps that drain properly without ponding
- Pest-proofing: sealed gaps, self-closing doors, no open harbourage
How long does an F&B renovation take and what is the sequence?
A typical small to mid-size outlet fit-out runs a few weeks to a couple of months on site, but the schedule is driven as much by approvals and long-lead equipment as by construction. Kitchen exhaust fabrication, the grease trap, cold room and gas works often have lead times, so order early. The classic mistake is building the shell, then discovering the exhaust riser or grease trap has nowhere to go.
Work the sequence backward from your licence: design and submissions first, then first-fix M&E (plumbing, grease trap, exhaust duct, electrical, gas), then finishes, then equipment and second-fix, then commissioning and inspection.
- Design and drawings that satisfy SFA, PUB and SCDF from the start
- First-fix: drainage, grease trap, exhaust duct routing, electrical, gas piping
- Wet-area waterproofing and washable finishes
- Equipment install, hood connection and make-up air balancing
- Commissioning, then licensing and handover inspections
Who should do an F&B fit-out?
F&B is one of the least forgiving renovation types because a single missed requirement, an undersized grease trap or an exhaust that vents the wrong way, can hold up your licence and your opening. It pays to work with a renovation team that has done commercial kitchens and can coordinate the plumbing, exhaust, gas, electrical and fire trades under one plan rather than leaving you to chase separate contractors.
If you are fitting out a cafe, restaurant or central kitchen, our renovation service can handle the full commercial kitchen build together with the electrical and plumbing works, and coordinate the SFA, PUB and SCDF-related requirements so the space is built to pass. Getting the exhaust, grease trap and layout right the first time is far cheaper than reworking a finished kitchen.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a grease trap for a small cafe? In almost all cases yes. PUB requires food premises to intercept fats, oils and grease before they reach the sewer, so even a small cafe needs an appropriately sized grease trap, just a smaller one than a full production kitchen.
Can I vent the kitchen exhaust to the back lane at low level? Usually not without problems. Low-level or badly placed discharge near neighbours or residential units commonly triggers complaints and enforcement, especially in shophouses and mixed-use blocks. Plan a proper riser or roof termination early and site it away from occupied areas.
Do I need approvals before I start building? Yes. Your renovation drawings should already reflect SFA, PUB and SCDF requirements, and SFA needs a scaled layout for the food licence. Building first and applying later risks rework, because the grease trap, exhaust route and wash areas all affect the layout.
How much does an F&B kitchen fit-out cost? It varies widely with size, cooking type and equipment, so treat quotes case by case. A compact stall is far cheaper than a full restaurant kitchen with heavy exhaust, gas and cold room works. Get an itemised quote that separates building works, M&E, kitchen exhaust and equipment so you can compare fairly.