BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1067
Page 1
Date of Hearing: June 14, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HEALTH
Jim Wood, Chair
SB
1067 (Huff) - As Amended May 25, 2016
SENATE VOTE: 36-0
SUBJECT: Food facilities.
SUMMARY: Requires the food safety certification examination,
which must be completed by at least one person at every retail
food facility, to include knowledge of major food allergens.
Specifies the knowledge and educational responsibilities
required of the person in charge of a food facility regarding
major food allergens. Revises provisions of law governing the
serving of raw and undercooked meat, and makes various other
updates and minor changes to the laws governing retail food
facilities. Specifically, this bill:
1)Defines "major food allergen" as all of the following:
a) Milk;
b) Eggs;
c) Fish, including, but not limited to, bass, flounder, and
cod;
d) Crustacean shellfish, including, but not limited to
crab, lobster, and shrimp;
SB 1067
Page 2
e) Tree nuts, including, but not limited to, almonds,
pecans, and walnuts;
f) Wheat;
g) Peanuts;
h) Soybeans; and,
i) A food ingredient that contains protein derived from any
of the foods listed above.
1)Excludes from the definition of "major food allergen" a highly
refined oil derived from one of the foods specified as a major
food allergen, and also excludes an ingredient that is exempt
under the petition or notification process specified in the
federal Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of
2004.
2)Requires the designated "person in charge" at retail food
facilities to comply with both of the following:
a) Have adequate knowledge of major food allergens, and the
symptoms that a major food allergen could cause in a
sensitive individual who has an allergic reaction; and,
b) Educate the employees at the food facility regarding
major food allergens and the symptoms they could cause.
Permits this person in charge to accomplish this education
SB 1067
Page 3
requirement by, among other methods, using a poster or job
aid to which the employee can refer.
3)Requires the food safety certification examination, which each
food facility is required to have at least one employee pass,
to include describing foods identified as major food allergens
and the symptoms that a major food allergen could cause in a
sensitive individual who has an allergic reaction.
4)Permits a raw or undercooked whole-muscle, intact beef steak
to be served or offered for sale in a ready-to-eat form if all
of the following conditions are satisfied.
a) The food facility serves a population that is not a
highly susceptible population;
b) The steak is labeled to indicate that it meets the
definition of "whole muscle, intact beef," as specified;
and,
c) The steak is cooked on both the top and bottom to a
surface temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit or above and
a cooked color change is achieved on all external surfaces.
5)Requires whole-muscle, intact beef steaks that are intended
for consumption in an undercooked form to satisfy the
following conditions:
a) Either the food has been obtained from a food processing
plant that, upon request by the purchaser, packages the
steaks and labels them to indicate that the steak meets the
definition of whole-muscle, intact beef, or is deemed
acceptable by the enforcement agency based on other
SB 1067
Page 4
evidence; and,
b) If the food is individually cut in a food facility, the
food must be cut from whole-muscle intact beef that is so
labeled, the food is prepared so it remains intact, and if
packaged for undercooking in a food facility, relabeled as
a whole-muscle, intact beef.
6)Permits a raw animal food, such as raw egg, raw fish, raw
marinated fish, raw mulluscan shellfish, or steak tartare, or
a partially cooked food such as lightly cooked fish, soft
cooked eggs, or rare meat other than whole-muscle, intact beef
steaks, to be served upon consumer request or selection in a
ready-to-eat form if either of the following conditions are
satisfied:
a) The food facility serves a population that is not a
highly susceptible population, as defined; the food, if
served from a children's menu, does not contain comminuted
meat (i.e., ground meat); and, the consumer is informed
that to ensure its safety, the food should be fully cooked;
or,
b) The Department of Public Health grants a variance from
the required cooking temperatures based on a Hazard
Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan that documents
scientific data showing that a lesser time and temperature
regimen results in safe food, and the plan has been
submitted and approved, as specified.
7)Repeals a provision of existing law, in order to replace with
alternative disclosure requirements, which permit single
pieces of meat and fish, or a salad dressing or sauce
containing a raw egg, to be served raw or not cooked to the
otherwise specified temperature, if the consumer specifically
SB 1067
Page 5
ordered the food to be individually prepared less than
thoroughly cooked, and the food facility notifies the
consumer, orally or in writing, at the time of ordering, that
the food is raw or less than thoroughly cooked. Replaces the
repealed provision with new provisions noted in 9), 10), and
11) below.
8)Requires a food facility, if an animal food is served or sold
raw, undercooked, or without otherwise being processed to
eliminate pathogens, to inform consumers of the significantly
increased risk of consuming those foods by way of a
disclosure, as specified, and a reminder, as specified, using
brochures, deli case or menu advisories, label statements,
table tents, placards, or other effective written means.
9)Specifies, for purposes of the provision in 9) above,
"disclosure" means a written statement that clearly includes a
description of the animal-derived foods, such as "oysters on
the half shell (raw oysters)" or identification of the
animal-derived foods marked by an asterisk denoting a footnote
that states that the items are served raw or undercooked.
10)Specifies, for purposes of the provision in 9) above,
"reminder" means a written statement that identifies the
animal derived foods by an asterisk that denotes a footnote
that includes either of the following disclosure statements:
a) Written information regarding the safety of these food
items is available upon request; or,
b) Consuming raw or undercooked meats, poultry, seafood,
shellfish, or eggs may increase your risk of foodborne
illness, especially if you have certain medical conditions.
