Section 11-50-34 - Limitation of growth of organisms of public health concern(a) Stored frozen foods shall be maintained frozen.(b) Frozen potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) that is slacked to moderate the temperature shall be held:(1) Under refrigeration that maintains the food temperature at forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less;(2) At any temperature if the food remains frozen.(c) Potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) shall be thawed: (1) Under refrigeration that maintains the food temperature at forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less; or(2) Completely submerged under running water: (A) At a water temperature of seventy degrees Fahrenheit or below;(B) With sufficient water velocity to agitate and float off loose particles in an overflow; and(C) For a period of time that does not allow thawed portions of ready-to-eat food to rise above forty-one degrees Fahrenheit; or(D) For a period of time that does not allow thawed portions of a raw animal food requiring cooking as specified in section 11-50-33(a) (1) or (2) to be above forty-one degrees Fahrenheit, for more than four hours including:(i) The time the food is exposed to the running water and the time needed for preparation for cooking; or (ii) The time it takes under refrigeration to lower the food temperature to forty-one degrees Fahrenheit;(3) As part of a cooking process if the food that is frozen is:(A) Cooked as specified in section 11-50-33(a)(1), (2) or (b); or(B) Thawed in a microwave oven and immediately transferred to conventional cooking equipment, with no interruption in the process;(4) Using any procedure if a portion of frozen ready-to-eat food is thawed and prepared for immediate service in response to an individual consumer's order; or(5) Using any procedure that ensures the surface temperature does not exceed forty-one degrees Fahrenheit during thawing; or(6) Reduced oxygen packaged fish that bears a label that it is to be kept frozen until time of use should be removed from the reduced oxygen environment: (A) Prior to its thawing under refrigeration as specified in paragraph (1) of this section; or(B) Prior to, or immediately upon completion of, its thawing using procedures specified in paragraph (2) of this section.(d) Cooling.(1) Cooked potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) shall be cooled: (A) Within two hours from one hundred thirty-five degrees Fahrenheit to seventy degrees Fahrenheit; and(B) Within a total of six hours from one hundred thirty-five degrees Fahrenheit to forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less;(2) Potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) shall be cooled within four hours to forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less if prepared from ingredients at ambient temperature, such as reconstituted foods and canned tuna;(3) Except as specified in paragraph (4), a potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) received in compliance with laws allowing a temperature above forty-one degrees Fahrenheit during shipment from the supplier as specified in section 11-50-31(h)(2), shall be cooled within four hours to forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less.(4) Raw eggs shall be received as specified in section 11-50-31(h)(3) and immediately placed in refrigerated equipment that maintains an ambient air temperature of forty-five degrees Fahrenheit or less;(e) Cooling methods. (1) Cooling shall be accomplished in accordance with the time and temperature criteria specified in subsection (d) by using one or more of the following methods based on the type of food being cooled:(A) Placing the food in shallow pans;(B) Separating the food into smaller or thinner portions;(C) Using rapid cooling equipment;(D) Stirring the food in a container placed in an ice water bath;(E) Using containers (such as metal and stainless steel) that facilitate heat transfer;(F) Adding ice as an ingredient; or(G) Other effective methods;(2) When placed in cooling or cold holding equipment, food containers in which food is being cooled shall be: (A) Arranged in the equipment to provide maximum heat transfer through the container walls; and(B) "Loosely covered" or uncovered if protected from overhead contamination as specified in section 11-30-32(q)(1)(B), during the cooling period to facilitate heat transfer from the surface of the food.(f) Potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food), hot and cold holding. (1) Except during preparation, cooking, or cooling, or when time is used as the public health control as specified in subsection (i), and except as specified in paragraphs (2) and (3), potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) shall be maintained: (A) At one hundred thirty-five degrees Fahrenheit or above, except that roasts cooked to a temperature and for a time specified in section 11-50-33(a)(2) or reheated as specified in section 11-50-33(h) (5) may be held at a temperature of one hundred thirty degrees Fahrenheit or above; or(B) At forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less;(2) Eggs that have not been treated to destroy all viable Salmonellae shall be stored in refrigerated equipment that maintains an ambient air temperature of forty-five degrees Fahrenheit or less;(3) Potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) in a homogenous liquid form may be maintained outside of the temperature control requirements, as specified in paragraph (1), while contained within specially designed equipment that complies with the design and construction requirements as specified in section 11-50-46(p)(5).