Wayne County: Food Establishments

Our Mission

Wayne County Environmental Health is to protect the health of all Wayne County residents and visitors alike. It is our goal to ensure that all food produced, prepared, and offered to the public is wholesome, honestly presented, and safe for consumption. To fulfill our mission and goal, we conduct a consumer food protection and safety program that includes requirements for food establishment plan review and approval, permit to operate, ongoing inspection, and investigation of complaints of foodborne illness. This website provides the public with another opportunity and avenue to obtain information on food establishment inspection results in Wayne County. We have created this website as part of our continuing effort to educate and inform the public on matters related to food safety and Wayne County food establishment sanitation.

View Food Division Staff

Wayne County Consumer Food Protection & Safety Program

The Indiana Food Code requires that anyone wishing to operate a food establishment in the State of Indiana first obtain a permit to do so. In Wayne County, these permits are issued following a review of food establishment plans and menu and assuring, by inspection, compliance with the food safety standards and practices contained in the Food Code. Routine inspections of each food establishment permitted by Wayne County Environmental Health are conducted throughout the year to evaluate the establishment’s success in assuring that all food operations are being conducted in a safe and sanitary manner, and in compliance with the Food Code.

If deficiencies are observed during these routine inspections, they are described in an inspection report with reference to a relevant section of the Indiana Food Code, the observations made by the inspector during the inspection, and the corrective action is taken. Such deficiencies are typically classified as either critical items, which are items that are more likely than other code provision items to contribute to food contamination, illness, or other environmental health hazards, or non-critical items, items representing a failure of cleaning, maintenance or other good retail practices.

The Wayne County Division of Environmental Health subscribes to the notion that the ultimate responsibility for food safety in our food establishments rests with the establishment operator who must have a solid understanding of foodborne disease prevention as well as knowledge of proper food handling techniques and practices. This concept, whose success rests on the implementation and supervision of food safety practices on the part of the establishment operator to control known and identified risk factors in the establishment’s food operations that might otherwise cause foodborne illness or injury. We promote this by knowing the risk factors of our establishment through education, collaboration, and inspection activities. Successful control of these foodborne illness factors will be directly related to the number of critical items identified during our normal food establishment inspection process.

With over three hundred food establishments to be inspected at least twice a year, the Environmental Health Specialists perform routine food inspections in Wayne County to prevent the outbreak of any food-borne illnesses and other potential food safety hazards.

"Retail food establishment" means an operation that stores, prepares, packages, serves, vends, or otherwise provides food for human consumption: where consumption is on or off the premises; and regardless of whether there is a charge for the food. Some examples of retail food establishments would be a catering operation, restaurant, grocery store, convenience store, or tavern.

Inspections are completed twice a year, as recommended by the Indiana State Department of Health. Temporary food permits are inspected once during the event. The health department will provide food safety presentations to food establishments and organizations, upon request.

To obtain a copy of the Indiana State Department of Health food services requirements, or for any additional information, please contact the Wayne County Health Department at 765-973-9245.

Food Establishment Forms (Please email all applications to: health@co.wayne.in.us )

Food Guidance Documents

Food Emergency Response

HBV (Home Based Vendor) Indiana does not allow out of state home based vendors.

Home Based vendors (HBVs) may not sell other commercially prepared products. They can make ONLY non-potentially hazardous foods in their homes and sell them at farmer’s markets and roadside stands. They can now also slaughter and process chicken and rabbits on the farm for sale to the end consumer. This meat may be picked up on the farm or delivered to the consumer. They may also sell eggs from the farm.

While this rule allows certain freedom from health department inspections, a lot of responsibility and liability now rests directly on the home based vendor.

Potentially hazardous foods (PHFs) such as meat (excluding chicken and rabbit), aquatic animal products, dairy, raw shell eggs, or temperature-controlled home-prepared foods still cannot be sold by a home based vendor without inspections and permits from the local health department, even at a roadside stand or farmer’s market. PHFs have ingredients, packaging or storage requirements that must be followed to keep disease-causing bacteria from growing. Raw shell eggs (domestic chicken eggs only) can be sold with a permit from the Indiana State Egg Board, and must be kept at no more than 45° F. Foods that have a pH greater than 4.6 and a water activity (Aw) greater than 0.85 allow harmful bacteria to grow and are considered to be PHFs. Home canned and vacuum packed foods cannot be sold because of the risk of botulism. Low acid home canned food such as vegetables (green beans) or fruit butters may not be sold. Acidified foods with added vinegar, lemon juice or citric acid, or fermented foods may be sold provided they are NOT in an oxygen-sealed container and the vendor can demonstrate a pH of 4.6 or below (ISDH memo dated 8/23/2018.)

