F0812

E

Failure to Properly Store, Label, and Discard Food Items in Kitchen and Refrigeration Areas

Corsicana, Texas Survey Completed on 10-02-2025

Penalty

No penalty information released

Summary

The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to store, label, monitor, and discard food items in accordance with its own policies and professional food safety standards in the kitchen. During an initial kitchen walkthrough, surveyors observed multiple dry pasta products in storage with outdated or incomplete labeling, including dried egg noodles and dried ziti noodles with open dates in early June and expiration dates in early September, as well as dried spaghetti in a plastic bag that was not properly sealed. These observations showed that dry goods were not consistently labeled or managed according to the facility’s stated practice of marking opened dry goods with open and expiration dates and discarding items after their use-by dates.

In the walk-in refrigerator, surveyors found several prepared and perishable food items that were not labeled or stored as required. A personal-size pudding fully covered in a bowl had no label indicating its contents, preparation date, or use-by date. A plastic storage container of leftover chicken noodle soup was also unlabeled for contents, preparation date, or discard date. Additionally, a box of red bell peppers with visible mold growth was present, along with a cut red bell pepper placed in an unsealable plastic bag that lacked any labeling for contents, the date it was cut, or the date it should be consumed by. An opened and recapped bottle of partially used hot sauce was present without any indication of an open date, use-by date, or whether it was a personal item or used in food preparation.

In interviews, dietary staff, the Dietary Manager (DM), the DON, and the Administrator all described facility policies and expectations that conflicted with the conditions observed. Dietary staff stated that all prepared foods should be labeled with the date prepared and a use-by date within 72 hours, that dry goods should be labeled with open and expiration dates, and that no expired or visibly molded items should be used. The DM reported that deliveries were to be dated, prepared foods labeled with preparation dates and used within two days, and that she checked refrigerators and dry storage regularly. The facility’s written policy on date marking required clear marking of the date by which food must be consumed or discarded, with the person opening or preparing the food responsible for date marking, and specified that discard dates may not exceed the manufacturer’s use-by date or four days from opening or preparation. Despite these policies and stated practices, the presence of unlabeled prepared foods, moldy produce, improperly sealed and labeled dry goods, and an unlabeled opened condiment bottle demonstrated that the facility did not consistently implement its food safety and date-marking procedures.