(g) Ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food), date marking. (1) Except when packaging food using a reduced oxygen packaging method as specified in subsection (1), and except as specified in paragraphs (5) and (6), refrigerated, ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous food (time/teraperature control for safety food) prepared and held in a food establishment for more than twenty-four hours shall be clearly marked to indicate the date or day by which the food shall be consumed on the premises, sold, or discarded when held at a temperature of forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less for a maximum of seven days; (2) Except as specified in paragraphs (5) to (7), refrigerated, ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) prepared and packaged by a food processing plant shall be clearly marked, at the time the original container is opened in a food establishment and if the food is held for more than twenty-four hours, to indicate the date or day by which the food shall be consumed on the premises, sold, or discarded, based on the temperature and time combinations specified in paragraph (1) and:(A) The day the original container is opened in the food establishment shall be counted as day one; and(B) The day or date marked by the food establishment may not exceed a manufacturer's use-by date if the manufacturer determined the use-by date based on food safety;(3) A refrigerated, ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) ingredient or a portion of a refrigerated, ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) that is subsequently combined with additional ingredients or portions of food shall retain the date marking of the earliest-prepared or first prepared ingredient;(4) A date marking system that meets the criteria stated in paragraphs (1) and (2) may include: (A) Using a method approved by the department for refrigerated, ready-to-eat potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) that is frequently rewrapped, such as lunchraeat or a roast, or for which date marking is impractical, such as soft serve mix or milk in a dispensing machine;(B) Marking the date or day of preparation, with a procedure to discard the food on or before the last date or day by which the food must be consumed on the premises, sold, or discarded as specified in paragraph (1);(C) Marking the date or day the original container is opened in a food establishment, with a procedure to discard the food on or before the last date or day by which the food must be consumed on the premises, sold, or discarded as specified in paragraph (2); or(D) Using calendar dates, days of the week, color-coded marks, or other effective marking methods, provided that the marking system is disclosed to the department upon request;(5) Paragraphs (1) and (2) do not apply to individual meal portions served or repackaged for sale from a bulk container upon a consumer's request;(6) Paragraphs (1) and (2) do not apply to shellstock.(7) Paragraph (2) does not apply to the following foods prepared and packaged by a food processing plant inspected by a regulatory authority:(A) Deli salads, such as ham salad, seafood salad, chicken salad, egg salad, pasta salad, potato salad, and macaroni salad, manufactured in accordance with 21 CFR 110, entitled "Current good manufacturing practice in manufacturing, packing, or holding human food";(B) Hard cheeses containing not more than 39 per cent moisture as defined in 21 CFR 133, entitled "Cheeses and related cheese products", such as cheddar, gruyere, parmesan and reggiano, and romano;(C) Semi-soft cheeses containing more than thirty-nine per cent moisture, but not more than fifty per cent moisture, as defined in 21 CFR 133, entitled "Cheeses and related cheese products", such as blue, edam, gorgonzola, gouda, and Monterey jack;(D) Cultured dairy products as defined in 21 CFR 131, entitled "Milk and cream", such as yogurt, sour cream, and buttermilk;(E) Preserved fish products, such as pickled herring and dried or salted cod, and other acidified fish products defined in 21 CFR 114, entitled "Acidified foods";(F) Shelf stable, dry fermented sausages, such as pepperoni and Genoa salami that are not labeled "Keep Refrigerated" as specified in 9 CFR 317 entitled "Labeling, marking devices, and containers", and which retain the original casing on the product; and(G) Shelf stable salt-cured products such as prosciutto and Parma (ham) that are not labeled "Keep Refrigerated" as specified in 9 CFR 317 entitled "Labeling, marking devices, and containers".(h) Ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food), disposition. (1) A food specified in subsection (g)(1) or (2) shall be discarded if it: (A) Exceeds the temperature and time combination specified in subsection (g)(1), except time that the product is frozen;(B) Is in a container or package that does not bear a date or day; or(C) Is appropriately marked with a date or day that exceeds a temperature and time combination as specified in subsection (g)(1);(2) Refrigerated, ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) prepared in a food establishment and dispensed through a vending machine with an automatic shutoff control shall be discarded if it exceeds a temperature and time combination as specified in subsection (g)(1); (i) Time as a public health control. (1) Except as specified in paragraph (4), if time without temperature control is used as the public health control for a working supply of potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) before cooking, or for ready-to-eat potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) that