Food, Lodging and Institutions

Food, lodging, and institution sanitation helps to ensure the public that establishments operating in Richmond County meet the minimum sanitation standards as required by the NC Department of Health and Human Services. Richmond County Environmental Health Specialists routinely inspect all the following establishments.
• Hotels, Motels, Inns
• Restaurants, Food Stands
• Summer Camps
• Meat Markets
• Schools and Educational Institutions, Hospitals, Day Care Centers, Jails
• Nursing and Rest Homes, Residential Care
• Push Carts, Mobile Food Units

Inspections include the establishment's level of cleanliness, food handling practices, and proper food protection during preparation, storage, and transportation. After inspection, the establishment receives a certified card with a Grade of A, B, or C. Each establishment is required to display their Grade Card in a prominent location for the public to view.

New and temporary food establishments in Richmond County must have applicable permits. Inspectors will work closely with owners and management to ensure the quality and safety of food service is compliant with the rules and regulations of North Carolina.

Responsible Food Handler Course

A food handler program helps new and current food handlers keep up to date on laws and regulations for the county and state where they work.

Upon successful completion of this training program, you will understand:

The basics of preventing food-borne illness, including understanding how illness are spread through contaminated food and how food becomes contaminated through unsafe practices
Why hygiene is important, and how you prevent illness by good personal grooming, handwashing, and using protective articles
How to recognize symptoms of communicable diseases and food borne illnesses that will keep you from working, and when you’ll need a physician’s approval before working with foods.
How to safely accept and store food, including when food must be rejected and how to store food to prevent contamination.
How to control food temperature to prevent food-borne illness, including how to measure and keep foods in safe temperature zones, and how to cool, thaw and reheat food safely.
The right way of cleaning and sanitizing to maintain a safe environment.
After completing the course a Certificate Program is available for the trainee consisting a quick quiz so you can be sure you understand the lesson and are prepared for the exam.

Contact Richmond County Environmental Health Department today to sign up at 910-997-8320