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The Food Handlers test, also known as the Food Handlers Card or Permit test, is a certification exam that individuals working in the food service industry must pass in many jurisdictions. Its purpose is to ensure that food service workers have the necessary knowledge and skills to handle food safely to prevent foodborne illnesses.
The importance of this test lies in its role in promoting public health. By ensuring that individuals handling food are knowledgeable about safe food handling practices, the test reduces the risk of foodborne illnesses in the community.
The Food Handlers test is intended for any individual working in a setting where food is prepared, cooked, served, or sold. This includes restaurant employees, caterers, school cafeteria workers, and even food truck operators.
It is crucial to clarify the legal and ethical implications of sharing actual test answers. Distributing or using actual test answers can be considered cheating, which is both unethical and, in many cases, illegal. Such actions can lead to severe consequences, including nullification of test results, legal penalties, and damage to professional reputation.
The goal of this page is not to provide direct answers to the Food Handlers test but to offer resources and strategies for effective study and test preparation. Our aim is to help you understand the material thoroughly and build the confidence you need to perform well on the test.
By understanding the concepts and practicing the skills, you will not only be prepared for the test but also become a more competent and safe food handler in your work environment.
Food Handler’s Test Questions Answers
Question Answer
Potentially Hazardous foods any food that supports the rapid growth of microorganisms
Three thermometers used for measuring food temperature Bi-metallic stem (0-220), thermocouple, thermistor(digital)
Raw Shell Eggs Temperature 45 F
Smoked Fish Temperature 38 F or below because of the bacteria Clostridium botulinum
All Refrigerated Food except eggs/smoked fish Temperature 41 F or below
if a food handler has been vomiting or has diarrhea, they should call in sick and don’t return until the symtoms have been gone for at least 24 hours
after washing, rising and drying hands, its recommended that a food handler turn off the faucet with a paper towel
which is not a physical hazard mold on cheddar cheese
what is the proper holding temperature of hot foods 135 or above
Why are elderly people at a higher risk for foodborne illness? they have weakened immune systems
how often should your bi-metallic thermometer be calibrated once a day or at the beginning of any shift or if dropped
wheezing and hives are symptoms of food allergies
which of the folliwing must be cleaned, rinsed and sanitized cutting boards
foodhandlers must wash their hands before serving food
a food handler sees rodent droppings in the storage area. whens should he tell the manager immediately bruh, thats nasty
when washing hands, how long should food handlers scrub their hands and arms 10-15 seconds
Reasons Canned Products Must be Rejected dents in seams, swelling, severe rust, leakage or no label. Home-canned foods are unacceptable
Vacuum Packaging of any food product in retail food establishment is Prohibited by law unless special authorization is obtained through the Department of Health
FIFO First In First Out- used to implement date products
All Food must be stored at least 6 inches off the floor
To Prevent Cross Contamination raw food must be placed under cooked food
Food for storage must be covered and stored in Vermin-proof containers
The Three Main Food Hazards physical, chemical, biological
Physical Hazards glass fragments, metal etc.
Chemical Hazards pesticide, cleaning agents, prescription medicine
Biological Hazards bacteria, viruses, parasites and fungi
Pathogenic bacteria no change in appearance, taste or smell
4 phases of bacteria growth Lag, Log, Stationary and Death
the most rapid growth of bacteria Log phase
6 factors that affect growth of bacteria Food, Acidity, Temperature Danger Zone, Time, Oxygen, and Moisture (FATTOM)
Viruses cannot reproduce in food, rather they use food to get inside the body
how should the temp of a tri-tip steak be taken when cooked put thermometer in the thiccest part
what is used to test the concentration of sanitizing solution test kit
which piece of jewelery is a food handlers allowed to wear plain metal band
hepatitis a is a contagious.. virus
where is the correct place to keep a towel used for cleaning spills when not in use in the container of sanitizing solution
A food handler’s duties regarding food safety include all of the following practices EXCEPT:
Prevention of food contamination
Dispose of food that poses a potential threat to human health
Handle, transport, and store food safely
Prevention of food contamination
Dispose of food that poses a potential threat to human health
Handle, transport, and store food safely
Periodically test food for illness causing microorganisms
Periodically test food for illness causing microorganisms
What is the most direct cause of customer loyalty?
