Planning to open a restaurant, café, takeaway or food business? We provide EMAQ+ odour assessments that councils accept first time — helping your planning application go through without costly delays.
Odour from commercial kitchens is one of the most common environmental objections to planning applications for restaurants, takeaways and food businesses. Whether you are opening a new café, converting a retail unit into a restaurant or expanding an existing kitchen operation, the local planning authority will almost certainly require a kitchen odour assessment — and getting it right the first time is essential.
At Air Dust Odour, we have prepared kitchen odour assessments for a wide range of food premises across the UK, from independent restaurants to national fast food operators and large-scale dark kitchens. We know exactly what planning authorities expect, and we prepare our reports accordingly — using the EMAQ+ methodology that is recognised as the industry standard by councils and environmental health officers nationwide.
Our assessments don't just satisfy the planning requirement — they provide clear, practical advice on the extraction system and odour control equipment you need. That means no nasty surprises when you come to fit out your kitchen, and no conditions that require expensive retrospective works.
From initial assessment to mitigation advice and planning support, we cover everything your food business needs to satisfy the council.
A full EMAQ+ odour effect index calculation for your kitchen operation, taking into account cooking type, covers, operating hours, extraction routing and receptor proximity. The cornerstone of any planning application for a food premises — prepared to a standard that councils accept first time.
A technical review of your proposed or existing kitchen extraction system — including duct sizing, fan specification, discharge height and velocity — to identify whether it meets the requirements of the EMAQ+ assessment. We advise on any modifications needed to achieve compliance before you finalise your kitchen fit-out.
Practical, commercially grounded advice on the odour control measures appropriate for your premises — whether that is activated carbon filtration, UV-C treatment, water scrubbing, a high-level discharge point, or a combination of approaches. We help you choose solutions that work in practice, not just on paper.
If your application has been refused or the council has raised queries about odour, we can review the comments, prepare supplementary information or revised assessments, and liaise directly with the environmental health officer on your behalf. We know how councils think — and we know how to respond to their concerns effectively.
We have prepared restaurant and kitchen odour assessments for a wide variety of food businesses. If your operation involves a commercial kitchen, we have the expertise to assess it.
Whether you are a single-site independent operator or a multi-site national brand, we provide the same quality of assessment and the same commitment to getting your planning application through first time.
In most cases, yes. If you are applying for planning permission to open a restaurant, café, takeaway, dark kitchen or any food business with a commercial kitchen, the local planning authority will almost certainly require an odour assessment as part of your application. This applies whether you are opening a new premises or changing the use of an existing building. The assessment demonstrates that cooking odours will be adequately controlled and will not cause a nuisance to nearby residents or businesses.
EMAQ+ (the Emissions, Mitigation, Assessment and Quantification framework) is the industry-standard methodology for assessing odour from commercial kitchen extract systems. It calculates an odour effect index based on cooking type, number of covers, hours of operation, proximity to sensitive receptors, and the proposed extraction system. Local planning authorities across the UK recognise EMAQ+ as the appropriate methodology, so using it means your report speaks the same language as the council's environmental health officers — and is far more likely to be accepted first time.
A kitchen odour assessment typically involves a site visit to review the kitchen layout, cooking methods, extraction duct routing and discharge point, and proximity to nearby residential or commercial receptors. We then apply the EMAQ+ methodology to calculate the odour effect index and determine the level of odour control equipment required. The output is a clear, professionally presented report with findings and recommendations — such as carbon filters, UV-C treatment, or a high-level discharge point — ready for submission to the planning authority.
Restaurant odour assessments using the EMAQ+ methodology typically start from £800 for a straightforward single-unit premises. More complex operations — larger restaurants, multiple kitchen types, or sites adjacent to residential properties — may require more detailed work. We provide clear, fixed-fee quotes following a brief conversation about your project. There are no hidden extras, and we are transparent about what is included.
Most restaurant and takeaway odour assessments can be completed within 5 to 10 working days of receiving the relevant information and confirming instructions. If a site visit is required, we arrange this promptly and work to your programme. We understand that planning timescales can be tight and offer expedited turnaround for time-critical projects — just let us know when you get in touch.