is displayed or held for sale or service:(A) Written procedures shall be prepared in advance, maintained in the food establishment and made available to the department upon request that specify: (i) Methods of compliance with paragraph (2)(A) to (C) or (3)(A) to (E); and(ii) Methods of compliance with subsection (d) for food that is prepared, cooked, and refrigerated before time is used as a public health control;(2) If time without temperature control is used as the public health control up to a maximum of four hours: (A) The food shall have an initial temperature of forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less when removed from cold holding temperature control or one hundred thirty-five degrees Fahrenheit or greater when removed from hot holding temperature control;(B) The food shall be marked or otherwise identified to indicate the time that is four hours past the point in time when the food is removed from temperature control;(C) The food shall be cooked and served, served at any temperature if ready-to-eat, or discarded, within four hours from the point in time when the food is removed from temperature control; and(D) The food in unmarked containers or packages, or marked to exceed a four-hour limit shall be discarded;(3) If time without temperature control is used as the public health control up to a maximum of six hours:(A) The food shall have an initial temperature of forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less when removed from temperature control and the food temperature may not exceed seventy degrees Fahrenheit within a maximum time period of six hours;(B) The food shall be monitored to ensure the warmest portion of the food does not exceed seventy degrees Fahrenheit during the six-hour period, unless an ambient air temperature is maintained that ensures the food does not exceed seventy degrees Fahrenheit during the six-hour holding period;(C) The food shall be marked or otherwise identified to indicate: (i) The time when the food is removed from forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less cold holding temperature control; and(ii) The time that is six hours past the point in time when the food is removed from cold holding temperature control;(D) The food shall be:(i) Discarded if the temperature of the food exceeds seventy degrees Fahrenheit; or(ii) Cooked and served, served at any temperature if ready-to-eat, or discarded within a maximum of six hours from the point in time when the food is removed from forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less cold holding temperature control; and(E) The food in unmarked containers or packages, or marked with a time that exceeds the six-hour limit shall be discarded;(4) A food establishment that serves a highly susceptible population may not use time as specified in paragraphs (1), (2) or (3) as the public health control for raw eggs.(j) A food establishment shall obtain a variance from the department as specified in section 11-50-13(a) and (b) before: (1) Smoking food as a method of food preservation rather than as a method of flavor enhancement;(3) Using food additives or adding components such as vinegar:(A) As a method of food preservation rather than as a method of flavor enhancement; or(B) To render a food so that it is not potentially hazardous (time/temperature control for safety food);(4) Packaging a potentially hazardous food using a reduced oxygen packaging method except where the growth of and toxin formation by Clostridium botulinura and the growth of Listeria monocytogenes are controlled as specified in subsection (1);(5) Operating a molluscan shellfish life-support system display tank used to store or display shellfish that are offered for human consumption;(6) Custom processing animals that are for personal use as food and not for sale or service in a food establishment;(7) Preparing food by another method that is determined by the department to require a variance; or(8) Sprouting seeds or beans.(k) A food processing plant may be exempt from this variance requirement. (l) Reduced oxygen packaging without a variance, criteria. (1) Except for a food establishment that obtains a variance as specified in subsection (j), a food establishment that packages potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) using a reduced oxygen packaging method shall control the growth and toxin formation of Clostridium botulinum and the growth of Listeria monocytogenes;(2) Except as specified in paragraph (6), a food establishment that packages potentially hazardous food (time/temperature control for safety food) using a reduced oxygen packaging method shall have a HACCP plan that contains the information specified in section 11-50-4(h)(2)(B) and (D) and that: (A) Identifies the food to be packaged;(B) Except as specified in paragraphs (3) to (5), requires that the packaged food shall be maintained at forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less and meet at least one of the following criteria:(i) Has an Aw of 0.91 or less;(ii) Has a pH of 4.6 or less;(iii) Is a meat or poultry product cured at a food processing plant regulated by the USDA using substances specified in 9 CFR 424.21, entitled "Use of food ingredients and sources of radiation," and is received in an intact package; or (iv) Is a food with a high level of competing organisms such as raw meat, raw poultry, or raw vegetables; (C) Describes how the package shall be prominently and conspicuously labeled on the principal display panel in bold type on a contrasting background, with instructions to: (i) Maintain the food at forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or