Oregon Administrative Rules › Chapter 603 - DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE › Division 25 - FOOD ESTABLISHMENT STANDARDS AND STANDARDS FOR RETAIL FOOD SERVICE ACTIVITIES › Section 603-025-0150 - Food Processing Establishments

Current through Register Vol. 63, No. 7, July 1, 2024
In addition to the provisions of OAR 603-025-0020, a food
				processing establishment shall comply with the following:
(1) Construction and Repair of Equipment and
			 Utensils: All plant equipment and utensils shall be suitable for their intended
			 use, so designed and of such material and workmanship as to be adequately
			 cleanable, and properly maintained. The design, construction and use of such
			 equipment and utensils shall preclude the adulteration of foods with
			 lubricants, fuel, metal fragments, contaminated water or any other
			 contaminants. All equipment shall be installed and maintained so as to
			 facilitate the cleaning of the equipment and of all adjacent spaces. Aisle or
			 working spaces between equipment and between equipment and walls shall be
			 unobstructed and of sufficient width to permit employees to perform their
			 duties without contamination of food or food contact surfaces with clothing or
			 personal contact.
(2) Sanitary
			 Maintenance and Methods:
(a) Separate rooms
			 shall be provided for those operations which may cause contamination of food
			 products with undesirable microorganisms, chemicals, filth or other extraneous
			 material. Building, fixtures and other physical facilities of the establishment
			 shall be kept in good repair and in a sanitary condition. Cleaning operations
			 shall be conducted so as to minimize the danger of contamination of food and
			 food-contact surfaces. Detergents, sanitizers and other supplies employed in
			 cleaning and sanitizing procedures shall be free of significant microbiological
			 contamination and shall be safe and effective for their intended uses. Cleaning
			 and sanitizing agents shall be subject to approval by the department;
(b) All utensils and
			 product-contact surfaces of equipment shall be cleaned as frequently as
			 necessary to prevent contamination of food and food products.
			 Nonproduct-contact surfaces of equipment used in the operation of food plants
			 should be cleaned as frequently as necessary to minimize accumulation of dust,
			 dirt, food particles, and other debris. Single-service articles (such as
			 utensils intended for one-time use, paper cups, paper towels, etc.) should be
			 stored in appropriate containers and handled, dispensed, and disposed of in a
			 manner that prevents contamination of food or food-contact surfaces. Where
			 necessary to prevent the introduction of undesirable microbiological organisms
			 into food products, all utensils and product-contact surfaces of equipment used
			 in the plant shall be cleaned and sanitized prior to such use and following any
			 interruption during which such utensils and contact surfaces may have become
			 contaminated. Where such equipment and utensils are used in a continuous
			 production operation, the contact surfaces of such equipment and utensils shall
			 be cleaned and sanitized on a predetermined schedule using adequate methods for
			 cleaning and sanitizing. Sanitizing agents shall be effective and safe under
			 conditions of use. Any facility, procedure, machine or device may be acceptable
			 for cleaning and sanitizing equipment and utensils if it is established that
			 such facility, procedure, machine, or device will routinely render equipment
			 and utensils clean and provide adequate sanitizing treatment;
(c) All cleaned and sanitized portable
			 equipment and utensils with product-contact surfaces should be stored in such a
			 location and manner that product-contact surfaces are protected from splash,
			 dust, and other contamination;
(d)
			 Adequate and convenient facilities for handwashing and, where appropriate, hand
			 sanitizing shall be provided at each location in the plant where good sanitary
			 practices require employees to wash or sanitize and dry their hands. Such
			 facilities shall be furnished with running water at a suitable temperature for
			 handwashing, effective hand cleaning and sanitizing preparations, sanitary
			 towel service or suitable drying devices and, where appropriate, easily
			 cleanable waste receptacles;
(e)
			 All operations in the receiving, inspecting, transporting, packaging,
			 segregating, preparing, processing and storage of food shall be conducted in
			 accordance with adequate sanitation principles. Overall sanitation of the plant
			 shall be under the supervision of an individual assigned responsibility for
			 this function. All reasonable precautions, including the following, shall be
			 taken to assure that production procedures do not contribute contamination such
			 as filth, harmful chemicals, undesirable microorganisms, or any other
			 objectionable material to the processed product:
(A) Raw material and ingredients shall be
			 inspected and segregated as necessary to insure that they are clean, wholesome,
			 and fit for processing into human food and shall be stored under conditions
			 that will protect against contamination and minimize deterioration. Raw
			 materials shall be washed or cleaned as required to remove soil or other
			 contamination;
(B) Containers and
			 carriers of raw ingredients shall be inspected on receipt to assure that their
			 condition has not contributed to the contamination or deterioration of the
			 products. When ice is used in contact with food products, it shall be made from
			 potable water and shall be used only if it has been manufactured in accordance
			 with adequate standards and stored, transported, and handled in a sanitary
			 manner;
(C) Food processing areas
			 and equipment shall not be used to process animal feed or inedible products
			 unless human food will not be contaminated thereby;
(D) Processing equipment shall be maintained
			 in a sanitary condition through frequent cleaning, including sanitization where
			 necessary. If necessary, equipment shall be taken apart for thorough cleaning.
			 All food processing, including packaging and storage, shall be conducted under
			 such conditions and controls as are necessary to minimize the potential for
			 undesirable bacterial of other microbiological growth, toxin formation, or
			 deterioration or contamination of the processed product or ingredients. This
			 may require careful monitoring of such physical factors as time, temperature,
			 humidity, pressure, flow-rate and such processing operations as freezing,
			 dehydration, heat processing, and refrigeration to assure that mechanical
			 breakdowns, time delays, temperature fluctuations and other factors do not
			 contribute to the decomposition or contamination of the processed products;
(E) Chemical, microbiological, or
			 extraneous material testing procedures shall be utilized where necessary to
			 identify sanitation failures or food contamination, and all foods and
			 ingredients that have become contaminated shall be rejected, treated or
			 processed to eliminate the contamination where this may be properly
			 accomplished;
(F) Packaging
			 processes and materials shall not transmit contaminants or objectional
			 substances to the products, shall conform to any applicable food additive
			 rules, and shall provide adequate protection from contamination;
(G) Coding of products sold or otherwise
			 distributed from a manufacturing, processing, packing or repacking activity
			 should be utilized to enable positive lot identification so as to facilitate
			 the segregation of specific food lots that may have become contaminated or
			 otherwise unfit for their intended use. Records shall be retained for a period
			 of time that exceeds the shelf life of the product, but need not be retained
			 for more than two years.