Hand Washing
This is the minimum amount of time food handlers should scrub their hands and arms with soap before rinsing.
What is 10–15 seconds?
These are the three main categories of hazards that can contaminate food and make it unsafe.
What are Biological, Chemical, and Physical contaminants?
Leaving cooked TCS food sitting out on a preparation table at room temperature is an example of this major food safety violation.
What is Time-Temperature Abuse?
This specific age group is considered high-risk because their immune systems have not yet built up the necessary defenses to fight off foodborne pathogens.
What are Preschool-aged children
The acronym "TCS" stands for this phrase, which refers to foods that require specific environmental monitoring to limit pathogen growth.
What is Time and Temperature Control for Safety?
This is the minimum water temperature required at a handwashing sink.
What is 85°F
Staples, bandages, glass, and fish bones in a fillet are all examples of this specific category of contaminant.
What is a Physical contaminant?
The CDC identifies five major risk factors related to food handling that cause foodborne illness. Purchasing food from these sources is one of them.
What are Unapproved (or Unsafe) Sources?
This group of adults is high-risk because changes in their stomach acid levels, stomach lining, and immune system strength occur naturally as they age.
What are Elderly people
While whole tomatoes and untreated melons are safe at room temperature, they become TCS foods as soon as a prep worker performs this action on them.
What is cutting, slicing, or chopping them?
A food handler touches their face while preparing food. They are wearing gloves. What must they do?
What is they must remove the gloves, wash their hands, and put on new gloves.
Toxic metals—such as copper, pewter, or zinc—can leach into food and cause chemical contamination if paired with this type of food (e.g., tomato sauce or lemonade).
What are High-Acid (or acidic) foods?
This unsafe practice occurs when a food handler fails to properly wash, rinse, and sanitize equipment and utensils between uses.
What is Poor Cleaning and Sanitizing?
People receiving chemotherapy, organ transplant recipients, individuals with HIV/AIDS, or those taking specific medications belong to this high-risk category.
What are people with Compromised (or Weakened) Immune Systems?
Raw dry rice, dried beans, and raw potatoes are not TCS foods, but they instantly become TCS foods after undergoing this process.
What is cooking them?
A food handler washes their hands, dries them with a single-use paper towel, and then uses the same towel to turn off the faucet. Why is this a good practice?
What is it helps prevent recontaminating clean hands by touching the potentially contaminated faucet?
This type of contamination accounts for the majority of foodborne illnesses in food service operations.
What are Biological contaminants (pathogens/microorganisms)?
A food handler scratching their scalp, coughing into their hand, or coming to work while sick and then touching food directly is an example of this factor.
What is Poor Personal Hygiene?
This body system is responsible for fighting off disease and pathogens, and its weakness or underdevelopment is the primary reason high-risk populations fall ill more easily.
What is the Immune System?
This untreated produce item—often added to sandwiches or salads—is classified as a TCS food because its warm, moist growing conditions make it prone to bacterial growth.
What are raw seed sprouts?
A food handler leaves the kitchen to use the restroom. When they return, they immediately put on a new pair of gloves and begin preparing ready-to-eat food. What did the food handler do incorrectly?
What is they failed to wash their hands before putting on the new gloves?
Pathogens transferred from a raw chicken breast to a cutting board, and then to lettuce for a salad, is an example of this major food-handling risk factor.
What is Cross-Contamination?
According to the CDC, these are the 5 major risk factors related to employee practices and food handling that cause foodborne illness outbreaks.
What are:
Purchasing food from unsafe sources
Failing to cook food correctly
Holding food at incorrect temperatures
Using contaminated equipment
Practicing poor personal hygiene
Operations that primarily serve high-risk populations—such as daycares, nursing homes, and hospitals—are strictly prohibited from serving these types of animal foods.
What are Raw or Undercooked meats, poultry, eggs, or seafood?
Untreated garlic-and-oil mixtures are considered TCS foods because the oil creates this type of environment, which promotes the growth of the bacterium Clostridium botulinum.
What is an anaerobic (or oxygen-free) environment?