Skip to main content

Food Safety Assessment (SOPs)

Food Safety Assessment

Type out the answers to each of the questions/ categories below on a separate document. These should be specific to your facility, in your own words; not just general, or copied, responses.

Submit responses to items 1-22 (if the specific category does not apply to your operation, mark it as N/A); responses to items 23-29 should be submitted only if they apply to your operation. Items marked with an * indicate ones that we provide more information in our educational materials.

Please submit paper copies only (no CDs, USB drives, etc.). Typically, the final document is between two and fifteen pages. Larger packets or binders will not be accepted, as this document will be placed in your permit file. Any changes made during the plan review process will need to be updated in your SOP document and a final, approved copy must be submitted prior to scheduling a final inspection.

1) Employee Illness: Submit your:

  1. employee illness policy *
  2. procedures for responding to a vomiting or diarrheal event *
  3. how employees will be made aware of these

Note: these documents should be posted/ available at all times at your facility.

2) Certified Food Protection Managers (CFPM): Submit copies of certificates for all CFPM, or proof of registration in an approved class (must be completed and certificate issued before final inspection will be scheduled). Note that at least one person-in-charge (PIC) must be on the premises during all hours of operation. At all Category 1/ High-Risk facilities, all CFPM-holders must also have proof of allergen training. Additionally, all other food handlers (cooks, bartenders, servers, dishwashers, etc.) are required to obtain a Food Handler Certificate (FHC). See our Food Worker Training

3) Hand Washing: Submit your:

  1. hand washing procedures (how-to)
  2. list of times when employees should be washing their hands
  3. sample of hand washing sign posted at all hand sinks (required)

4) Bare Hand Contact: Submit how you will avoid bare hand contact with ready-to-eat foods. *

5) Cross-Contamination Prevention: Submit how you plan to prevent cross-contamination in each of the following areas:

  1. equipment
  2. hand washing
  3. employee task designation
  4. storage

6) Food Source: Submit a list of the food sources you will use (distributors, vendors, farms, etc.). If you will be serving any game meats, wild mushrooms, or shell stock, provide specific product information and sources.

7) Deliveries: Submit your procedures for accepting deliveries from your food vendors, including checking temperatures, verifying quality, and who is responsible.

8) Date Marking: Submit how you will date mark time/temperature control for safety (TCS) foods that are prepared on-site and certain commercial TCS foods that are opened and held over 24 hours. Be sure to indicate how long these items will be held before being discarded. *

9) Cooking: Submit a list of foods you will cook, and the minimum temperature for each. This should be a specific list of foods, not just general categories. Also, include procedures for any non-continuous cooking methods that you intend to use.

10) Cold Holding: Submit your procedures for cold holding, including:

  1. what the maximum temperature for cold-held foods will be
  2. what equipment will be used to cold-hold foods
  3. how employees will keep track of temperatures
  4. what will be done if foods are found above the correct temperature

If you are proposing to hold any foods on ice, list the food and the location; a Time as a Public Health Control application may need to be submitted as well. *

11) Hot Holding: Submit your procedures for hot holding, including:

  1. what the minimum temperature for hot-held foods will be
  2. what equipment will be used to hot-hold foods
  3. how employees will keep track of temperatures
  4. what will be done if foods are found below the correct temperature

12) Cooling of Foods: Submit the following:

  1. a list of all foods that will be cooked and cooled at your facility
  2. step-by-step cooling procedures for these items *
  3. how you will track time/ temperature of items going through the cooling process
  4. what you will do if the product does not meet each time/ temperature requirement

13) Thermometers: Submit information regarding:

  1. the type of thermometers you will use
    Note: if you have thin foods such as meat patties or fish filets on your menu, a small-diameter probe designed to measure the temperature of thin items must also be available for use.
  2. how you will calibrate these thermometers *
  3. how often you will calibrate these thermometers

14) Produce Washing: Submit the following:

  1. a list of all produce at your facility that requires washing
  2. procedures for washing produce (how and where/ what sink)

15) Thawing: Submit the following:

  1. a list of all foods that will be thawed at your facility
  2. procedures for thawing (including where)

16) Sanitizer: Submit the following information for what you will use in wiping cloth buckets, spray bottles, three-compartment sink, etc.:

