§ 81.12 Reduced Oxygen Packaging; Cook Chill and Sous Vide Processing.
RCNY § 81.12
(a)Scope and applicability. A food service establishment may package and process food using reduced oxygen packaging ("ROP"), as defined in 24 RCNY Health Code § 81.03, in accordance with this section, provided that the food being processed shall have at least two controls in place, including but not limited to time, temperature, Aw or pH, to prevent the growth and formation of C. botulinum or Listeria monocytogenes.
(b)Approved Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan required. A food service establishment shall not utilize ROP processes without obtaining prior Department approval of a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan. The establishment shall submit to the Department its HACCP plan that conforms to 24 RCNY Health Code § 81.06(c) for each food item or food category it intends to prepare using a ROP processing technique.
(c)On-site preparation, consumption, sale and distribution. Foods processed by ROP shall be prepared and consumed on the premises of the food service establishment, or off premises if the preparation site is properly permitted and wholly owned and operated by the same business entity as the food service establishment, and no ROP food products shall be sold or distributed to any other business entities or consumers.
(d)Specific requirements. Foods shall be: (1) Placed in an ROP package or ROP bag before cooking, or placed in a package or bag immediately after cooking and before reaching an internal temperature below 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius).
(2)Cooked immediately to require minimum internal temperatures specified in 24 RCNY Health Code § 81.09 or held at a specified temperature and time approved by the Department in the HACCP Plan. However, if such food has an Aw of 0.91 or less; has a pH of 4.6 or less; is a meat or poultry product cured at a food processing plant regulated by the United States Department of Agriculture using substances specified in 9 C.F.R. § 424.21, or successor regulation, and is received in an intact package; or is a food with high level of competing organisms such as raw meat or raw poultry, it may be held at 38 degrees Fahrenheit (2.2 degrees Celsius) without being cooked for no more than 14 calendar days, and shall be discarded thereafter.
(3)Protected from contamination after cooking as specified in 24 RCNY Health Code § 81.07.
(4)Cooled so that every part of the ROP package is reduced from 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius) to 70 degrees Fahrenheit (21.1 degrees Celsius) within two (2) hours and to 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius) or below within four (4) additional hours and subsequently: (i) Cooled to 34 degrees Fahrenheit (1 degree Celsius) within 48 hours of reaching 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius) and held at that temperature until consumed or discarded within 30 days after the date of packaging; (ii) Cooled to 34 degrees Fahrenheit (1 degree Celsius) within 48 hours of reaching 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius), removed from refrigeration equipment that maintains a 34 degree Fahrenheit (1 degree Celsius) food temperature and then held at 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius) or less for no more than 72 hours, at which time the food shall be consumed or discarded; (iii) Cooled to 38 degrees Fahrenheit (3 degrees Celsius) or less within 24 hours of reaching 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius) and held there for no more than 72 hours from packaging, at which time the food shall be consumed or discarded; or (iv) Held frozen with no shelf life restriction while frozen until consumed or used.
(5)Held in a refrigeration unit that is equipped with an electronic system that continuously monitors time and temperature and is visually examined for proper operation twice daily.
(6)Labeled with the product name, date packed, and dates to be discarded, and stored in accordance with a "First-in" "First out" storage rotation procedure, in accordance with the HACCP plan.
(e)Aquatic animals. Except for aquatic animals that are frozen before, during, and after packaging, a food establishment may not package aquatic animals using an ROP method.
(f)Cheese. A food service establishment may package cheese using an ROP method provided that it limits the cheeses packaged to those commercially manufactured in a food processing plant with no ingredients added by the food establishment, and provided the cheese meets the United States Food and Drug Administration standards of identity specified in 21 C.F.R. § 133.150 ("Hard cheeses"); 21 C.F.R. § 133.169 ("Pasteurized process cheese"); and 21 C.F.R. § 133.187 ("Semisoft cheeses"), or successor regulations. The "use by" date of cheese shall not exceed 30 days after packaging, or the original manufacturer's "sell by" or "use by" date, whichever occurs first.
(g)Equipment. All equipment used in ROP processing shall be approved by the Department and shall comply with all specifications for equipment in this Article, and the following additional criteria: (1) Thermometers used in cook chill or sous vide cooking methods shall be food grade thermocouple type, equipped with probe, with a temperature range of -40 degrees Fahrenheit (-40 degrees Celsius) to 212 degrees Fahrenheit (100 degrees Celsius), and shall not contain glass or any parts that can easily fall into food. Thermometers shall be calibrated before each batch process, and at other times in accordance with manufacturers' instructions and whenever calibration could have been compromised by extreme temperatures or after being accidentally dropped.
(7)Cook chill processors shall utilize a commercial type stainless steel NSF approved cook tank or steam kettle with an agitation mechanism, and factory installed temperature monitoring devices, or other cooking equipment approved by the Department in the establishment's HACCP plan or as determined on inspection.
(8)All cook chill bags (casings) shall be made of food grade plastic, able to withstand temperatures of 212 degrees Fahrenheit (100 degrees Celsius) to -20 degrees Fahrenheit (-28.8 degrees Celsius) and rapid temperature change from 185 degrees Fahrenheit (85 degrees Celsius) to 34 degrees Fahrenheit or below (1 degree Celsius). (Amended City Record 7/9/2015, eff. 8/8/2015)
