Section 385.2350  Food Service Sanitation

a)         Food shall be free from spoilage, filth, and other contamination, and shall be safe for human consumption.  Food must be prepared in an inspected food service establishment.

b)         Food must be protected from potential contamination while being stored, prepared, served, or transported.  Potentially hazardous foods shall be maintained at 45º F. or below or 140º F. or above.  (Refer to Section 750.10 of the Food Service Sanitation Code (77 Ill. Adm. Code 750) for a definition of potentially hazardous foods.)

c)         Adequate refrigeration facilities and hot food storage facilities shall be provided to assure the maintenance of food at the required temperature during storage.

d)         No person shall work in food service while infected with a disease in a communicable form that can be transmitted by foods, or who is a carrier of organisms that cause such a disease, or while afflicted with a boil or infected wound, or an acute respiratory infection.

e)         Staff shall thoroughly wash their hands with soap and warm water before starting work, during work  as often as necessary to keep them clean, and after smoking, eating, drinking, or using the toilet.  Staff shall not use tobacco in any form while engaged in food preparation or service nor while in any equipment or utensil washing or food preparation area.

f)         Food contact surfaces shall be easily cleanable, smooth, free of breaks, open seams, cracks, chips, pits, and similar imperfections, and free of difficult to clean internal corners and crevices.  Non-food contact surfaces of equipment shall be designed and fabricated to be smooth, washable, free of unnecessary ledges, projections, or crevices, and shall be of such material and in such repair as to be easily maintained in a clean, sanitary condition.  Food contact and non-food contact surfaces shall be maintained in a clean condition.

g)         Equipment and utensils shall be washed, rinsed, and sanitized after each use.  For manual cleaning and sanitizing, items will be washed in a hot detergent solution, rinsed with clear water, and sanitized by one of the following methods:

1)         immersion for at least one-half minute in clean, hot water of at least 170º F.;

2)         immersion for at least one minute in a clean solution of at least 50 parts per million of available chlorine as a hypochlorite and having a temperature of at least 75º F.;

3)         immersion for at least one minute in a clean solution containing at least 12.5 parts per million of available iodine and having a ph not higher than 5.0 and a temperature of at least 75º F.; or

4)         immersion in a clean solution containing any other chemical sanitizing agent allowed under 21 CFR 178.1010  (1990, no further editions or amendments included) that will provide the equivalent bactericidal effect of a solution containing at least 50 parts per million of available chlorine as a hypochlorite and having a temperature of at least 75º F. for one minute.

h)         Mechanical cleaning and sanitizing may be done by spray-type or immersion dishwashing machines, or by any other type of machine or device if it is demonstrated that it thoroughly cleans and sanitizes equipment and utensils. Machines shall be installed and maintained in good repair, and shall be operated in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions.  The final sanitizing rinse shall be at least 180º F. or equivalent.  Refer to the Food Service Sanitation Code, Section 750.830(h), for specifics on mechanical sanitizing.

i)          Utensils shall be air dried before being stored or stored in a self-draining position.

j)          Garbage and refuse shall be kept in durable, easily cleanable, insect and rodent-proof containers that do not leak or absorb liquids.

k)         The facility shall be kept in such a condition as to prevent the harborage or feeding of insects and rodents.  Screen doors shall be self-closing, and screening material shall not be less than 16 mesh to the inch.

l)          Floors, floor coverings, walls, and ceilings shall be easily cleanable and maintained in good repair.

m)        Poisonous or toxic materials shall be properly labeled.  Insecticides and rodenticides and detergents, sanitizers, and other cleaning agents shall be stored physically separate from each other and not stored above or intermingled with food, food equipment and utensils.