Texas Administrative Code
Title 25 - HEALTH SERVICES
Part 1 - DEPARTMENT OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES
Chapter 228 - RETAIL FOOD ESTABLISHMENTS
Subchapter A - GENERAL PROVISIONS
Section 228.2 - Definitions

Universal Citation: 25 TX Admin Code ยง 228.2

Current through Reg. 49, No. 38; September 20, 2024

The following words and terms, when used in this chapter, shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

(1) Accredited program--Food manager certification program that has been evaluated and listed by the department and conforms to standards set by the department in § 229.172 of this title (relating to Accreditation of Certified Food Management Programs).

(2) Adulterated food--A food deemed to be adulterated as specified in the Texas Health and Safety Code, § 431.081.

(3) Bed and breakfast extended--An establishment with more than seven rooms for rent or an establishment that provides food service other than breakfast to overnight guests.

(4) Bed and breakfast food establishment--A bed and breakfast that provides food service to customers in addition to its overnight guests.

(5) Bed and breakfast limited--An establishment that has seven or fewer rooms for rent, serves breakfast to overnight guests, and is not a retail food establishment.

(6) Central preparation facility--An approved and permitted facility or space where food is prepared, stored, and packaged.

(7) Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)--Citations to the CFR refer sequentially to the Title, Part, and Section numbers, such as 40 CFR 180.194 refers to Title 40, Part 180, Section 194.

(8) Common carrier--An individual or business that advertises to the public that it is available for hire to transport people or property, including food, in exchange for a fee.

(9) Cottage food production operation--An individual, operating out of the individual's home, who:

(A) produces at the individual's home:
(i) a baked good that is not a time and temperature control for safety food (TCS food), as defined in § 229.661(b)(13) of this title (relating to Cottage Food Production Operations);

(ii) candy;

(iii) coated and uncoated nuts;

(iv) unroasted nut butters;

(v) fruit butters;

(vi) a canned jam or jelly;

(vii) a fruit pie;

(viii) dehydrated fruit or vegetables, including dried beans;

(ix) popcorn and popcorn snacks;

(x) cereal, including granola;

(xi) dry mix;

(xii) vinegar;

(xiii) pickled fruit or vegetables, including beets and carrots, that are preserved in vinegar, brine, or a similar solution at an equilibrium pH value of 4.6 or less;

(xiv) mustard;

(xv) roasted coffee or dry tea;

(xvi) a dried herb or dried-herb mix;

(xvii) plant-based acidified canned goods;

(xviii) fermented vegetable products, including products that are refrigerated to preserve quality;

(xix) frozen raw and uncut fruit or vegetables; or

(xx) any other food that is not a TCS food, as defined in § 229.661(b)(13) of this title.

(B) has an annual gross income of $50,000 or less from the sale of food described by subparagraph (A) of this paragraph;

(C) sells foods produced under subparagraph (A) of this paragraph only directly to consumers; and

(D) delivers products to the consumer at the point of sale or another location designated by the consumer.

(10) Department--The Texas Department of State Health Services.

(11) Drinking water--Traditionally known as "potable water" and that meets the standards set forth in 30 TAC Chapter 290, Subchapter F (relating to Drinking Water Standards Governing Drinking Water Quality and Reporting Requirements for Public Water Systems). Drinking water includes the term "water" except where the term used connotes that the water is not potable, such as "boiler water," "mop water," "rainwater," "wastewater," and "non-drinking water."

(12) Event--A unique public gathering at which food products are served and for which an appropriate regulatory authority grants permission, whether by permit, license, or another official written document.

(13) Exotic animal--Member of a species of game animals not indigenous to this state, including axis deer, nilgai antelope, red sheep, or other cloven-hoofed ruminant animals.

(14) Food establishment--

(A) A food establishment is an operation that:
(i) stores, prepares, packages, serves, or vends food directly to the consumer, or otherwise provides food for human consumption, such as a restaurant, retail food store, satellite or catered feeding location, catering operation if the operation provides food directly to a consumer or to a conveyance used to transport people, market, vending machine location, self-service food market, conveyance used to transport people, institution, or food bank; and

(ii) relinquishes possession of food to a consumer directly, or indirectly through a delivery service, such as home delivery of grocery orders or restaurant takeout orders, or delivery service that is provided by common carriers.

