Some foods need to be kept chilled to keep them safe, for example food with a ‘use by’ date, food that you have cooked and won’t serve immediately, or other ready-to-eat food. If these foods are not properly chilled, bacteria can grow and make people ill.
These high risk foods should be stored in the refrigerator below 8 degrees celsius. Ideally you should aim to keep your fridge at 5 degrees celsius.
How to check
Check chilled food on delivery to make sure it’s at or below 8 degrees celsius
Food that needs to be chilled is put in the fridge as soon as it arrives
Check the temperature of your refrigerators daily, these checks should be recorded
Remember, chilled food must be kept below 8 degrees celsius, ideally 5 degrees celsius
Hot foods
Hot foods must be stored above 63 degrees celsius to prevent the growth of bacteria. Hot foods can be kept below this temperature for a maximum of two hours before being used, returned to above 63 degrees celsius or chilled.