How often are food service establishments inspected?
- Restaurants – 2-4 Times a Year depending on Risk Category
- Food Stands – 1-4 Times a Year depending on Risk Category
- Meat Markets – 3 Times a Year
- School Lunchrooms – 2-4 Times a Year depending on Risk Category
- Nursing Home Cafeterias – 4 Times a Year
- Hospital Cafeterias – 4 Times a Year
- Temporary Food Stands – Permitted Each Event
- Limited Food Stands – 1-4 Times a Year depending on Risk Category
- Elderly Nutrition Sites – 4 Time a Year
- Mobile Food Units/Pushcarts – 1-4 Times a Year depending on Risk Category
Do restaurants and other food service establishments know when they are going to be inspected?
No, inspections are
unannounced. Health inspectors try to conduct each required inspection
at different times of the day to see how that establishment receives
their food and supplies, prepares and cooks food and also how they
clean. Sometimes inspections are conducted during busy meal times and
other times they may be conducted at opening or closing of the
facility.
What do health inspectors (environmental health specialists) look for during an inspection?
North Carolina Health
Inspectors conduct risk-based inspections, which focuses mainly on
foodborne illness-related risk factors. These risk factors were
identified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as
being major contributors to known foodborne illness outbreaks.
Risk Factors
- Improper hot and cold holding, cooling or reheating of potentially hazardous food
- Not cooking potentially hazardous food to the required minimum internal temperatures
- Cross-contamination and contamination of food-contact surfaces
- Purchasing food from unapproved sources
- Poor personal hygiene of food handlers or food handlers with communicable diseases
Health Inspectors also
check to see if establishments are free of pests, that equipment and
utensils are clean and in good repair, that floors/walls/ceilings are
clean and in good repair, garbage is properly handled and warewashing
facilities are maintained, clean and in good repair.
See the grade sheet for more specific information: Food Service Inspection Report
What does the sanitation score mean?
The sanitation grade for
all food service establishments is based on a system of scoring.
Establishments receiving a score of 90 or higher are awarded a Grade
A, establishments that receive a score between 80 and 89 are awarded a
Grade B and establishments that receive a score between 70 and 79 are
awarded a Grade C. Any establishment that receives a score of less than
70 will be closed and their permit to sell food will be revoked.
Do establishments have to post their sanitation score where customers can view it?
Yes, Sanitation
Scores/Grade Cards have to be posted in an area where customers and
easily see it. Establishments with drive-thru windows have to post
additional Grade Cards in the drive-thru windows for customers who do
not come into the establishment.