Following is a list, which is by no means all-inclusive, of foods that may and may not be sold by HBVs. If you have specific questions about your product, contact your local health department or have your product evaluated by an outside consultant.

Where can foods prepared by HBVs be sold?

The consumer must take possession of the HBV food product at the farmer’s market or roadside stand. HBV foods may not be sold at any other venue including retail food establishments (restaurants, grocery stores, etc.), flea markets, festivals, carnivals, or any other event. HBVs also cannot sell products out of their home, nor can they deliver. They may, however, accept orders at their home.

Labeling requirements for food produced by HBVs

All HBV foods must have:

· The name and address of the producer (HBV)

· The name of the product

· The date it was prepared

· The ingredients listed in order of predominance by weight

· The net weight, volume or item count

· This statement (in at least 10 point type); “This product is home produced and processed and the production area has not been inspected by The State Department of Health.”

· In place of labeling, a placard may be used in some situations, such as when the product sold is not packaged

· Poultry labeling:

The name and address of producer

The name of food product

The net weight or volume

The ingredient list

The date the food product was produced, and the statement “Exempt P.L. 90-492”.

Based on IC 16-42-11-8, farmers or bona fide chicken egg producers who sell and deliver on their own premises, where eggs are produced by their own flocks, are exempt from the chapter (IC 16-42-11). The Retail Food Establishment exemption for vendors of eggs identified in IC 16-42-5-29(j) applies only to the sale of eggs from domestic chickens. The sale of eggs from other avian species is regulated by the Indiana State Figure 4. Labeling Example of HBV Rabbit Product Figure 3. Labeling Example of HBV Poultry Product Department of Health. If farmers or egg producers would like to sell at a farmers market, a farmers market retail permit from the Indiana State Egg Board is required. For more information, please see Indiana State Egg Board (https://ag.purdue.edu/ansc/iseb/). For labeling requirements, refer to “Indiana Guidelines for Labeling Egg Cartons” (https://ag.purdue.edu/ ansc/iseb/carton-labeling·

Product liability for foods produced by HBVs

Product liability is an important consideration for food produced by HBVs. Because these foods are not inspected by regulatory agencies, liability insurance may be difficult to

obtain. HBVs are advised to contact their legal counsel and or insurance provider for advice.

Contact resources for HBVs

1. Your local health department: 765-973-9245

2. Indiana State Department of Health Food Protection Program: 317-233-7360

FOOD TYPE	Food that may be sold by HBVs	Food that may NOT be sold by HBVs
Baked Goods	Cookies, cakes (not needing refrigeration). Brownies, fruit pies, cupcakes, yeast breads, fruit breads, baguettes Dry noodles	Foods that contain meat, poultry, aquatic animals, non baked dairy (cheese, butter, yogurt), non baked egg-containing products. cheesecakes *whole shell eggs may not be sold by HBVs. Must have eggs license, food permit & temperature control
Candies and Confections	Caramels, fudge, chocolate, peanut brittle, chocolate covered fruits, bonbons, buckeyes, chocolate covered nuts, hard candy.
Fruit and Vegetables	unprocessed, whole uncut produce dried fruit or vegetables (water activity has been reduced by drying) *fruit-based jams and jellies made with high acid fruit and sugar	canned products that are shelf-stable and in hermetically sealed containers such as salsas, chow-chow, and canned vegetables. sugar free jams or jellies fruit jellies with peppers added pickled vegetables (beets, pickles) with added acid(vinegar, lemon juice, citric acid, etc.) that are shelf-stable.

Fruit and Vegetables	apple butter fermented pickles that do not require acidification or refrigeration *microgreens, cilantro, parsley Acidified or fermented cut tomatoes or cut leafy greens NOT in oxygen-sealed container with demonstrated pH of 4.6 or less	* Cut produce including tomatoes, leafy greens, melons Garlic-in oil mixtures Raw seed sprouts *other fruit butters (pear, pumpkin, etc. acid content to low)
Meat, poultry, seafood	may process up to 1000 birds a year without BOAH oversight. may raise and slaughter rabbits on the farm may sell frozen poultry or rabbit to end consumer at farmers market, roadside stand. May be sold refrigerated from the farm aquatic animals must be sold alive	jerky canned products that are shelf-stable and in hermetically sealed containers such as canned meats or canned seafood *may not sell processed fish, shrimp as an HBV
Tree Nuts and Legumes	Peanuts, almonds, cashews, walnuts, pistachios, etc.
Syrups	Honey, molasses, Sorghum, maple syrup