F0812

F

Widespread Food Safety, Sanitation, and Documentation Failures in Dietary Services

Milbank, South Dakota Survey Completed on 02-19-2026

Penalty

No penalty information released

Summary

The deficiency involves multiple failures in food handling and glove use, thermometer sanitation, kitchen cleanliness, dish machine temperature monitoring, food storage, and disposal of expired or spoiled food. During breakfast and lunch meal service, a cook and dietary aides wore single-use gloves but did not change them between tasks or after touching potentially contaminated surfaces. With the same gloves, they handled serving utensils, laminated diet tickets, serving tables, aprons, cart handles, and then directly touched food-contact surfaces of plates, slices of toast and bread, and the drinking surfaces of cups. One cook also scooped loose brown sugar into containers with a gloved hand instead of using a utensil. Another dietary aide prepared deli sandwiches for staff and residents, touching bread, sandwich meat, cling wrap, and a permanent marker, then left the kitchen and returned to continue food preparation without changing gloves or performing hand hygiene, despite facility policies stating that gloved hands are a food-contact surface that can become contaminated and that gloves must be changed when soiled or when interruptions occur.

The facility also failed to properly store and sanitize food thermometers and maintain a clean and sanitary kitchen environment. Two thermometer probes were stored in a cup of sanitizer solution that contained visible food debris and had not yet been changed from the previous day. Later, when checking the temperature of chicken, the cook wiped a thermometer probe on a cloth sitting on top of a container of papers instead of using available alcohol wipes, contrary to the dietary manager’s expectation that probes be cleaned with alcohol wipes before use. Observations in the kitchen and walk-in cooler revealed thick dust on ceiling vents above the walk-in cooler and freezer, dust accumulation on all four cooler fans and their grates, and dust on the cooler ceiling and light fixtures. The commercial dishwasher had a thick layer of food scum and limescale buildup on the inside of the doors and under the seam where it connected to the dirty dish table, and deliming records showed that several scheduled cleanings from July to December were missed, with only one deliming completed in December.

Dish machine temperature logs showed numerous missed entries over several months, despite a policy requiring staff to monitor and record wash and rinse temperatures at each meal and for the director of food and nutrition services to spot-check the logs. From August through mid-February, there were repeated omissions in documenting required temperatures, and a dietary aide assigned to dishwashing duties stated he did not check the dish machine temperature and could not recall the last time he had done so. Food storage practices were also deficient. Cooked beef tips in gravy and beef patties intended for lunch were left on the counter at room temperature from before breakfast service until mid-morning, with measured temperatures in the danger zone, and the cook confirmed the food had been sitting out since before breakfast service began. In the walk-in cooler, raw bacon was stored in a box above RTE mashed potatoes, and in the walk-in freezer, a box of frozen beef patties was left uncovered and open to the air. Additionally, several baking ingredients and flavoring agents on a shelf were past their manufacturer best-by or expiry dates, and in the walk-in cooler, a jug of sweet pickle relish had a lid that was not fully secured and had an unidentified white substance on the inside, while a jug of thousand island dressing had apparent mold on the outside of the container, inside the lid, and on the handle, with no open date marked. The dietary manager stated she was unaware of these expired and potentially moldy items, despite a policy requiring rotation, dating, and monitoring of food to ensure timely use or disposal.