when cooling food the temperature must reach
Faster cooling times limit the time when these bacteria are able to grow or form toxins. The standards require food to be cooled from 60Â°C to 21Â°C in a maximum of two hours and from 21Â°C to 5Â°C within a further maximum period of four hours. Alternatively, if you want to cool food over a longer time period you must be able to show that you have a safe alternative system in place. If you donât know how fast your food is cooling, use a probe thermometer to measure the warmest part of the food â usually in the centre. For information on the use of thermometers, see the fact sheet âThermometers and using them with potentially hazardous foodâ.