CFPM cheat sheet

Active managerial control is the certified manager's ongoing oversight of food safety practices during all hours of operation, delivered through monitoring, corrective actions, and verification.

HACCP seven principles in order: hazard analysis, determine critical control points, set critical limits, establish monitoring, set corrective actions, verify, keep records.

A variance from the regulatory authority is required for curing, smoking food for preservation, reduced-oxygen packaging, sprouting seeds, live shellfish tanks, and juice processing.

Shellstock identification tags are retained 90 days from the date the container is emptied; HACCP and time/temperature logs are retained at least 6 months.

The five CDC/FDA risk factors are unsafe sources of food, inadequate cooking, improper holding, contaminated equipment, and poor personal hygiene.

TCS food is held at 41°F (5°C) or below or at 135°F (57°C) or above; the span between those two temperatures is the danger zone.

The flow of food runs purchasing, receiving, storing, preparing, cooking, holding, cooling, reheating, and serving, and each step carries its own control limit.

A written food safety management system must name monitoring procedures, corrective actions, verification activities, and the records that document them.

Bacterial growth requirements are summarized as FATTOM: food, acidity, temperature, time, oxygen, and moisture.

Most pathogens are inhibited at pH 4.6 or below and at water activity 0.85 or below; TCS foods sit above both thresholds.

Spore formers Bacillus cereus and Clostridium species survive normal cooking and multiply when food is cooled slowly or held warm for long periods.

Toxins produced by Staphylococcus aureus and the emetic strain of Bacillus cereus are heat stable and are not destroyed by reheating.

Listeria monocytogenes multiplies at refrigeration temperature; high-risk foods are deli meats, soft cheese, unpasteurized dairy, and smoked seafood.

E. coli O157:H7 is linked to ground beef, raw produce, and untreated water; its Shiga toxin can cause hemolytic uremic syndrome.

Norovirus and Hepatitis A spread by the fecal-oral route from infected handlers to ready-to-eat food and are both on the Big Five exclusion list.

The nine major allergens are milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans, and sesame; cross-contact occurs via hands, utensils, and shared fryer oil.

Handwashing sequence: wet hands with warm running water, apply soap, scrub 10 to 15 seconds including under nails and wrists, rinse, and dry with a single-use towel.

Hands must be washed after using the restroom, handling raw animal food, touching hair or face, coughing or sneezing, taking out garbage, handling chemicals, and before starting work.

Hand antiseptics at 60 to 95 percent alcohol are applied only after handwashing and never substitute for it.

Bare-hand contact with ready-to-eat food is prohibited; use utensils, deli tissue, or single-use gloves instead.

Single-use gloves are changed at least every 4 hours of continuous use, between tasks, after handling raw food, and whenever they tear or become soiled.

Exclusion applies to vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice, or a Big Five diagnosis; restriction applies to a covered infected wound, sore throat with fever, or persistent sneezing and coughing.

Fingernails are kept short and filed, with no polish or artificial nails unless intact single-use gloves are worn.

A handwashing sink must supply hot and cold running water, soap, single-use towels, and signage, and may be used for no other purpose.

Receiving limits: cold TCS food at 41°F or below, frozen food solid with no thaw evidence, shell eggs at 45°F ambient air, live shellfish at 50°F internal.

Reject deliveries with torn packaging, swollen or badly dented cans, off odors, missing labels, expired dates, or out-of-range temperatures.

Storage order top to bottom: ready-to-eat food, whole fish, whole beef and pork, ground meat, then poultry on the bottom shelf.

Minimum internal temperatures: poultry and stuffed foods 165°F for 15 seconds; ground meat 155°F for 17 seconds; whole beef, pork, fish, and eggs 145°F for 15 seconds; vegetables 135°F.

Cooling is two-stage: 135°F to 70°F within 2 hours, then 70°F to 41°F within 4 additional hours, 6 hours total.

Reheat previously cooked TCS food to 165°F for 15 seconds within 2 hours before placing it in hot holding at 135°F or above.

Ready-to-eat TCS food held at 41°F or below is date marked for a maximum of 7 days, counting the preparation day as day one.

Approved thawing methods are refrigeration at 41°F or below, running potable water at 70°F or below, microwave followed by immediate cooking, or thawing as part of cooking.

Food and supplies are stored at least 6 inches off the floor on clean shelving to allow cleaning and prevent contamination.

Three-compartment sink order: wash in detergent water, rinse in clean water, sanitize by immersion, then air dry on a rack without towel drying.

Chemical sanitizer targets with a 30-second contact time: chlorine 50 to 100 ppm, quaternary ammonium 200 to 400 ppm, iodine 12.5 to 25 ppm, each verified with test strips.

Hot water sanitizing in a dish machine requires a final rinse at 180°F, with the wash solution maintained at or above 160°F.

Cleaning removes visible soil and grease; sanitizing applied to a clean surface reduces pathogens by 99.999 percent, a 5-log reduction.

Food-contact surfaces in constant use at room temperature are cleaned and sanitized at least every 4 hours, and always after a task change or contamination event.

An air gap is the only absolute backflow prevention device; it is at least twice the diameter of the supply pipe and never less than 1 inch.

Only a licensed pest control operator applies pesticides on site, and chemicals are stored away from and below food, utensils, and packaging.

Pest exclusion uses self-closing doors, intact window screens, and sealed utility penetrations; food stored 6 inches off the floor and prompt trash removal deny pests food and shelter.

Bimetallic thermometers are calibrated by the ice-point method at 32°F weekly and after any drop or extreme temperature exposure.