1. Purpose and Scope
This Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) defines the controls [Organisation Name] requires to maintain food safety at [Location] from receiving through storage, preparation, cooking, and service.
This procedure applies to all staff who receive, store, prepare, cook, or serve food. The [Role] on each shift monitors compliance and verifies daily logs.
Menu-specific technical standards, including cooking temperatures, cooling protocols, and the allergen matrix, are kept at [Location/System] and form part of this procedure.
Working through related paperwork at the same time? See also our Food Safety & Hygiene Procedure Template, Health & Safety Policy Template and NY Retail Worker Safety Act Policy Template.
2. Receiving
- Inspect all incoming deliveries before acceptance. Check packaging integrity, vehicle cleanliness, expiration dates, and signs of pests. Reject non-compliant items and log the rejection.
- Probe refrigerated deliveries with a calibrated thermometer. Per the FDA Food Code, reject cold items received above 41°F. Record temperatures on the receiving log.
- Confirm frozen inventory is frozen solid with no evidence of thawing or refreezing, such as ice crystals or misshapen packaging.
- Cross-check allergen-sensitive items against the purchase order to catch ingredient substitutions. Report any product substitutions to the [Role] before stocking.
- Move verified cold and frozen goods into cold storage immediately after inspection.
- Record the supplier, item description, temperature reading, time, your initials, and the acceptance or rejection status on the receiving log.
3. Storage
- Store food in a vertical arrangement to prevent cross-contamination:
- Top shelves: Ready-to-eat foods
- Middle shelves: Whole muscle cuts, followed by ground meats
- Bottom shelves: Raw poultry
- Label and date all opened, portioned, or prepped items. Rotate inventory using First-In, First-Out (FIFO) principles. Discard any unlabelled or undated inventory.
- Keep all food off the floor, in covered containers, and separated from non-food items. Store cleaning products and chemicals in designated chemical storage areas away from food.
- Check and log cooler and freezer temperatures at opening, [Mid-Shift], and closing. Hold cold food at 41°F or below per the FDA Food Code. Report out-of-range units to the [Role] and isolate affected inventory for assessment.
- Store identified allergen ingredients in dedicated, labeled containers at [Location] to prevent cross-contact.
4. Preparation and Cooking
- Wash hands thoroughly before starting prep work and at every task change.
- Use designated, color-coded cutting boards and utensils for raw proteins and ready-to-eat foods. Clean and sanitize all work surfaces and equipment between tasks.
- Prepare food in small batches to limit exposure time in the temperature danger zone between cold holding (41°F) and hot holding (135°F).
- Cook each food item to the internal temperature required by the FDA Food Code or local regulations. Probe the thickest part of the product. Keep cooking temperature guides posted at [Location].
- Maintain hot-held food at 135°F or above. Reheat previously cooked food to an internal temperature of 165°F before placing it into hot holding equipment.
- Cool hot food intended for refrigerated storage using the approved cooling method and checkpoints at [Location]. Log all cooling times and temperatures.
- Clean and sanitize the probe thermometer before and after every measurement. Calibrate probe thermometers at [Frequency] using the [Ice-Point / Manufacturer Method].
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5. Handwashing and Personal Hygiene
- Wash hands strictly at designated handwashing sinks using soap and warm water. Lather hands, wrists, and under fingernails for the required scrubbing duration, rinse, and dry thoroughly with single-use paper towels.
- Wash hands before starting work, after using the restroom, after handling raw food, after touching your face or hair, after handling trash or chemicals, after clearing tables, and when changing gloves.
- Keep all handwashing sinks fully stocked with soap, paper towels, and warm water. Maintain clear, unobstructed access to handwashing facilities at all times.
- Wear single-use gloves or use approved utensils when handling ready-to-eat foods, per local regulations. Change gloves whenever handwashing would otherwise be required.
- Report illnesses, specifically vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice, or infected wounds, to the [Role] before starting a shift. Enforce employee exclusion rules based on regulatory requirements.
- Keep fingernails clean, short, and unpolished. Cover cuts or lesions with a waterproof bandage and a glove. Keep personal beverages in closed containers stored away from food prep areas.
6. Allergen Awareness
[Organisation Name] maintains an allergen matrix at [Location] identifying menu items containing any of the nine major food allergens: milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans, and sesame. Update the matrix immediately whenever recipes, brand substitutions, or suppliers change.
- When a guest declares an allergen, notify the [Role], who will oversee the order from start to finish.
- Prepare allergen orders using freshly washed hands, clean single-use gloves, sanitized surfaces and utensils, and dedicated or unopened ingredient stocks specified by the allergen matrix.
- Check shared equipment (including fryers, grills, and garnish stations) for cross-contact risks. If you cannot prepare an item safely without cross-contact, inform the guest that the kitchen cannot provide it safely.
- Mark the completed allergen plate using a [Flag/Marker]. Ensure the [Role] or designated service staff delivers the plate directly to the guest while verbally confirming the allergen accommodation.
7. Health Inspection Readiness
- Maintain continuous operational compliance so the site is ready for unannounced regulatory inspections at all times.
- Keep documentation accessible and up to date, including receiving logs, temperature logs, waste logs, cleaning schedules, food handler certifications, and the allergen matrix.
- Perform routine self-audits at [Frequency] to confirm hand sink supplies, sanitizer solution concentrations (verified via test strips), food labeling and dating, floor clearance, and correct vertical food storage alignment.
- Update standard operating procedures and staff training whenever an inspection finding reveals a systemic procedural gap.
8. Records and Review
- File completed monitoring logs, sign-offs, and training records at [Location/System] and retain them for [Period].
- Review this SOP at [Frequency], and immediately following any regulatory inspection finding, food safety incident, allergen non-conformance, or menu/equipment modification.
Document Owner: [Role] Last Reviewed: [Date] Next Review Due: [Date]
FAQs on a food safety SOP
What is a food safety SOP?
A food safety SOP defines the controls your organisation requires to maintain food safety at your site from receiving through storage, preparation, cooking, and service.
Having it written down means the same rules apply to everyone, so managers are not making judgement calls case by case under pressure.
What does a food safety SOP include?
This template covers receiving, storage, preparation and cooking and handwashing and personal hygiene.
Every section is written to be filled in. The bracketed placeholders mark the decisions that are yours to make, such as timescales, approval owners and retention periods.
How to implement a food safety SOP with Whale
Copy this template into Whale and work through the bracketed placeholders so it reflects how your organisation actually operates.
Assign it to the teams it applies to so it sits where people work rather than in a shared drive, and set a review date so it gets revisited on schedule instead of quietly going out of date.
Use our templates to fast-track your documentation
Customize this template and 100s of others for free in Whale, the fastest way to get your team aligned.