Food
Thermometers and potentially
hazardous foods
Who needs a thermometer?
The Food Safety Standards
require that a food business that
stores, transports, prepares,
cooks or sells potentially
hazardous food, has a
temperature measuring device
on the premises. Some examples
of potentially hazardous food are
food that contains meat, seafood,
dairy products, eggs, cooked rice
and pasta.
Why do I need a
thermometer?
A thermometer allows food
handlers to check that potentially
hazardous food has been cooked
sufficiently, is being kept at
the correct temperatures in a
refrigerator or display unit and is
being cooled and re-heated safely.
It is a requirement that a food
business use a thermometer to
check that potentially hazardous
food is at the correct temperature
when it is received by the business.
The Food Safety Standards also
require the food business to
maintain potentially hazardous
food either at or below 5°C or
above 60°C when it is being
stored, displayed or transported.
Other temperature requirements
also apply to the cooling and
reheating of cooked potentially
hazardous foods.
What sort of thermometer
will I need?
You need a thermometer that
can be inserted into the food,
i.e. a probe thermometer. The
thermometer must also be
accurate to +/- 1°C.
I already have a
thermometer, will it meet the
requirements?
If a food business already has
a thermometer with a probe, it
may be adequate, provided it can
measure to within at least +/- 1°C.
The accuracy of the thermometer
should be indicated in the
documents that came with it.
If the food business doesn’t have
any documents, the company
which supplied the thermometer,
should be contacted for advice.
Equipment used to store and
display food such as cool rooms,
Facts published by | Mackay Regional Council | © 2008
bain-maries and sandwich
display units may already have
a thermometer fixed to the
equipment. This thermometer
will measure the operational
temperature of the unit.
While such thermometers are
useful, they do not measure the
actual temperature of the food.
Under the Food Safety Standards,
the food business will still need
to provide a separate probe
thermometer to allow food handlers
to check the actual temperature of
the food. Some food businesses
use infrared thermometers. These
thermometers are not inserted
into food but can be pointed at a
food item to measure its surface
temperature.
Infrared thermometers are very
useful for quick checks on the
temperature of food, but they
must be used in conjunction
with a probe thermometer to
get an accurate temperature of
the food. Infrared thermometers
with a probe attachment are
available, but the thermometer
must be accurate to +/- 1°C.
Generally, infrared thermometers
are more expensive than a probe
thermometer.
Where do I buy a
thermometer?
Companies that supply catering
equipment or electronic
testing equipment may sell
thermometers. Some of these
companies are listed under
‘Thermometers’ or ‘Catering
suppliers’ in the Yellow Pages
listings.
How do I use the
thermometer to measure the
temperature of food?
The following tips may be useful
for food handlers:
•• Make sure that the
thermometer is clean, sanitised
and dry
•• Place the probe into the food
and wait until the temperature
reading has stabilised before
reading the temperature
•• Measure different parts of a
food as the temperature may
not be the same throughout, for
example, if food is being cooled in
a refrigerator the top of the food
may be cooler than the middle of
the food
•• Clean and sanitise the
thermometer after measuring
the temperature of one food
and before measuring the
temperature of another food.
This will assist in avoiding cross
contamination
•• If using the thermometer to
measure hot and cold food, wait
for the thermometer to return
to room temperature between
measurements
•• Measure the temperature of
different foods in a refrigerator
or display unit, as there will be
colder and hotter spots within the
refrigerator or unit, and
•• Measure the temperature of
packaged chilled food or frozen
food by placing the length of
the thermometer between two
packages. The temperature will
be approximate but the package
remains intact.
How do I clean and sanitise
the thermometer?
As the probe of the thermometer
will be inserted into food, the
probe must be cleaned and
sanitised before it is used to
measure the temperature of
a different food. If the probe
is not cleaned and sanitised,
food poisoning bacteria may be
transferred from one food to
another food. This is especially
important when the thermometer
will be used to measure the
temperature of raw food and then
cooked food.
For example, measuring the
temperature of a raw hamburger
patty and then the temperature of
a cooked hamburger patty. The
probe of a thermometer can be
cleaned and sanitised by using
the following steps:
•• Wash the probe with warm
water and detergent to remove
food particles
•• Sanitise the probe with
alcoholic swabs or sanitising
solution can be used, and
•• Allow the probe to air dry or
Facts published by | Mackay Regional Council | © 2008
thoroughly dry it with a disposable
towel.
Do I need to maintain or
calibrate the thermometer?
Yes, the thermometer must be
calibrated correctly on a regular
basis, in strict accordance with
manufacturer’s advice. Replace
batteries if they are flat and repair
or replace the thermometer if it
breaks. The thermometer must
be maintained so that it is in good
working order at all times and so
that the accuracy is to +/- 1°C.
To check that your thermometer
is operating to the correct
temperature, place your
thermometer in a glass of ice
and a small amount of water. The
temperature should be 0oC.
Further information is also
available in Council’s range of
Food Fact Sheets. These include:
•• Cleaning and Sanitising
•• Cold Food Storage
•• Cross Contamination
•• Defrosting and Reheating Food
•• Food Businesses - Your
Responsibilities
•• Food Handlers Responsibilities
•• Food Handling
•• Receiving Food Safely
For details please contact
Mackay Regional Council.
Phone 1300 MACKAY (1300
622 529) or visit www.mackay.
qld.gov.au