SB 1067
Page 6
11)Specifies, for purposes of requirements pertaining to food
facilities that package food, that a food facility is not
required to have an HACCP plan if the facility uses a
reduced-oxygen packaging method to package hazardous food that
always complies with the following standards:
a) The food is labeled with the production time and date;
b) The food is held at 41 degrees Fahrenheit or lower
during refrigerated storage; and,
c) The food is removed from its package in the food
facility within 48 hours after packaging.
12)Clarifies that "juicing" is considered preparing a beverage,
and is therefore only subject to the more minor "limited food
preparation" requirements.
13)Contains other minor, technical updates and revisions to the
California Retail Food Code (CRFC).
EXISTING LAW:
1)Establishes the CRFC to regulate retail food facilities, which
is enforced by local environmental health officers.
2)Defines a food facility as an operation that stores, prepares,
packages, serves, vends, or otherwise provides food for human
consumption, on or off the premises, regardless of whether
SB 1067
Page 7
there is a charge, at the retail level.
3)Requires a food facility to designate a "person in charge" and
requires the person in charge to be present at the food
facility during all hours of operation. Among other
responsibilities, the person in charge is required to have
knowledge of safe food handling practices as they relate to
the specific food preparation activities that occur at the
food facility.
4)Requires food facilities that prepare non-prepackaged
potentially hazardous food to have an owner or employee who
has successfully passed an approved and accredited food safety
certification examination, as specified, but specifies that
this certified person does not need to be present at the food
facility during all hours of operation.
5)Requires the food safety certification examination to include
specified elements of knowledge, including knowledge on
foodborne illness, the relationship between hygiene and food
safety, methods of preventing food contamination, and
procedures for cleaning and sanitizing equipment, among other
specified elements.
6)Defines "potentially hazardous food" as a food that requires
time or temperature control to limit pathogenic micro-organism
growth or toxin formation. Requires potentially hazardous
food to be maintained at or above 135 degrees Fahrenheit, or
at or below 41 degrees Fahrenheit.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
SB 1067
Page 8
Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.
COMMENTS:
1)PURPOSE OF THIS BILL. According to the author, this bill is
necessary because it updates the CRFC to conform to the model
Food Code adopted by the federal Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) in 2013. The author states that this bill cleans up
sections of the CRFC to conform to the federal model.
Although not part of the model Food Code, the author states
that food allergies are an increasing food safety and public
health issue, affecting approximately 4% of the U.S.
population. Restaurant and retail food service managers and
employees need to be aware of the serious nature of food
allergies, including allergic reactions, anaphylaxis, and
death; to know the eight major food allergens; to understand
food allergen ingredient identities and labeling; and, to
avoid cross-contact during food preparation and food service.
This bill clarifies that as part of their duties, food
managers will also be required to provide food allergy
awareness training to employees. The author notes that
currently ServSafe, a food handler certifying program
sponsored by the National Restaurant Association, includes
food allergy awareness as part of their training curriculum.
2)BACKGROUND. The FDA publishes the Food Code, a model that
assists food control jurisdictions at all levels of government
by providing them with a scientifically sound technical and
legal basis for regulating the retail and food service segment
of the industry (restaurants and grocery stores and
institutions such as nursing homes). Local, state, tribal, and
federal regulators use the FDA Food Code as a model to develop
or update their own food safety rules and to be consistent
with national food regulatory policy. The 2013 Food Code is
the most recent full edition published by FDA.
SB 1067
Page 9
3)SUPPORT. The California Retail Food Safety Coalition, a
collaboration of more than 60 federal, state, local
regulators, retail food industry representatives, and the
sponsor of this bill, argue that it provides equivalency
between CRFC and the FDA Food Code. The Allergy and Asthma
Network and the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America note
that 15 million Americans are affected by food allergies and
argue that it is important for restaurant and retail food
managers and employees to be aware of the serious nature of
food allergies, and to understand the best practices for
managing the potential for an adverse reaction to occur in a
retail food setting.
4)PREVIOUS LEGISLATION.
a) AB 2130 (Pan and Gatto), Chapter 75, Statutes of 2014,
repeals provisions of law enacted in 2013 that prohibits
retail food employees from coming in contact with exposed
ready-to-eat foods with their bare hands, and replaced
these provisions with prior law
that requires food employees to minimize bare hand contact
with ready-to-eat foods.
b) AB 1252 (Committee on Health), Chapter 556, Statutes of
2013, made numerous technical, clarifying, and
non-controversial changes to the CRFC, and prohibited bare
hand contact with ready-to-eat food without prior
authorization from the local environmental health
department.
c) SB 144 (Runner), Chapter 23, Statutes of 2006,
established the CRFC in order to create uniformity between
California's retail food safety laws and those of other
SB 1067
Page 10
states, as well as to enhance food safety laws based on the
best available science.
5)RELATED LEGISLATION.
a) SB 969 (Nguyen) permits a food facility to sell
Vietnamese rice cakes that have been at room temperature
for up to 48 hours, notwithstanding provisions of law that
require potentially hazardous foods to either be
refrigerated or kept hot. SB 969 passed the Senate and is
currently pending in the Assembly Health Committee.
b) SB 1258 (Huff) would have required each local
educational agency to develop and have in place a
comprehensive policy to protect students with food
allergies. SB 1258 was held on the Senate Appropriations
Committee Suspense File.
6)TECHNICAL AMENDMENT. The author intends to propose the
following technical amendment: On page 13, line 24, delete
"an undercounter warewashing machine" and replace with "a
mechanical warewashing machine."
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
California Retail Food Safety Coalition (sponsor)
Allergy and Asthma Network
SB 1067
Page 11
Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America
California Association of Environmental Health Administrators
California Retail Food Safety Coalition
Food Allergy Research and Education
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:John Gilman / HEALTH / (916) 319-2097