Statutes, codes, and regulations
Virginia Administrative Code
Title 2 - AGRICULTUREAgency 5 - DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND CONSUMER SERVICESChapter 585 - RETAIL FOOD ESTABLISHMENT REGULATIONSPart III - Food
Article 5 - Limitation of Growth of Organisms of Public Health Concern
Section 2VAC5-585-850 - Time as a public health control

2 Va. Admin. Code § 5-585-850

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Current through Register Vol. 41, No. 8, December 2, 2024
Section 2VAC5-585-850 - Time as a public health control
A. Except as specified under subsection D of this section, if time without temperature control is used as the public health control for a working supply of time/temperature control for safety food before cooking, or for ready-to-eat, time/temperature control for safety food that is displayed or held for sale or service, written procedures shall be prepared in advance, maintained in the food establishment, and made available to the department upon request that specify:Pf
1. Methods of compliance with subsection B or C of this section;Pf and
2. Methods of compliance with 2VAC5-585-800 for food that is prepared, cooked, and refrigerated before time is used as a public health control.Pf
B. If time without temperature control is used as the public health control up to a maximum of four hours:
1. Except as specified in subdivision B 2 of this section, the food shall have an initial temperature of 41°F (5°C) or less when removed from cold holding temperature control, 135°F (57°C) or greater when removed from hot-holding temperature control;P
2. The food may have an initial temperature of 70°F (21°C) or less if:
a. It is a ready-to-eat (i) fruit or vegetable that, upon cutting, is rendered a time/temperature control for safety food or (ii) hermetically sealed food that, upon opening, is rendered a time/temperature control for safety food;
b. The food temperature does not exceed 70°F (21°C) within a maximum time period of four hours from the time it was rendered a time/temperature control for safety food; and
c. The food is marked or otherwise identified to indicate the time that is four hours past the point in time when the food is rendered a time/temperature control for safety food as specified in subdivision B 2 a of this section.
3. The food shall be marked or otherwise identified to indicate the time that is four hours past (i) the point in time when the food is removed from temperature control or (ii) the time that the food becomes a time/temperature control for safety food;Pf
4. 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;P
5. The food in unmarked containers or packages or marked to exceed a four-hour limit shall be discarded.P
C. If time without temperature control is used as the public health control up to a maximum of six hours:
1. The food shall have an initial temperature of 41°F (5°C) or less when removed from temperature control and the food temperature may not exceed 70°F (21°C) within a maximum time period of six hours;P
2. The food shall be monitored to ensure the warmest portion of the food does not exceed 70°F (21°C) during the six-hour period, unless an ambient air temperature is maintained that ensures the food does not exceed 70°F (21°C) during the six-hour holding period;Pf
3. The food shall be marked or otherwise identified to indicate:Pf
a. The time when the food is removed from 41°F (5°C) or less cold holding temperature control;Pf and
b. The time that is six hours past the point in time when the food is removed from 41°F (5°C) or less cold holding temperature control;Pf
4. The food shall be:
a. Discarded if the temperature of the foods exceeds 70°F (21°C);P or
b. 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 41°F (5°C) or less cold holding temperature control;P and
5. The food in unmarked containers or packages, or marked with a time that exceeds the six-hour limit shall be discarded.P
D. A food establishment that serves a highly susceptible population may not use time as specified under subsection A, B, or C of this section as the public health control for raw eggs.

2 Va. Admin. Code § 5-585-850

Derived from Virginia Register Volume 24, Issue 2, eff. October 16, 2007; amended, Virginia Register Volume 26, Issue 7, eff. January 1, 2010; Amended, Virginia Register Volume 32, Issue 22, eff. 7/12/2016; Amended, Virginia Register Volume 37, Issue 19, eff. 6/24/2021.

Statutory Authority: § 3.2-5121 of the Code of Virginia.