Chapter 6

The Flow of Food:

Purchasing, Receiving, and Storage
 Purchasing

Purchase food from approved, reputable suppliers

Approved suppliers:
 Have been inspected
 Meet all applicable local, state, and federal laws

Arrange it so deliveries arrive:

 One at a time
 During off-peak hours

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 Receiving and Inspecting

Receiving Principles
 Have enough trained staff available to promptly receive,
inspect, and store food
 Authorize staff to accept, reject, and sign for deliveries
 Have policies and procedures for rejecting deliveries

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 Receiving and Inspecting

Temperature Criteria for Deliveries

 Receive cold TCS food at 41˚F (5˚C) or lower, unless
otherwise specified
 Receive hot TCS food at 135˚F (57˚C) or higher
 Receive frozen food frozen. Reject if:
• Fluids or frozen liquids are in case bottoms
• Ice crystals are on product or packaging
• Water stains are on packaging

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 Receiving and Inspecting

Checking Meat, Poultry, and Fish Temperatures

 Insert the thermometer stem or probe into the thickest
part of the food (usually the center)

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 Receiving and Inspecting

Checking ROP Food Temperatures

 Insert the thermometer stem or probe between
2 packages
 As an alternative, fold packaging around the
thermometer stem or probe

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 Receiving and Inspecting

Checking Other Packaged Food Temperatures

 Open the package and insert the thermometer stem or
probe into the food

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 Receiving and Inspecting

Reject packaged items with:

 Tears, holes, or punctures in
packaging; reject cans with swollen
ends, rust, or dents
 Broken cartons or seals or dirty
wrappers
 Leaks, dampness, or water stains
 Signs of pests or pest damage
 Expired code or use-by dates

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 Receiving and Inspecting

Reject food if:

 It has an abnormal color
 It has an abnormal or unpleasant odor

Reject meat, fish, or poultry if:

 It is slimy, sticky, or dry
 It has soft flesh that leaves an imprint when touched

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 Receiving and Inspecting Specific Food

Eggs
 Eggs must be clean and unbroken
when received
 Shell eggs must be received at an
air temperature of 45˚F (7˚C) or
lower
 Liquid, frozen, and dehydrated egg
products must be pasteurized and
have a USDA inspection mark
 Eggs must comply with USDA
grade standards

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 Receiving and Inspecting Specific Food

Milk and Dairy Products

 Must be received at 41˚F (5˚C)
or lower, unless otherwise
specified by law
 Must be pasteurized and
comply with USDA grade A
standards

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 Receiving and Inspecting Specific Food

Shellfish—Raw Shucked
 Must be packaged in
nonreturnable containers
• Containers must be labeled with
the packer’s name, address, and
certification number
• Containers smaller than one-half
gallon (1.9 L) must have a “best if
used by” or “sell by” date
• Containers bigger than one-half
gallon (1.9 L) must have the date
the shellfish were shucked

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 Receiving and Inspecting Specific Food

Shellfish—Live
 Receive with shellstock identification tags
• Tags must remain attached to the delivery container
until all the shellfish have been used
• Employees must write on the tags the date that the
last shellfish was sold or served from the container
• Operators must keep these tags on file for 90 days
from the date written on them
 Reject shellfish if they are very muddy, have broken
shells, or are dead

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 Receiving and Inspecting Specific Food

Sliced Melons and Cut Tomatoes

 Must be received at 41˚F (5˚C) or
lower

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 Receiving and Inspecting Specific Food

Prepackaged Juice
 Must be purchased from a supplier with a Hazard
Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan
 Must be treated (e.g., pasteurized) to prevent, eliminate,
or reduce pathogens

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 Receiving and Inspecting Specific Food

Products Requiring Inspection

Stamps
 Meat and poultry
• Packaging must have a USDA
or state department of
agriculture stamp
• Stamp indicates product and
processing plant have met
certain standards
 Egg products
• Package must have an
inspection stamp indicating
federal regulations have been
enforced

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 General Storage Guidelines

Label Food
Ready-to-eat TCS food that was
prepped on-site and held longer
than 24 hours, must contain a
label that includes:
 Name of the food
 Date by which it should be sold,
eaten, or thrown out

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 General Storage Guidelines

Discard food that has passed the

manufacturer’s expiration date

Ready-to-eat TCS food that was

prepared in-house:
 Can be stored for 7 days at 41°F
(5°C) or lower
 Must be thrown out after 7 days

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 General Storage Guidelines

Rotate food to use the oldest

inventory first
One way to rotate products is to
follow FIFO:
 Identify the food item’s use-
by or expiration date
 Store items with the earliest
use-by or expiration dates in
front of items with later dates
 Use items stored in front first

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 General Storage Guidelines

Deplete stored product on a

regular basis

If product is not sold or

consumed by a specified date:
 Throw it out
 Clean and sanitize the
container
 Refill the container with fresh
food

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 General Storage Guidelines

Temperatures
 Keep cold TCS food at 41°F
(5°C) or lower
 Keep hot TCS food at 135°F
(57°C) or higher
 Check the temperature of stored
food and storage areas at the
start of the shift

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 General Storage Guidelines

Product Placement
 Store food in containers intended for food
 Containers should be:
• Durable
• Leak proof
• Sealed or covered
 Store food, linens, and single-use items in
designated storage areas
• Away from walls
• At least 6” (15 centimeters) off the floor

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 General Storage Guidelines

Cleaning
 Keep all storage areas clean
and dry
 Clean up spills and leaks
right away
 Clean dollies, carts,
transporters, and trays often
 Store food in containers that
have been cleaned and
sanitized
 Store dirty linens in a clean,
washable container

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 Refrigerated and Frozen Storage

Maintenance
 Schedule regular maintenance
to make sure coolers and
freezers stay at the right
temperature
 Defrost freezers to allow them to
operate more efficiently

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 Refrigerated and Frozen Storage

Temperatures
 Set the temperature of coolers to keep the
internal temperature of TCS food at 41°F
(5°C) or lower
 Set freezer temperatures to keep food frozen

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 Refrigerated and Frozen Storage

Monitoring
 Monitor food temperatures
regularly
 Randomly sample the temperature
of stored food with a calibrated
thermometer
 Check cooler temperatures at least
once per shift

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 Refrigerated and Frozen Storage

Airflow
 Do NOT overload coolers or freezers
 Keep cooler doors closed as much
as possible
 Use open shelving

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 Refrigerated and Frozen Storage

Preventing Cross-Contamination
 Wrap or cover food
 Store refrigerated raw meat, poultry, and
seafood separately from ready-to-eat food

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 Refrigerated and Frozen Storage

Preventing Cross-Contamination
 Store food items in the following
top-to-bottom order:
• Ready-to-eat food
• Seafood
• Whole cuts of beef and pork
• Ground meat and ground fish
• Whole and ground poultry

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 Dry Storage

Keep storerooms:
 Cool: 50°F to 70°F (10°C to 21°C)
 Dry
 Well ventilated
Store dry food:
 Away from walls
 At least 6” (15 centimeters) off
the floor

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