  1. type of sanitizer you will use (be sure to include specific chemical, not just brand name)
  2. concentration that the sanitizer will be mixed to (in ppm – parts per million)<br />Be sure you have the correct test strips.
  3. temperature of water that the sanitizer will be mixed with

17) Ware Washing: Submit the following information regarding your ware washing procedures:

  1. procedures for washing items in the three-compartment sink – include minimum wash water temperature, sanitizing chemical used, sanitizer concentration, minimum sanitizer water temperature, time items must be left in the sanitizer, and how they will be dried (cont’d)
  2. procedures for washing items in the dish machine (if facility has one)
    1. If your machine uses a chemical to sanitize, include the sanitizing chemical, required concentration, and minimum water temperature.
    2. If your machine uses high-heat to sanitize, include the minimum wash and rinse temperatures. Note: facilities are required to provide a way to test their machine (sanitizer test strips for chemical unit, irreversible heat strips or thermometer that holds a high temperature for a high-heat unit).
  3. a list of all equipment that will not fit into the three-compartment sink basins, and procedures
    of how these will be cleaned-in-place

18) Chemicals: Submit the following information:

  1. where chemicals will be stored
  2. list all chemical connections to water lines (i.e. at the mop sink or three-compartment sink), the chemical company, and the purpose of the chemical hook-up
    Note: if you have sanitizer hooked up to water lines, ensure that it is hooked up to both hot and cold, or a tempered line, to provide the correct water temperature.

19) Employee Areas: Submit the specific designated area(s) where employees are permitted to:

  1. store their belongings
  2. store and consume beverages
  3. store and consume food

20) Pest Control: Submit your pest management plan. If you have a pest control company, also submit the company name and contact information.

21) Employee Training: Submit how you will train employees on these Standard Operating Procedures (including when this will be done and how it will be documented).

22) Emergency Procedures: Submit procedures your facility has on boil orders, fire, flood, power outages, and sewage backup. *

Note: Only submit responses to items 23-29 if they apply to your operation.

23) Time as a Public Health Control: If you wish to use time as a control, rather than temperature, for any foods (ex: a carafe of creamer for customer use, sushi rice, shredded cheese on ice), submit a Time as a Public Health Control application. *

24) Consumer Advisory: If any animal food (ex: beef, eggs, fish, lamb, pork, poultry, or seafood) will be served raw, undercooked, or without otherwise being processed to eliminate pathogens, either in ready-to-eat form or as an ingredient in another ready-to-eat food, then a consumer advisory is required. This must include both a disclosure (ex: a description stating that a food is “raw” or “cooked to order”), as well as a reminder (ex: an asterisk by each item with a consumer advisory statement at the bottom of every menu page with an asterisk). Submit a draft of your menu with these items for review. *

25) Catering: If you plan to offer catering as a part of your operation, include what type of catering (drop-off, onsite set-up/ service, private, public – any or all of these), as well as any additional catering menus, and transportation and service equipment you will use. *

26) Slow Cooking: List all slow-cooked foods and submit your complete procedures for slow cooking (for cooking processes that take longer than 6 hours – i.e. barbecue). Include the time that it takes for each slow-cooked item to reach its required minimum cooking temperature. Address your procedures if foods are not found at the correct temperature.

27) Parasite Destruction: Submit a list of the products that have parasite destruction, and submit a copy of the parasite destruction letter(s). These are typically required for serving raw fish, such as for sushi, sashimi, or poke.

28) Highly Susceptible Population: If your facility primarily serves a highly susceptible population (nursing home, day care with children 4 years old and younger, immunocompromised, etc.), submit your procedures that address the cooking of raw animal foods and/or the use of unpasteurized juice.

29) Special Processes: If your facility will be doing any of the following: smoking for preservation, reduced oxygen packaging/ vacuum packaging, sous vide cooking, custom meat processing, meat curing, pH/as test for shelf-stability, sprouting seeds, adding preservatives, unpasteurized juicing, packaging of juices, fermentation of sausages, kimchi, pickles, sauerkraut, operating a molluscan shellfish tank, then a variance request form * (and possibly a HACCP plan) must be submitted.