Current through Vol. 42, No. 1, September 16, 2024
(a) Except for a food establishment that
obtains a variance as specified under OAC
310:257-5-63,
a food establishment that packages Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food
using a reduced oxygen packaging method shall control the growth and toxin
formation of Clostridium botulinum and the growth of Listeria
monocytogenes.
(b) Except
as specified under paragraph (f) of this Section, a food establishment that
packages Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food using a reduced oxygen
packaging method shall implement a HACCP plan that contains the information
specified under OAC 310:257- 15-9(2) and OAC
310:257-15-9(4)
and that:
(1) Identifies the food to be
packaged;
(2) Except as specified
in (c) through (e) of this Section, requires that the packaged food shall be
maintained at 5°C (41°F) or less and meet at least one of the following
criteria:
(A) Has an aw of 0.91 or
less,
(B) Has a pH of 4.6 or
less,
(C) Is a meat or poultry
product cured at a food processing plant regulated by the USDA using substances
specified in 9 CFR, Part 424.21 . Use of food ingredients and sources of
radiation, and is received in an intact package, or
(D) Is a food with a high level of competing
organisms such as raw meat or raw poultry or raw vegetables;
(3) Describes how the packages
shall be prominently and conspicuously labeled on the principal display panel
in bold type on a contrasting background, with instructions to:
(A) Maintain the food at 5°C (41°F)
or below, and
(B) Discard the food
if within thirty (30) calendar days of its packaging it is not served for
on-premises consumption, or consumed if served or sold for off-premises
consumption;
(4) Limits
the refrigerated shelf life to no more than thirty (30) calendar days from
packaging to consumption, except the time the product is maintained frozen, or
the original manufacturer's "sell by" or "use by" date, whichever occurs
first;
(5) Includes operational
procedures that:
(A) Prohibit contacting
ready-to-eat food with bare hands as specified under OAC
310:257-5-21(b),
(B) Identify a designated work area and the
method by which:
(i) Physical barriers or
methods of separation of raw foods and ready-to-eat foods minimize cross
contamination, and
(ii) Access to
the processing equipment is limited to responsible trained personnel familiar
with the potential hazards of the operation, and
(C) Delineate cleaning and sanitization
procedures for food-contact surfaces;
(6) Describes the training program that
ensures that the individual responsible for the reduced oxygen packaging
operation understands the:
(A) Concepts
required for a safe operation,
(B)
Equipment and facilities, and
(C)
Procedures specified under paragraph (b) (5) of this Section, OAC 310:257-
15-9(2) and OAC
310:257-15-9(4);
and
(7) Is provided to
the Department prior to implementation as specified under OAC
310:257-15-(8)(b).
(c)
Except for fish that is frozen before, during, and after packaging and bears a
label indicating that it is to be kept frozen until time of use, a food
establishment may not package fish using a reduced oxygen packaging
method.
(d) Except as specified
under paragraphs (c) and (f) of this Section, a food establishment that
packages Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food using a cook-chill or sous
vide process shall:
(1) Provide to the
Department prior to implementation, a HACCP Plan that contains the information
as specified under OAC
310:257-15-9;
(2) Ensure the food is:
(A) Prepared and consumed on the premises, or
prepared and consumed off the premises but within the same business entity with
no distribution or sale of the packaged product to another business entity or
the consumer;
(B) Cooked to heat
all parts of the food to a temperature and for a time as specified under OAC
310:257-5-46
through 48;
(C) Protected from
contamination before and after cooking as specified under OAC
310:257-5-21
through OAC
310:257-5-45;
(D) Placed in a package with an oxygen
barrier and sealed before cooking, or placed in a package and sealed
immediately after cooking and before reaching a temperature below 57°C
(135°F);
(E) Cooled to 5°C
(41°F) in the sealed package or bag as specified under
310:257-5-57 and:
(i) Cooled to 1°C (34°F) within
forty-eight (48) hours of reaching 5°C (41°F) and held at that
temperature until consumed or discarded within thirty (30) days after the date
of packaging;
(ii) Held at 5°C
(41°F) or less for no more than seven (7) days, at which time the food must
be consumed or discarded; or
(iii)
Held frozen with no shelf life restriction while frozen until consumed or
used;
(F) Held in a
refrigeration unit that is equipped with an electronic system that continuously
monitors time and temperature and is visually examined for proper operation
twice daily;
(G) If transported
off-site to a satellite location of the same business entity, equipped with
verifiable electronic monitoring devices to ensure that times and temperatures
are monitored during transportation; and
(H) Labeled with the product name and the
date packaged; and
(3)
Maintain the records required to confirm that cooling and cold holding
refrigeration time/temperature parameters are required as part of the HACCP
Plan and:
(A) Make such records available to
the regulatory authority upon request; and
(B) Hold such records for at least six (6)
months; and
(4) Implement
written operational procedures as specified in (b)(5) of this Section and a
training program as specified in (b)(6) of this Section.
(e) Except as specified in paragraph (f) of
this Section, a food establishment that packages cheese using a reduced oxygen
packaging method shall:
(1) Limit the cheeses
packaged to those that are commercially manufactured in a food processing plant
with no ingredients added in the food establishment and that meet the Standards
of Identity as specified in 21 CFR 133:150 Hard cheeses,
21 CFR Section
133.169 Pasteurized process cheese or
21 CFR Section
133.187 Semisoft cheeses;
(2) Have a HACCP Plan that contains the
information specified in OAC
310:257-15-9(2),
OAC 310-15-9(4), and specified in (b)(1), (b)(3)(A), (b)(5) and (b)(6) of this
Section;
(3) Labels the package on
the principal display panel with the "use by" date that does not exceed thirty
(30) days from its packaging or the original manufacturer's "sell by" or "use
by" date, whichever occurs first; and
(4) Discards the reduced oxygen packaged
cheese if it is not sold for off-premises consumption or consumed within thirty
(30) calendar days of its packaging.
(f) A HACCP Plan is not required when a food
establishment uses a reduced oxygen packaging method to package
Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food that is always:
(1) Labeled with the production time and
date;
(2) Held at five 5°C
(41°F) or less during refrigerated storage; and
(3) Removed from its package in the food
establishment within forty-eight (48) hours after packaging.
Added at 23 Ok Reg 2358,
eff 6-25-06; Amended at 28 Ok Reg 2289, eff
11-1-11