High food safety standards
What is the best way to prevent poor food safety?
Employee Training
Read Also: ServSafe Test 90 Questions And Answers.
Minor violations may be granted upwards of _ days for correction.
90
Which agency publishes the food code?
FDA
All of the following are the most common Critical Control Points (CCPs) EXCEPT:
Personal hygiene
Time and temperature
Cross-contamination
Customer service
Customer service
A food safety policy is a statement that lists the manner in which an establishment will maintain a food-safe environment. Essentially this lists the _ of the establishment with respect to the level of food safety to be maintained.
Goals
_ are the items of food handling most likely to be vulnerable to hazards.
Critical Control Points
Normally the establishment has up to _ days to correct detected violations.
10
Local health codes establish requirements for all of the following subjects EXCEPT:
Price controls
Personal hygiene
Food worker training
Sale of unfit food items
Price Controls
Which bacteria cause the greatest harm in the food industry?
Pathogenic
Read Also: ServSafe Food Handler Practice Test.
All of the following bacteria can cause foodborne illness EXCEPT:
Acidophilus milk
Salmonellae (Salmonella)
Clostridium botulinum (Botulism)
Escherichia coli (E. coli)
Acidophilus milk
Which one of the following food contaminations is usually associated with undercooked chicken?
Salmonella
Which one of the following situations would MOST LIKELY promote bacterial contamination?
Receiving a carton of fish with a temperature of 40° F
Touching raw chicken and then cooked chicken without changing gloves
Storing a torn bag of potatoes above canned tomatoes
Slicing roast beef and then slicing brisket with the same knife
Touching raw chicken and then cooked chicken without changing gloves
An organism that lives in or on another organism, often with harmful side effects—but without benefits is a:
Parasite
Which one of the following food contaminations is best prevented by cooking to safe temperatures?
E. Coli
Which one of the following food contaminations would be suspected if the end of a can of tomatoes had begun to swell?
Botulism
What is the easiest way to recognize foods contaminated with spoilage bacteria?
Changes in color or smell
The viral infection Hepatitis A can be most effectively controlled if:
All food personnel practice personal hygiene, such as thorough handwashing
One of the most important reasons for using only reliable water sources is to reduce:
The number of parasites, such as Cyclospora Cayetanensis, that can infest foods
All of the following are Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food (TCS) EXCEPT:
Raw seed sprouts and soy products
Processed garlic oil mixtures
Cooked vegetables and pasta
Eggs and most dishes made with them
Processed garlic oil mixtures
In degrees Fahrenheit, what is the temperature range of the Danger Zone?
41 to 135
It is important that food servers are trained to know food ingredients because:
They will need to know how to help customers with food allergies
Bacterial contamination can spread quickly because if the conditions are right, bacteria can multiply in:
10 to 20 minutes
The preservation technique that attempts to remove moisture is:
Dehydration
The best temperature for short-term refrigeration storage is:
34-40F
Which preservation technique involves heating foods to mild temperatures and then cooling them down immediately?
Pasteurization
“Chilling” is most commonly practiced by:
Commercial food distributors
Reheated food items must be heated for a minimum of 15 seconds to at least:
165F
Food preservation does all of the following EXCEPT:
Allow foods to be stored for long periods of time
Promote the growth of microorganisms
Make seasonal foods available longer
Maintain food quality
Promote the growth of microorganisms
Employees should wash their hands often, should handle food only when necessary, should taste food only with clean utensils, should never _ in preparation areas.
Spit or smoke
If all proper hand washing steps are followed, how long should the entire process take?
At least 20 sec
As a food handler you are asked to prepare a salad but have a small cut on your hand. You should:
Put a watertight bandage over the cut and wear gloves
Corrective action will be taken IMMEDIATELY if your manager sees a food handler:
Using hand sanitizer instead of washing his or her hands
Gabe fries chicken at Country Boy Restaurant. Gabe wears gloves as he preps the raw chicken in flour. Today during the lunch rush, his manager asks him to fill chicken orders for impatient customers. Gabe immediately begins putting cooked chicken in boxes and on plates. What are the hazards created by Gabe’s actions?
