Free county HACCP templates vs ClearHACCP

The short answer

If your health department publishes a template for your process, start there. It tells you what your reviewer wants. ClearHACCP helps when you would rather not work out every limit, step and log yourself, or when you want the logs on a phone.

What county templates do well

• They show exactly what that health department expects, in the order it reads.
• They are free, and often come with a checklist or guidance.
• Using your own reviewer's form can mean fewer rounds of comments.

What is still on you

A template is the layout. You still fill it with your kitchen:

• Every menu item and its food category.
• The right critical limit for each step, with the right Food Code section, for your state's edition.
• A flow diagram that matches your line.
• Who monitors, how often, what they do when a check fails, and who verifies.
• The logs, printed and kept, every shift.

That is where most plans get sent back: a missing limit, a step with no corrective action, a log that does not match the plan.

Side by side

Example templates and guidance

A few published by health departments. Use the one from your own health department if it has one; see your state.

• Northern Nevada Public Health: cook-chill and sous vide HACCP worksheet (PDF)
• Northern Nevada Public Health: ROP without a waiver, HACCP plan (PDF)
• San Francisco Department of Public Health: HACCP application (PDF)
• Hennepin County, MN: HACCP and ROP application (PDF)
• City of Minneapolis: HACCP plans
• Georgia Department of Agriculture: guidance for requesting a variance (PDF)
• Oregon Health Authority: sous vide fact sheet (PDF)

Frequently asked questions

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