.

Food handlers in both the home and commercial environments needs to make sure they understand the difference between cooking temperatures and holding temperatures.

After you are done cooking foods you need to keep them at the proper temperature to ensure food safety.  In this discussion we are not concerned with food quality but only FOOD SAFETY.

Food handlers need to keep food either hot, above 135F or cold, below 41F.

.

These are the holding temperatures. The range between these two thresholds is called the “danger zone” and is the temperature that most microorganisms (aka. pathogens) grow the fastest. Foods that are left in the “danger zone” for more than four (4) hours are no longer considered safe to eat, from a food safety point of view, and should be discarded.

Food handlers need to be aware that microorganisms will still grow outside of the “danger zone” but they will grow much more slowly.

Food handlers should us the cooking chart from last week to ensure that microorganisms are reduced to safe levels, you can never kill them all, from a food safety point of view.

.

.