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Inspection Reports 

 

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Inspection results for local food service operations, retail food establishments, campgrounds, body art, public pools and spas in Lawrence County can be reviewed here

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GUIDE TO FOOD SAFETY PRACTICES

Our mission is to protect the health of all food service customers. This website offers an opportunity to share information which may assist you in being a well-informed food service consumer. A person who wishes to prepare, serve or sell food to the public for a charge is required by law to first obtain a license from Lawrence County Health Department. These licenses are issued following a review and approval of facility plans/menu to assure compliance with Ohio’s Uniform Food Safety Code. Inspections during the operation of a food establishment assess the operator's success in assuring that every day practices are conducted in a safe and sanitary manner.

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INSPECTION PROCESS

Improper food handling practices can cause foodborne illness. Food premises inspections and risk assessments focus on food preparation practices of food handlers and the identification of critical violations or critical control points. The sanitation, maintenance and equipment are also assessed during standard inspections.

Risk level of food establishments:

  • Risk level I poses potential risk to the public in terms of sanitation, food labeling, sources of food, storage practices, or expiration dates. Examples of risk level I activities include, but are not limited to: an operation that offers for sale or sells commercially prepackaged non-potentially hazardous foods and beverages.

  • Risk level II poses a higher potential risk to the public than risk level I because of hand contact or employee health concerns but minimal possibility of pathogenic growth exists. Examples of risk level II activities include, but are not limited to: cooking or baking non-potentially hazardous foods and beverages.

  • Risk level III poses a higher potential risk to the public than risk level II because of the following concerns: proper cooking temperatures, proper cooling procedures, proper holding temperatures, contamination issues or improper heat treatment in association with longer holding times before consumption, or processing a raw food product requiring bacterial load reduction procedures in order to sell it as ready-to-eat.

  • Risk level IV poses a higher potential risk to the public than risk level III because of concerns associated with: handling or preparing food using a procedure with several preparation steps that includes reheating of a product or ingredient of a product where multiple temperature controls are needed to preclude bacterial growth; offering as ready-to-eat a raw potentially hazardous meat, poultry product, fish, or shellfish or a food with these raw potentially hazardous items as ingredients; using freezing as a means to achieve parasite destruction; serving a primarily high risk clientele including immune-compromised or elderly individuals in a facility that provides either health care or assisted living; or using time in lieu of temperature as a public health control for time/temperature controlled for safety food, or performs a food handling process that is not addressed, deviates, or otherwise requires a variance for the process.

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INSPECTION FREQUENCY

Food premise inspections are conducted one to four times per year depending on the risk level and complexity of the menu.

Types of Inspections are:

  • Standard: This inspection is unannounced to the restaurant. An inspector will conduct a complete inspection covering all items in the regulations for compliance.

  • Critical Control Point (CCP): These inspections can be scheduled or unannounced. The inspector spends time discussing the facility’s food processes and educates the facility on proper procedures.

  • Follow-up Inspection: This is an inspection for the specific purpose of re-inspecting items that were not in compliance at the time of the standard inspection. These inspections are scheduled.

  • Complaint: This is an unannounced inspection conducted as a result of a complaint received by the health department. The specifics of the complaint will be evaluated and discussed with the person in charge.

 

If violations are observed during these inspections, they are described in an inspection report with reference to a relevant section of the Ohio Uniform Food Safety Code.  Violations are typically classified as either:

  • Critical Violations: Violations of the Food Code, which, if left uncorrected, are more likely than other violations to directly, contribute to food contamination or illness. Examples include: bare hand contact with ready to eat foods, poor time and temperature control of food, inadequate cooking, cooling, or reheating, insufficient hand washing and improper refrigeration temperatures. Such problems can create environments that cause bacteria to grow and thrive, which put the consumer at risk for food-borne illness. Ideally, an operation would have no critical violations, or none which are not corrected immediately and not repeated.

  • Non-Critical Violations: Violations not directly related to the cause of food-borne illness, however if uncorrected, could affect the operation of the restaurant and lead to critical violations. Examples include a lack of facility cleanliness and maintenance or improper cleaning of equipment and utensils.

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IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT FOOD INSPECTION REPORTS

The information posted on this site about inspections is valid only at the time the report was made. Conditions are subject to change. Updated information is posted to this site as often as possible. This site may not reflect any changes made to correct the violations identified or any new violations that may occur subsequent to the time of the last inspection. In addition, there may be errors or omissions in the information.

Keep in mind that any inspection report is a "snapshot" of the day and time of the inspection. On any given day, a restaurant could have fewer or more violations than noted in the report. An inspection may not be representative of the overall compliance of the facility. Also, at the time of the inspection violations are recorded but are often corrected on-the-spot prior to the inspector leaving the establishment.

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