Minnesota Food Code Fact Sheets
Active Managerial Control
- Person In Charge - The food code requires that there be a designated person in charge at the food establishment during all hours of operation. The person in charge must be able to demonstrate knowledge of food borne disease prevention and is responsible for assuring safe food handling practices.
Employee Illness
- Illness Reporting in Retail Food Establishments - Food-borne illnesses or symptoms associated with a food-borne illness are required to be tracked and reported.
- Employee Illness Log – An example of an employee illness log
Handwashing and Personal Hygiene
- Employee Personal Hygiene - Employees are the most important link in preventing food borne illness. Good personal hygiene, including proper and frequent hand washing is the best way to prevent food borne illness.
- Hand Washing for Employees - Hand washing is the one of the most effective means of preventing the spread of bacteria and viruses, which can cause infections and food borne illness.
- Preventing Contamination from Hands - Hands can be a source of contamination if preventive measures are not taken to limit bare hand contact and properly use single-use gloves.
- Stop, Wash, Work Hand-washing Poster - All hand-washing sinks are required to post signage instructing food employees to wash hands.
Food Temperature and Storage
- Cooling Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food (TCS) - When TCS Foods are improperly cooled, it provides an ideal environment for bacteria to multiply.
- Date Marking - To monitor and limit refrigeration time, refrigerated ready-to-eat TCS food must be date marked to indicate the date by which the food must be consumed.
- Temperature/Time Requirements for Food - Certain foods are required to be cooked or held at specific temperatures for ensure safety of the food.
- Time/Temperature Control for Safety Foods - Time/temperature control for safety foods require time/temperature control for safety to limit pathogenic microorganism growth or toxin formation.
- Time as a Public Health Control - Time alone can be used to control the growth of pathogens when procedures are in place and followed.
Receiving Foods/Approved Foods
- Approved Source - Purchasing food products from an approved supplier is the first step in ensuring safe foods to serve to customers.
- Harvesting and Selling Wild Mushrooms in Minnesota – Safely harvesting wild mushrooms requires additional training, record keeping and a consumer advisory.
- Receiving Food Products - When food products are delivered to an establishment's door, it is the responsibility of the person in charge to ensure inspection of every food delivery for general cleanliness, condition of containers, and signs of temperature abuse.
- Selling or Serving Locally Grown Produce in Food Facilities (PDF) - Produce farmers can legally sell produce directly to food facilities such as restaurants, grocery stores, food shelves or school lunch programs.
Equipment and Cleaning
- Cleaning and Sanitizing- Sanitization is a process whereby the numbers of disease-causing organisms are reduced to safe levels.
- Equipment Requirements - Some equipment must be certified or classified for sanitation by an American National Standards Institute (ANSI) accredited certification program.
Other
- Consumer Advisory - Food establishments must use a consumer advisory whenever raw or under-cooked animal foods are on the menu.
- Food Labeling for Retail Food Establishments - Packaged food much be labeled. Food is packaged if the food establishment bottles, cans, cartons, wraps, or bags the product and makes it available for self service.
- Molluscan Shellfish - "Molluscan shellfish" means an edible species of fresh or frozen oysters, clams, mussels, and scallops or edible portions thereof, except when the scallop product consists only of the shucked adductor muscle.
- Sampling Guidelines - Guidance for conducting food product sampling for retail food establishments such as grocery stores, convenience stores, mobile units, gift shops, etc.
- Specialized Processes in Retail Food Establishments - Specialized processes are processes or procedures requiring specific food safety controls not otherwise addressed in the Minnesota food code, which may include a HACCP plan or Variance.
For additional fact sheets view Food Business Fact Sheets - MDH on the Minnesota Department of Health webpage.
