Code of Maryland Regulations › Title 10 - MARYLAND DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH › Part 3 › Subtitle 15 - FOOD › Chapter 10.15.03 - Food Service Facilities › Section 10.15.03.02 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 14, July 12, 2024
A. In this
				  chapter, the following terms have the meanings indicated.
B. Terms Defined.
(1) "Acceptable" means agreeable to the use
				  or presence of equipment or a practice when standards are not developed or when
				  developed standards are inappropriate, because the approving authority has
				  determined that the equipment or practice conforms to principles, practices,
				  and generally recognized standards that protect public health.
(2) Adulterated.
(a) "Adulterated" has the meaning stated in
				  Health-General Article, §§21-207, 21-208, and 21-209, Annotated Code
				  of Maryland.
(b) "Adulterated"
				  includes food that:
(i) Contains any poisonous
				  or deleterious substance;
(ii) Is
				  diseased, contaminated, filthy, putrid, or decomposed; or
(iii) Is otherwise unfit as food for human
				  beings.
(3)
				  "Approved source" means a source of food or food ingredients accepted by the
				  Department because the food or food ingredients from the source:
(a) Are not adulterated or misbranded;
				  and
(b) Where required, are
				  regulated by the approving authority.
(4) "Approving authority" means:
(a) Within the State, the Secretary of Health
				  and Mental Hygiene or the Secretary's designee; or
(b) Outside the State, the agency designated
				  in the laws of another state or country to license or permit a food
				  establishment.
(5)
				  "aw" means water activity, which is:
(a) The ratio of the water vapor pressure of
				  a food to the vapor pressure of pure water at the same temperature;
				  and
(b) An index of the available,
				  free moisture in food.
(6) Bake Sale.
(a) "Bake sale" means a place where only
				  non-potentially hazardous bakery goods, including breads and pastries, are sold
				  in conjunction with a fundraising event.
(b) "Bake sale" does not include a place:
(i) Where a person sells baked goods for
				  individual profit;
(ii) From which
				  food is commercially distributed; or
(iii) Where a potentially hazardous baked
				  good is sold or distributed.
(7) "Barrier" means a physical, biological,
				  or chemical factor that retards or prevents the growth of microorganisms that
				  are infectious or toxigenic.
(7-1)
				  Base of operations means a licensed food service facility that is used by the
				  owner or operator of a mobile food service facility for food storage, potable
				  water, safe disposal of waste and sewage, and, if necessary, utensil
				  washing.
(8) "Bed and breakfast"
				  means a lodging or rooming house as defined in Public Safety Article, §
											9-201, Annotated Code
				  of Maryland, that has eight rooms or fewer for rent.
(9) "Bona fide nonprofit" means an
				  organization having official documentation from the United States Internal
				  Revenue Service that the organization has current tax-exempt nonprofit
				  status.
(10) "Caterer" means a food
				  service facility that:
(a) Offers catering
				  services; or
(b) Identifies itself
				  as a caterer.
(11)
				  "Catering services" means the preparation or provision and the serving of food
				  or drink by a food service facility for service at the provider's premises or
				  elsewhere in connection with a:
(a) Specific
				  public event; or
(b) Business or
				  social function or affair.
(12) "Commercially sterile" means the
				  condition achieved by the:
(a) Application of
				  heat, pressure, or other energy or matter that renders a food free of:
(i) Microorganisms capable of reproducing in
				  the food under normal nonrefrigerated conditions of storage and distribution;
				  and
(ii) Viable microorganisms,
				  including spores, that may cause disease; or
(b) Control of water activity and the
				  application of heat, pressure, or other energy or matter that renders the food
				  free of microorganisms capable of reproducing in the food under normal
				  nonrefrigerated conditions of storage and distribution.
(13) Comminuted.
(a) "Comminuted" means reduced in size by
				  methods including:
(i) Chopping;
(ii) Flaking;
(iii) Grinding; or
(iv) Mincing.
(b) "Comminuted" includes fish, meat, or a
				  mixture of products that are reduced in size and restructured or reformulated,
				  such as:
(i) Gefilte fish;
(ii) Formed roast beef;
(iii) The meat used in gyros;
(iv) Ground beef; and
(v) Sausage.
(14) "Condiment" means a food or seasoning
				  used to enhance the flavor of another food, including:
(a) Mustard;
(b) Ketchup;
(c) Mayonnaise;
(d) Relish;
(e) Salt;
(f) Pepper;
(g) Sugar; or
(h) Chutney.
(14-1) "Consumer" means a person who is a
				  member of the public, takes possession of food, is not functioning in the
				  capacity of an operator of a food service facility or food processing plant,
				  and does not offer the food for resale.
(15) "Consumer advisory" means a written
				  notification to consumers that:
(a)
				  Identifies food of animal origin that is served or sold as a ready-to-eat food
				  or as an ingredient in a ready-to-eat food that is:
(i) Raw;
(ii) Undercooked; or
(iii) Not otherwise processed to eliminate
				  pathogens; and
(b)
				  Reminds consumers that consuming raw or undercooked meats, poultry, seafood,
				  shellfish, or eggs may increase the risk of foodborne illness, especially if
				  the consumer has certain medical conditions.
(16) Continental Breakfast.
(a) "Continental breakfast" means a meal that
				  does not require major food preparation as specified in Regulation .28G(1) of
				  this chapter.
(b) "Continental
				  breakfast" includes foods such as:
(i) Coffee
				  and tea;
(ii) Juice;
(iii) Cereal;
(iv) Milk and cream;
(v) Whole fresh fruit;
(vi) Pastries;
(vii) Bread;
(viii) Donuts;
(ix) Butter and margarine; and
(x) Jams and jellies.
(c) "Continental breakfast" does not include
				  foods such as:
(i) Eggs cooked outside of the
				  shell;
(ii) Meat; and
(iii) Fruit salad prepared on
				  premises.
(17)
				  "Corrosion resistant" means the property that allows a material to maintain
				  sanitary surface characteristics under the influence of prolonged contact with:
(a) Food;
(b) Cleaning compounds;
(c) Sanitizing solutions; and
(d) Other conditions of the
				  environment.
(17-1)
				  "Cottage food business" means a business that:
(a) Produces or packages cottage food
				  products in a residential kitchen in Maryland; and
(b) Has annual revenues from the sale of
				  cottage food products in an amount not exceeding
				  $50,000.