HAR §11-50-32. Protection from contamination after receiving

(a) Preventing contamination from hands. (1) Food employees shall wash their hands as specified in section 11-50-22(b); (2) Except when washing fruits and vegetables as specified in subsection (g) or as specified in paragraph (4), food employees may not contact exposed, ready-to-eat food with their bare hands and shall use suitable utensils such as deli tissue, spatulas, tongs, single-use gloves, or dispensing equipment; (3) Food employees shall minimize bare hand and arm contact with exposed food that is not in a ready-to-eat form; 50-72 B236 §11-50-32 (4) Paragraph (2) does not apply to a food employee that contacts exposed, ready-to-eat food with bare hands at the time the ready-to-eat food is being added as an ingredient to a food that: (A) Contains a raw animal food and is to be cooked in the food establishment to heat all parts of the food to the minimum temperature specified in section 11-50-33(a)(1)-(2) or 11-50-33(b); or (B) Does not contain a raw animal food but is to be cooked in the food establishment to heat all parts of the food to a temperature of one hundred forty-five degrees Fahrenheit. (5) Food employees not serving a highly susceptible population may contact exposed, ready-to-eat food with their bare hands if: (A) The owner or operator obtains prior approval from the department; (B) Written procedures are maintained in the food establishment and made available to the department upon request that include: (i) For each bare hand contact procedure, a listing of the specific ready-to-eat foods that are touched by bare hands; (ii) Diagrams and other information showing that handwashing facilities, installed, located, equipped, and maintained as specified in sections 11-50-61(g), (l), (o) and 11-50-72(b), (c), and (e), are in an easily accessible location and in close proximity to the work station where the bare hand contact procedure is conducted; (C) A written employee health policy that details how the food establishment complies with section 11-50-21(a), (b), and (c) including: (i) Documentation that food employees and conditional employees acknowledge that they are informed to report information about their health and activities as they relate to gastrointestinal symptoms and diseases 50-73 B236 i i §11-50-32 that are transmittable through food as specified in section 11-50-21(a)(1); (ii) Documentation that food employees and conditional employees acknowledge their responsibilities as specified in section 11-50-21(a)(5); and (iii) Documentation that the person in charge acknowledges the responsibilities as specified in section 11-50-21(a)(2) to (4), (b), and (c); (D) Documentation that food employees acknowledge that they have received training in: (i) The risks of contacting the specific ready-to-eat foods with bare hands; (ii) Proper handwashing as specified in section 11-50-22(b); (iii) When to wash their hands as specified in section 11-50-22(c); (iv) Where to wash their hands as specified in section 11-50 22(d); (v) Proper fingernail maintenance as specified in section 11-50-22(f); (vi) Prohibition of jewelry as specified in section 11-50-22(g); and (vii) Good hygienic practices as specified in section 11-50-23(a) and (b); (E) Documentation that hands are washed before food preparation and as necessary to prevent cross contamination by food employees as specified in section 11-50-22(a), (b), (c), and (d) during all hours of operation when the specific ready-to-eat foods are prepared; (F) Documentation that food employees contacting ready-to-eat food with bare hands use two or more of the following control measures to provide additional safeguards to hazards associated with bare hand contact: (i) Double handwashing; (ii) Nail brushes; (iii) A hand antiseptic after handwashing as specified in section 11-50-22(e); 50-74 3236 §11-50-32 (iv) Incentive programs such as paid sick leave that assist or encourage food employees not to work when they are ill; or (v) Other control measures approved by the director; and (G) Documentation that corrective action is taken when subparagraphs (A) to (F) are not followed. (b) A food employee may not use a utensil more than once to taste food that is to be sold or served. (c) Packaged and unpackaged food - separation, packaging, and segregation. (1) Food shall be protected from cross contamination by: (A) Except as specified in clause (iii), separating raw animal foods during storage, preparation, holding, and display from: (i) Raw ready-to-eat food including other raw animal food such as fish for