(B) Food establishment includes:
(i) an element of the operation, such as a transportation vehicle or a central preparation facility that supplies a vending location or satellite feeding location unless the vending or feeding location is permitted by the regulatory authority; and

(ii) an operation that is conducted in a mobile, stationary, temporary, or permanent facility or location and where consumption is on or off the premises regardless if there is a charge for the food.

(C) Food establishment does not include:
(i) an establishment that offers only prepackaged foods that are not TCS foods;

(ii) a produce stand that only offers whole, uncut fresh fruits and vegetables;

(iii) a food processing plant, including one that is located on the premises of a food establishment;

(iv) a cottage food production operation;

(v) a bed and breakfast limited as defined in this section; or

(vi) a private home that receives catered or home-delivered food.

(15) Game animals--Wild animals that are indigenous to this state and not amenable to the Texas Meat and Poultry Inspection Act, Texas Health and Safety Code, Chapter 433, for which the hunter must obtain a hunting license from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department before hunting animals, such as white-tailed deer, mule deer, pronghorn antelope, and big horn sheep.

(16) General use pesticide--A pesticide that is not classified by the United States Environmental Protection Agency for restricted use as specified in 40 CFR § 152.175 or is not limited to use by or under the direct supervision of a certified applicator licensed by the Texas Department of Agriculture or by the Texas Structural Pest Control Service as applicable.

(17) Group residence--A private or public housing corporation or institutional facility that provides living quarters and meals. The term includes a domicile for unrelated persons, such as a retirement home, correctional facility, or a long-term care facility.

(18) Livestock--Cattle, bison, sheep, swine, goats, horses, mules, other equine, poultry, domesticated rabbits, exotic animals, or domesticated game birds.

(19) Mobile food unit (MFU)--A vehicle-mounted, self or otherwise propelled, self-contained food service operation designed to be readily movable (including catering trucks, trailers, push carts, and roadside vendors) and used to store, prepare, display, serve or sell food. An MFU must completely retain its mobility at all times. An MFU does not include a stand or a booth. A roadside food vendor is classified as an MFU.

(20) Outfitter operation--Any operation, such as trail rides, bus tours, harbor cruises, or river raft trips, in which food is offered to patrons and which operates out of a central preparation location or food establishment.

(21) Plumbing Code--The International Plumbing Code, as amended, including appendices C, E, F, and G, published by the International Code Council as amended by 16 TAC § 70.101(relating to Amendments to Mandatory Building Code), the Uniform Plumbing Code, as amended, including appendices required by the regulatory authority, as published by the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials as referenced in Occupations Code, Title 8, Chapter 1301, §255 (relating to Adoption of Plumbing Codes), or a Plumbing Code adopted by a local regulatory authority, whichever is more stringent.

(22) Private water system--A drinking water system that is not connected to a public water system and not regulated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

(23) Public water system--A drinking water system that complies with 30 TAC §§ 290.101- 290.122 (relating to Drinking Water Standards Governing Drinking Water Quality and Reporting Requirements for Public Water Systems).

(24) Pushcart--A non-self-propelled MFU limited to serving foods requiring a limited amount of preparation as authorized by the regulatory authority and readily movable by one or two persons. A pushcart is classified as an MFU. A pushcart does not include non-self-propelled units owned and operated within a retail food store. This type of MFU requires the support of a central preparation facility.

(25) Regulatory authority--The department, the local (municipality, county, or public health district), federal enforcement body, or authorized representative having jurisdiction over the food establishment.

(26) Roadside food vendor--A person who operates a mobile retail food store from a temporary location adjacent to a public road or highway. Food is not prepared or processed by a roadside food vendor. A roadside food vendor is classified as an MFU.

(27) Safe material--An article manufactured from or composed of materials that may not reasonably be expected to result either directly or indirectly in the article becoming a component of or otherwise affecting the characteristics of any food. An additive that is used as specified in the Texas Health and Safety Code, Chapter 431, or other materials that are not additives and that are used in conformity with applicable regulations of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

(28) Self-service food market--A market that is unstaffed and offers prepackaged non-TCS food and prepackaged refrigerated or frozen TCS food that is stored in equipment that complies with § 228.225 of this chapter (relating to Self-Service Food Market).

(29) Service animal--A canine that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual or other mental disability as specified in Texas Health and Safety Code, § 437.023.

(30) Vending machine location--The room, enclosure, space, or area where one or more vending machines are installed and operated and that includes the storage areas and areas on the premises that are used to service and maintain the vending machines. This does not include self-service food markets.

Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Texas may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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