Although he is wearing gloves, Gabe has created a cross-contamination hazard by touching raw chicken and then touching cooked chicken.
Because of the risk of spreading Staphyloccocus aureus, which area of your body should you be trained to avoid touching?
Mouth and Nose
If an employee is properly trained, he should be able to demonstrate all of the following competencies EXCEPT:
Demonstrate proper cooling methods and temperatures
Confirm that end cooking temperature and time are according to Food Code
Identify by price and quality the most desirable suppliers
How to clean and sanitize food contact surfaces
Identify by price and quality the most desirable suppliers
When might you expect a manager to offer a gentle reminder about hand washing?
If you reach down to pet a service animal.
The MOST important reason for having food handlers wear hair restraints is to:
Prevent food handlers from contaminating their hands by touching their hair
Why should you stock only brightly colored bandages for first aid supplies?
So they can be more easily found should they fall into food.
Raw shell eggs must be received in refrigerated equipment that keeps them at a temperature of _ or less.
45F
Employees trained to receive foods properly will complete all of the following steps EXCEPT:
Labeling and dating rejected items
Storing deliveries quickly
Inspecting deliveries promptly
Checking order completion
Labeling and dating rejected items
Labels should include all of the following EXCEPT:
What the product is
When the food should be consumed by
Possible contaminants
The best way to store the food item
Possible contaminants
Which of these food items upon receiving should be given priority in storage?
Frozen Items
A shipment of frozen fish arrives at your food establishment. You see that the outside bottoms of the shipping cartons have too much ice and the fish fillets held within the cartons have brown edges. These are signs of:
Thawing and refreezing
According to the Food Code, proper food labels should NOT contain:
The date that frozen preparation-needed foods are to be consumed
Rotating stock so that the oldest items move first is often referred to as:
FIFO
To ensure proper protection for foods during storage, the bottom shelf should be AT LEAST:
6 inches from floor
The best place to store grains to reduce the risk of cross-contamination is:
Next to canned peaches
Your latest shipment of chicken has some items with USDA stickers and some items with USDA GRADE stamps. What is the difference in these items?
Stamps mean the chicken’s quality has been rated.
Which one of the following conditions in an outside waste disposal area needs to be corrected IMMEDIATELY?
Containers without covers
Sanitization can be accomplished by all of the following means EXCEPT:
Air drying
Cross-contamination has occurred when:
The same unwashed gloves are used to handle different meats.
The presence or growth of microorganisms is a type of _ hazard.
Biological
Most of your cooking equipment is copper and your utensils are silver, so which sanitizer would you NOT want to use?
Iodine-based
If heated water is used to sanitize, it must be at:
171F for 30sec
It is very important to sanitize all of the following items EXCEPT:
Hair
Which of the following steps comes last?
Sanitization
Air dry
Apply soap
Rinse
Air dry
Food surfaces and equipment are not fully cleaned and sanitized until:
They have been allowed to air dry completely.
To prevent cross-contamination, you should:
Wash off rubber boots before entering food storage areas.
Maintaining an integrated pest management program (IPM) best serves:
Business interests
Which method is the best for prevention of pest infestations?
Regular cleaning and monitoring
Pest infestations must be controlled for all of the following reasons EXCEPT:
They tend to be overlooked by loyal customers who know the food is good.
They cause physical, chemical, and biological contaminations of foods.
They are disgusting, and the owner will lose business and revenue.
They are one of the first things inspectors look for and can shut a business down.
Feedback:
See Looking for Evidence of Pests.
They tend to be overlooked by loyal customers who know the food is good.
A coworker shows you a bag of rice with a few black things among the grains. You suspect mouse droppings, but you are not sure. What should you do?
Dispose of the bag and check other bags in storage.
Notice signs of pests, which include all of the following EXCEPT:
Sacks of grains with corners or seams open and spillage
Dead carcasses on shelving, on the floor, and on stored food packaging
Traps that have not been tripped, bait that has not been eaten, but it might be
Bits of paper and cardboard that might be used for nesting
Feedback:
See Looking for Evidence of Pests.