sushi or molluscan shellfish, or other raw ready-to-eat food such as fruits and vegetables; and (ii) Cooked ready-to-eat food; (iii) Frozen, commercially processed and packaged raw animal food may be stored or displayed with or above frozen, commercially processed and packaged, ready-to eat food; (B) Except when combined as ingredients, separating types of raw animal foods from each other such as beef, fish, lamb, pork, and poultry during storage, preparation, holding, and display by: (i) Using separate equipment for each type; (ii) Arranging each type of food in equipment so that cross contamination of one type with another is prevented; or (iii) Preparing each type of food at different times or in separate areas; (C) Cleaning equipment and utensils as specified in section 11-50-50(b)(1) and sanitizing as specified in section 11-50-51(c); 50-75 3236 §11-50-32 (D) Except as specified in section 11-50-34(e)(2)(B) and in paragraph (2), storing the food in packages, covered containers, or wrappings; (E) Cleaning hermetically sealed containers of food of visible soil before opening; (F) Protecting food containers that are received packaged together in a case or overwrap from cuts when the case or overwrap is opened; (G) Storing damaged, spoiled, or recalled food being held in the food establishment as specified in section 11-50-73(c); and (H) Separating fruits and vegetables, before they are washed as specified in subsection (g) from ready-to-eat food; (2) Paragraph (1)(D) does not apply to: (A) Whole, uncut, raw fruits and vegetables and nuts in the shell, that requires peeling or hulling before consumption; (B) Primal cuts, quarters, or sides of raw meat or slab bacon that are hung on clean, sanitized hooks or placed on clean, sanitized racks; (C) Whole, uncut, processed meats such as country hams, and smoked or cured sausages that are placed on clean, sanitized racks; (D) Food being cooled as specified in section 11-50-34(e)(2)(B); or (E) Shellstock. (d) Except for containers holding food that can be readily and unmistakably recognized, such as dry pasta, working containers holding food or food ingredients that are removed from their original packages for use in the food establishment, such as cooking oils, flour, herbs, potato flakes, salt, spices, and sugar shall be identified with the common name of the food. (e) Pasteurized eggs or egg products shall be substituted for raw eggs in the preparation of foods such as Caesar salad, hollandaise or Béarnaise sauce, mayonnaise, meringue, eggnog, ice cream, and egg-fortified beverages that are not: (1) Cooked as specified in section 11-50-33(a)(1)(A) or (B); or (2) Included in section 11-50-33(a)(4). (f) Protection from unapproved additives. 50-76 2236 §11-50-32 (1) Food shall be protected from contamination that may result from the addition of, as specified in section 11-50-31(i): (A) Unsafe or unapproved food or color additives; and (B) Unsafe or unapproved levels of approved food and color additives; (2) A food employee may not: (A) Apply sulfiting agents to fresh fruits and vegetables intended for raw consumption or to a food considered to be a good source of vitamin B1; or (B) Except for grapes, serve or sell food specified in subparagraph (A) that is treated with sulfiting agents before receipt by the food establishment. (g) Washing fruits and vegetables. (1) Except as specified in paragraph (2) and except for whole, raw fruits and vegetables that are intended for washing by the consumer before consumption, raw fruits and vegetables shall be thoroughly washed in water to remove soil and other contaminants before being cut, combined with other ingredients, cooked, served, or offered for human consumption in ready-to-eat form; (2) Fruits and vegetables may be washed by using chemicals approved by the department. (h) After use as a medium for cooling the exterior surfaces of food such as melons or fish, packaged foods such as canned beverages, or cooling coils and tubes of equipment, ice may not be used as food. (i) Storage or display of food in contact with water or ice. (1) Packaged food may not be stored in direct contact with ice or water if the food is subject to the entry of water because of the nature of its packaging, wrapping, or container or its positioning in the ice or water; (2) Except as specified in paragraphs (3) and (4), unpackaged food may not be stored in direct contact with undrained ice; (3) Whole, raw fruits or vegetables; cut, raw vegetables such as celery or carrot sticks or cut potatoes; and tofu may be immersed in ice or water; 50-77 3236