N.J. Admin. Code § 8:24-3.5

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 23, December 2, 2024

Section 8:24-3.5 - Limitation of growth of organisms of public health concern

(a) Stored frozen foods shall be maintained frozen.

(b) Frozen food that is slacked to moderate the temperature shall be held:

1. Under refrigeration that maintains the food at refrigeration temperatures; or

2. At any temperature if the food remains frozen.

(c) Frozen food shall be thawed:

1. Under refrigeration that maintains the food at refrigeration temperatures;

2. Completely submerged under running water:

i. At a water temperature of 70 degrees Fahrenheit or below;

ii. With sufficient water velocity to agitate and float off loose particles in an overflow; and

iii. For a period of time that does not allow thawed portions of ready-to-eat food to rise above refrigeration temperatures or for a period of time that does not allow thawed portions of a raw animal food requiring cooking to be above refrigeration temperatures for more than four hours, including:

(1) The time the food is exposed to the running water and the time needed for preparation for cooking; or

(2) The time it takes under refrigeration to lower the food temperature to refrigeration temperatures;

3. As part of a cooking process if the food that is frozen is cooked to safe cooking temperatures or thawed in a microwave oven and immediately transferred to conventional cooking equipment, with no interruption in the process; or

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.

(d) The following requirements apply to the preparation of potentially hazardous foods which will be refrigerated:

1. If cooked, it shall be cooled:

i. Within two hours, from 135 degrees Fahrenheit to 70 degrees Fahrenheit; and

ii. Within four hours, from 70 degrees Fahrenheit to refrigeration temperatures.

2. It shall be cooled within four hours to refrigeration temperatures if prepared from ingredients at ambient temperature, such as reconstituted foods and canned tuna.

3. If food specified at 8:24-3.2(f)1 and 2 are received above 41 degrees Fahrenheit during shipment from the supplier, it shall be cooled within four hours to refrigeration temperatures.

(e) Cooling methods shall include the following:

1. Cooling shall be accomplished by using one or more of the following methods based on the type of food being cooled:

i. Placing the food in shallow pans;

ii. Separating the food into smaller or thinner portions;

iii. Using rapid cooling equipment;

iv. Stirring the food in a container placed in an ice water bath;

v. Using containers that facilitate heat transfer;

vi. Adding ice as an ingredient; or

vii. Other effective methods.

2. When placed in cooling or cold holding equipment, food containers in which food is being cooled shall be:

i. Arranged in the equipment to provide maximum heat transfer through the container walls; and

ii. Loosely covered, or uncovered if protected from overhead contamination during the cooling period to facilitate heat transfer from the surface of the food.

(f) Except during preparation, cooking, or cooling, or when time is used as the public health control as specified under (g) below, potentially hazardous food shall be maintained:

1. At 135 degrees Fahrenheit or above, except that roasts cooked to safe cooking temperatures or reheated as specified under 8:24-3.4(g)5 may be held at a temperature of 130 degrees Fahrenheit; or

2. At refrigeration temperatures.

(g) If time only, rather than time in conjunction with temperature, is used as the public health control for a working supply of potentially hazardous food before cooking, or for ready-to-eat potentially hazardous food that is displayed or held for service for immediate consumption:

1. 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;

2. The food shall be cooked and served, served if ready-to-eat, or discarded, within four hours from the point in time when the food is removed from temperature control;

3. The food in unmarked containers or packages or marked to exceed a four hour limit shall be discarded; and

4. Written procedures shall be submitted to the health authority for approval prior to using time as a public health control and shall be maintained in the retail food establishment to ensure compliance with:

i. Paragraphs (g)1 through 3 above; and

ii. Subsection (d) above, for food that is prepared, cooked, and refrigerated before time is used as the public health control.

(h) A retail food establishment shall obtain approval from the health authority to conduct specialized food processing activities before engaging in any of the following activities:

1. Smoking food as a method of food preservation rather than as a method of flavor enhancement;

2. Curing food;

3. Using food additives or adding components such as vinegar:

i. As a method of food preservation rather than as a method of flavor enhancement; or

ii. To render a food so that it is not potentially hazardous;

4. Packaging food using a reduced oxygen packaging method except as specified under (i) below where a barrier to Clostridium botulinum in addition to refrigeration exists;

5. Operating a molluscan shellfish life-support system display tank used to store and 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 retail food establishment;

7. Using time as a public health control; or

8. Preparing food by another method that is determined by the health authority to require approval for specialized processing.

(i) The criteria for reduced oxygen packaging shall include the following:

1. A retail food establishment that packages food using a reduced oxygen packaging method and Clostridium botulinum is identified as a microbiological hazard in the final packaged form shall ensure that there are at least two barriers in place to control the growth and toxin formation of Clostridium botulinum, except for a retail food establishment that obtains prior approval from the health authority as specified under (h) above.

2. A retail food establishment that packages food using a reduced oxygen packaging method and Clostridium botulinum is identified as a microbiological hazard in the final packaged form shall have a HACCP plan that contains the information specified under 8:24-9.1(e) and that:

i. Identifies the food to be packaged;

ii. Limits the food packaged to a food that does not support the growth of Clostridium botulinum because it has an a[w] of 0.91 or less; has a pH of 4.6 or less; is a meat or poultry product cured at a food processing plant regulated by the U.S.D.A., using substances specified in Use of Food Ingredients and Sources of Radiation, 9 CFR § 424.21, incorporated herein by reference, as amended and supplemented, and is received in an intact package; or is a food with a high level of competing organisms such as raw meat or raw poultry;

iii. Specifies methods for maintaining food at 41 degrees Fahrenheit or below;

iv. Describes how the packages shall be prominently and conspicuously labeled on the principal display panel in bold type on a contrasting background, with instructions to maintain the food at 41 degrees Fahrenheit or below, and to discard the food if within 14 calendar days of its packaging it is not served for on-premises consumption, or consumed if served or sold for off-premises consumption;

v. Limits the shelf life to no more than 14 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;

vi. Includes operational procedures that prohibit contacting food with bare hands; identify a designated area and the method by which physical barriers or methods of separation of raw foods and ready-to-eat foods minimize cross contamination, and how access to the processing equipment is restricted to responsible trained personnel familiar with the potential hazards of the operation; and delineate cleaning and sanitization procedures for food-contact surfaces; and

vii. Describes the training program that ensures that the individual responsible for the reduced oxygen packaging operation understands the concepts required for a safe operation; equipment and facilities; and the procedures specified under 8:24-9.1(e).

3. A retail food establishment shall not package fish using a reduced oxygen packaging method, except for fish that is frozen before, during, and after packaging.

N.J. Admin. Code § 8:24-3.5