Food safety resources for businesses

Stop Germs, Stay Healthy materials

A public education campaign to encourage healthy behaviors to limit the spread of respiratory illnesses such as colds and flu.

Updates to the Washington State Retail Food Code

The Washington State Retail Food Code was updated on March 1, 2023. To help restaurants and businesses adapt, we’ve created a series of factsheets to help explain the changes.

Labeling raw and undercooked foods

Certain risky foods, often considered delicacies, are traditionally served raw or undercooked, such as Caesar salad dressing, oysters on the half shell, steak tartare, sunny-side-up eggs, medium rare hamburgers and sashimi. There are public health risks associated with eating these foods, including Salmonella, Shiga toxin-producing E. coli, Vibrio and other bacterial and viral diseases.

Menu labeling requirements (external site)

Information from the U.S. Dept. of Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

CBDs (cannabidiol) in food and beverages

In King County, the addition of CBD to food and beverages is prohibited until further guidance and approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Washington State Department of Agriculture, and Washington Department of Health.

Trans fat ban requirements

Learn about the requirements to eliminate artificial trans fat for King County food businesses.

Protecting foods from power failures (PDF, 571 KB)

When the power goes out, it’s important to consider food safety. Different kinds of food require different safeguards.

• የኃይል መቋረጥ ሲከሰት ምን ማድረግ ያስፈልጋል (አማርኛ / Amharic, 603 KB)
• 发生停电时需要做什么 (简体中文 / Chinese, Simplified, 869 KB)
• 發生停電時需要做什麼 (中文 / Chinese, Traditional, 729 KB)
• 정전 시 해야 할 일 (한국어 / Korean, 641 KB)
• Waxa la sameeyo dhacdada dabka tago (Af Soomaali / Somali, 658 KB)
• Qué hacer en caso de corte de luz (Español / Spanish, 565 KB)
• Cần làm gì trong trường hợp bị mất điện (Tiếng Việt / Vietnamese, 657 KB)

Boil water order

If you are in an area with a boil water order in place, it means that recent tests show that your water system is contaminated with organisms that can cause illness. Boiling is the best way to ensure water is free of illness-causing organisms.