Technical reference
Receiving checks the supplier's cold chain at the point where responsibility changes hands. A reading on the sample stands for the load, so where you read matters as much as the reading. sets the Australian and the transporter's demonstration. sets the checks and leaves limits to the business.
Food warms much more slowly than air, so a truck's air can look bad while the food is fine, and the reverse. Cartons on a pallet insulate each other. That's why you read the carton likely to be warmest, and treat a logger as supporting evidence rather than proof.
A few degrees changes the shelf life you can count on. FDA's cumulative guidance allows up to 7 days between −0.4 °C and 5 °C, but only 1 day at 6 to 10 °C (FDA Table A-2). A warm delivery uses up time your own storage plan assumes is still there.
The is not absolute everywhere. recognises that some food can be safe above 5 °C, for example raw carcasses at 7 °C under Australian Standard 4696-2007, or freshly prepared food on a short trip. The transporter has to show that it's safe. Saying so isn't enough.
Parameters
| Chilled limit, Australia | 5 °C or below, unless the transporter demonstrates it is safe |
|---|---|
| Hot limit, Australia | 60 °C or above, unless the transporter demonstrates it is safe |
| Frozen, Australia | Frozen on acceptance. doesn't count, and the Code gives no figure |
| Codex at receipt | Inspect packaging, dates, and temperature against the |
| Instrument | Clean, probe. Infrared is a screen only |
| Records in Australia | : each delivery, kept 3 months, or demonstrate compliance on request |
Records that prove it
- Each potentially hazardous delivery: date, supplier, food, reading, result
- Dockets or invoices, with rejections marked
- Lot codes for key items
- Rejections and held food, with what happened next
- Supplier follow-up, and any incident report
- Probe calibration record
Reference temperatures
Values from , a code for mass catering. Your own law or plan may set different ones.
The 2-hour / 4-hour rule
Total time out of temperature control. Check whether your food law or plan uses this rule, and when its clock starts.
Maximum cumulative exposure
FDA guidance written for fish and fishery products, shown here as a worked example of how combine. * See the source's footnotes. Source: , Table A-2.
CCP or prerequisite?
That depends on the for your process. The number, if it has one, belongs to your plan.
Law and practice
| Control | Australia | New Zealand | Singapore | Malaysia | In practice |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Receiving chilled and frozen food | 5 °C or colder, or 60 °C or hotter, unless the transporter shows otherwise. Frozen means not , with no figure (3.2.2 cl 5). | 5 °C or colder, above 60 °C, or the supplier's temperature (notice; template plan). | In transit: chilled 4 °C or below (core 7 °C), frozen −18 °C or below (core −12 °C), put away promptly (SFA guideline). | Carrying: −1 to 10 °C chilled, −18 °C frozen (reg 56). | Chilled: 5 °C is the usual . Certified hotel plans often use a 4 or 5 °C target with an 8 °C critical limit, then a short put-away. Frozen: 'frozen solid, no sign of thawing' is the usual test, with −15 or −12 °C as a figure in some plans. Put-away: 15 to 30 minutes. |
Law as read in the authority library between 14 October and 4 November 2026. In practice: food safety programmes read across hotels, clubs, venues, healthcare, manufacturing and airline catering, with no business named. A common practice isn't proof that a is safe or lawful where you are.