below; and(ii) Discard the food if within thirty calendar days of its packaging it is not served for on-preraises consumption, or consumed if served or sold for off-premises consumption;(D) Limits the refrigerated shelf life to no more than thirty calendar days from packaging to consumption, except the time the product is maintained frozen, or the original manufacturer's "sell by" or "use by" date, whichever occurs first;(E) Includes operational procedures that: (i) Prohibit contacting ready-to-eat food with bare hands as specified in section 11-50-32(a) (2); (ii) Identify a designated work area and the method by which physical barriers or methods of separation of raw foods and ready-to-eat foods minimize cross contamination. Access to the processing equipment is limited to trained personnel familiar with the potential hazards of the operation; and (iii) Delineate cleaning and sanitization procedures for food-contact surfaces; and (F) Describes the training program that ensures that the individual responsible for the reduced oxygen packaging operation understands the: (i) Concepts required for a safe operation; (ii) Equipment and facilities; and (iii) Procedures specified in subparagraph (E) and section 11-50-4(h)(2)(B) and (D);(G) Is provided to the department before implementation.(3) Except for fish that is frozen before, during, and after packaging, a food establishment may not package fish using a reduced oxygen packaging method;(4) Except as specified in paragraphs (3) and (6), a food establishment that packages potentially hazardous food using a cook-chill or sous vide process shall: (A) Provide to the department prior to implementation, a HACCP plan that contains the information as specified in section 11-50-4(h)(2)(B) and (D);(B) Ensure the food is: (i) Prepared and consumed on the premises, or prepared and consumed off the premises but within the same business entity with no distribution or sale of the packaged product to another business entity or the consumer; (ii) Cooked to heat all parts of the food to a temperature and for a time as specified in section 11-50-33(a);(iii) Protected from contamination before and after cooking as specified in sections 11-50-32 and 11-50-33;(iv) Placed in a package with an oxygen barrier and sealed before cooking, or placed in a package and sealed immediately after cooking and before reaching a temperature below one hundred thirty-five degrees Fahrenheit; (v) Cooled to forty-one degrees Fahrenheit in the sealed package or bag as specified in subsection (d) and subsequently cooled to thirty-four degrees Fahrenheit within forty-eight hours of reaching forty-one degrees Fahrenheit and held at that temperature until consumed or discarded within thirty days after the date of packaging;(vi) Cooled to forty-one degrees Fahrenheit in the sealed package or bag as specified in subsection (d) and subsequently held at forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less for no more than seven days at which time the food must be consumed or discarded; (vii) Cooled to forty-one degrees Fahrenheit in the sealed package or bag as specified in subsection (d) and subsequently held frozen with no shelf life restriction while frozen until consumed or used; (viii) Held in a refrigeration unit that is equipped with an electronic system that continuously monitors time and temperature and is visually examined for proper operation twice daily; (ix) If transported off-site to a satellite location of the same business entity, equipped with verifiable electronic monitoring devices to ensure that times and temperatures are monitored during transportation; and(x) Labeled with the product name and the date packaged; and(C) Maintain the records required to confirm that cooling and cold holding refrigeration time/temperature parameters are required as part of the HACCP plan and:(i) Make such records available to the department upon request; and (ii) Hold such records for at least six months; and(D) Implement written operational procedures as specified in paragraph (2)(E) and a training program as specified in paragraph (2)(F);(5) Except as specified under paragraph (6), a food establishment that packages cheese using a reduced oxygen packaging method shall:(A) Limit the cheeses packaged to those that are commercially manufactured in a food processing plant with no ingredients added in the food establishment and that meet the Standards of Identity as specified in 21 CFR 133.150, entitled "Hard cheeses", 21 CFR 133.169, entitled "Pasteurized process cheese" or 21 CFR 133.187, entitled "Semisoft cheeses";(B) Have a HACCP plan that contains the information specified in section 11-50-4(h) (2)(B) and (D) and as specified in paragraphs (1)(2) (A), (C)(i), (E), and (F);(C) Labels the package on the principal display panel with a ''use by" date that does not exceed thirty calendar days from its packaging or the original manufacturer's "sell by" or "use by" date, whichever occurs first; and(D) Discards the reduced oxygen packaged cheese if it is not sold for off-premises consumption or consumed within thirty calendar days of its packaging.(6) A HACCP Plan is not required when a food establishment uses a reduced oxygen packaging method to package potentially hazardous food, (time/temperature control for safety food) that is always: (A) Labeled with the production time and date,(B) Held at forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less during refrigerated storage, and(C) Removed from its package in the food establishment within forty-eight hours after packaging. [Eff FEB 24 2014] (Auth: HRS § 321-11) (Imp: HRS § 321-11)