When monitoring the temperatures of equipment and food products in your operation, time is an important factor in ensuring food safety. The FDA specifies how long food is considered to be in the “safe zone.” You should have a HACCP plan in place that will help you avoid costly product loss by making sure that you have enough time to move your food, should any of your equipment start failing.
Time and Temperature Control for Food Safety
When monitoring the temperatures of equipment and food products in your operation, time is an important factor in ensuring food safety. The FDA specifies how long food is considered to be in the “safe zone.” You should have a HACCP plan in place that will help you avoid costly product loss by making sure that you have enough time to move your food, should any of your equipment start failing.
When heating food, the food must reach and maintain a certain temperature for a specified amount of time.In a cook and chill operation, there are strict time requirements. Food not only has to be chilled to the approved temperature range, but it has to reach that temperature in a specific amount of time, as per FDA guidelines. The FDA considers the Danger zone to be 40 °F to 140 °F, as this is the temperature range where most bacteria can grow. Foods that are exposed to this temperature range for more than 4 hours at a time are considered not safe for consumption. Measuring time, as well as temperature, will enable you to comply with FDA guidelines for food safety.
Having a wireless temperature monitoring system will ensure that your food/equipment is in an acceptable HACCP temperature range, and will also alert you when your food/equipment goes out of the acceptable range and for how long. Besides monitoring temperature, your HACCP plan should include a time element, as it is one of the important Critical Control Points. Any temperature monitoring system must be able to help automate all your HACCP requirements, thus minimizing downtime and the chance of bacteria growth.
Remember, when it comes to temperature monitoring and food safety, time is of the essence!
