In our continuing effort to keep everyone informed, I would like to alert you to an interpretation of the “time as a control for temperature” principal and rule that is basically contained in the Model Food Code of the U. S. Food and Drug Administration and, in part, has been adopted widely throughout the country.

One of the latest adoptees is the New York City Health Department when they revamped their Retail Food Service Program. The changes in NYC health inspections included utilizing time as a control for temperature, as well as providing for grading with public display of the grading placards.

In the past week, we have been informed, and confirmed with the New York City Health Department, that the rules (which are somewhat more stringent) to permit time to be used as a control for temperature, which has been working rather well, has suddenly taken on a new enforcement protocol in that the New York City Health Department is considering that if a retail food service establishment offers food for take-out, then they may not utilize time as a control for temperature.

The case in point was a corporate foodservice facility in that food was being taken out of the cafeteria in appropriate containers for consumption elsewhere, most probably at the individual’s desk. There is an exemption that had not been enforced, which states, “When intended for takeout”, clearly a corporate foodservice operation is prepared for takeout, but that is not its sole mission.

To this end, I have written today for clarification to the Associate Commissioner of Health, asking for reconsideration, and a waiver for corporate foodservice facilities, since I do not believe there is a negative impact to the publics’ health, nor do I believe that there is a science-based difference between that and what is experienced on a daily basis if we went back to not utilizing time as a control for temperature.

Furthermore, I questioned whether or not a white tablecloth restaurant providing a “doggie bag” is actually providing food for takeout, a practice that I would consider far more riskier than when an employee at a corporate dining facility takes their lunch to their desk. Could there be a thermal and time abuse, absolutely. However, no one can control for human behavior.

Please be advised that if you are in the City of New York and you are utilizing appropriate time as a control for temperature, with all of the documentation required, and if food is available for takeout, you may be cited as some units have been in the past two weeks. We will keep you posted when we hear from the Associate Commissioner of Health for the New York City Health Department.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at any time.  EHA is trying to get into the social network mode of communications and we invite you to follow us on Twitter at EHAConsultingGp for frequent updates, mostly concerning food.