OAR 603-025-0150: Food Processing Establishments

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. (3) Processing Requirement for Retail Sale of Dehydrated Prunes: Dehydrated prunes shall not be sold at retail or offered or displayed for sale at retail, unless they have been subjected to heat treatment by water or steam to at least 180°F. long enough to remove adhering material and to obtain a uniform desired texture.