Documenting Food Temperatures is About Safety and Savings (Kentucky)

A Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) in Kentucky was surveyed and upon kitchen inspection the surveyor noticed that the refrigerator and freezer temperatures were not documented daily. Upon taking the temperature of the cold storage units, the surveyor identified that the refrigerator was at 50 degrees Fahrenheit and the freezer was at 20 degrees Fahrenheit. Some of the food in the freezer was thawed. The community was cited under F-Tag 812 for not being in accordance with professional standards for food service safety.

After identification, the Certified Dietary Manager quickly submitted a maintenance ticket to repair the cold storage unit and the manager also inserviced staff on the importance of taking and documenting cold storage temperatures daily. The cold storage unit was corrected; however, there were foods that had to be discarded as the items were not Time Temperature Controlled for Safety (TCS). The community had two issues. The first was that food was not being held in a safe manner. The other issue was that the community lost a good portion of their food supply. Considering that food costs are currently high and will likely remain high, the community had the expense of replacing the discarded food.