Traps that have not been tripped, bait that has not been eaten, but it might be
To prevent chemical contamination from rodenticides, always place pest bait and bait stations:
Outdoors
Since pests are living organisms requiring four basic needs for survival, which one of these needs, if their access to it is eliminated, will drastically reduce pests in your establishment?
Food
The best eradication method for a major infestation is:
Chemical
Should a manager become aware of a pest problem in the establishment, measures to eradicate the pests should conclude with:
Scheduling regular, routine visits from pest control operators (PCOs)
Whenever a trap has sprung and caught a pest, you will want to:
Check for biological contamination from blood and dispose of any possibly contaminated foods
Wet wiping rags should be kept in a sanitizer solution between uses.
True
Washing vegetables and portioning cold, cooked meats should be done side by side.
False
Install carpeting in the food storage areas.
False
The hand washing sinks are separate from the other sinks in the establishment.
True
Use only clean, light-colored plastic cutting boards for food preparation.
False
If necessary, store raw food beneath other types of food.
True
Which one of the following situations requires management to contact the local regulatory authority?
Water service has been interrupted for two hours
It is important that all wooden utensils be:
Made of maple or close-grained hardwoods
Which of the following types of floors are LEAST suited for food prep areas?
Floors that are level and flat
Floors with ample drainage
Floors made of hard, non-porous material
Floors with beveled areas where the floor and wall meet
Floors that are level and flat
A well-designed building should have all of the following EXCEPT:
Designated food prep area
Locker rooms with showers
Self-closing doors
Labeled exits
Locker rooms with showers
If all of the following items were stored on the same rack on the same wall, which item would be stored closest to the ground?
Beef
Effective ventilation systems:
Filters return air
Which one of the following materials must NOT be used in the construction of food preparation and storage areas?
Indoor/Outdoor carpeting
All restrooms in a food service establishment must have:
Hot running water
Which area is NOT required to have a conveniently located hand washing facility?
Food Storage
For which one of the following purposes is non-potable water approved?
Mopping
Hepatitis A and norovirus 2 viruses that typically contaminate our food supply through fecal contaminated waters or food
Trichinella Spiralis food-borne parasite founded in under-cooked pork and can be eliminated by cooking pork to 150F for 5 minutes
Anisaki Simplex food-borne parasite found in marine fish
Salmonella Enteritidis associated with raw poultry and raw shell eggs
How to avoid Clostridium Perfringes rapid cooling, rapid heating, and avoid preparing foods
a food handler notices the cooler temperature is at 48 degrees they should tell manager immediately
what is the minimum internal cooking temperature of seafood 145 degrees or higher
every 4 hours every 4 hours
a food handler must inform their manager if they have which of the following sore throat and fever
Staphylococcal food intoxication bacteria carried by human beings. It can be prevented by good personal hygiene and avoiding bare hands with ready-to-eat food.
How to avoid E-Coli cook hamburgers and ground meats at 158F
Clostridium Botulinum caused a disease called Botulism. This bacteria is associated with home-canned foods, swollen cans, smoked fish, garlic and il, and any foods in an anaerobic environment
Ciguatera Intoxication occurs during warn weather when red algae is eaten by small fish. Predators then eat the small fish. Humans become sick once they eat the predatory fish
Scombroid Poisoning occurs from eating certain fish with high levels of histamines due to time and temperature abuse
3 methods for defrosting frozen foods refrigerate them, place under cold water, or microwave oven
Poultry, stuffed meat and stuffing Temperature 165 F
Eggs, Fish, Shellfish, Lamb, and other meats Temperature 140 F
All hot foods stored in hot-holding unit must be held at 140 F
How to rapid cool foods immersion in an ice-water bath with stirring, 4 inch swallow cooling pans with product depth of 1 and 2 inches, rapid chill unit, and cut solid foods to smaller pieces
Hot foods placed in refrigerator must be covered only if they completely cooled at a temp of 41 F or below
Previously cooked and refrigerated foods must be served by rapid reheating of 165 F in a stove or oven
Air-breaks must be provided in all culinary and pot/dish washing sinks
Atmosphere Vacuum Breakers must be installed in any equipment that has direct connection with potable water supply. Ex- ice machines, coffee machines, dishwashers
Cross connection can be prevented by installing hose-bib vacuum breaks