Receiving Raw Meat and Poultry Deliveries

Check every raw meat and poultry delivery before you sign for it. Confirm the core temperature is at or below 5°C, inspect colour, smell and packaging for spoilage or damage, and verify the supplier and use-by dates. Reject anything above temperature, torn, leaking or off. Move accepted stock straight into refrigeration and keep it well separated from ready-to-eat food. Key takeaways: Receiving is a critical control point: once you accept and sign for a delivery, responsibility for that food passes to you.. Probe the core temperature of raw meat and poultry on arrival; chilled product should be at or below 5°C and frozen product frozen hard.. Check colour, smell, texture and packaging together, and reject anything that is off, slimy, discoloured, leaking, torn or past its use-by date.. Keep raw meat and poultry separated from ready-to-eat food from the moment it arrives, storing raw below ready-to-eat in the fridge or coolroom.. Record delivery temperatures and any rejections so you can show a working receiving process to an inspector.. Why receiving checks matter Receiving is your first and best chance to stop unsafe food entering your kitchen. Once you accept a delivery and sign for it, responsibility for that food passes from the supplier to you, so a quick, consistent check at the door protects both your customers and your business. Raw meat and poultry are potentially hazardous foods that support the rapid growth of harmful bacteria, which makes them a priority to check first when several deliveries arrive together. Under the Food Standards Code, food businesses must take all practicable measures to receive food safely and keep potentially hazardous food out of the temperature danger zone of 5°C to 60°C. Cold-chain breakdowns during transport are common, especially in warm weather or when a driver leaves the van doors open, so you cannot assume a delivery is safe just because it came from a reputable supplier. Verify it every time. Check the temperature on arrival Temperature is the single most important check. Chilled raw meat and poultry should be at or below 5°C on arrival, and frozen product should be frozen hard with no signs of thawing and refreezing. Use a clean, sanitised probe thermometer and measure between two packs, or the surface of the product, rather than the air inside the van, which can read cooler than the food itself. Calibrate your thermometer regularly so you can trust the reading, and sanitise the probe before and after use to avoid cross-contamination. If a delivery is marginally warm, act on your business's documented rule rather than guessing: the safest response is to reject product above temperature. Move accepted stock into the fridge, coolroom or freezer immediately, because every minute on the loading dock erodes the cold chain you are trying to protect. Chilled raw meat and poultry: at or below 5°C.. Frozen product: frozen solid, with no soft spots, drip pooling or large ice crystals that suggest thawing and refreezing.. Probe between packs or the product surface, not the surrounding air.. Sanitise the probe before and after each measurement.. Colour, smell and texture checks Temperature alone will not tell you whether meat has spoiled, so use your senses as well. Fresh red meat is generally bright to deep red and firm, while poultry is pale pink to cream and moist but not slimy. A sticky or slimy film, a dull grey-green tinge, or any sour, sulphurous or ammonia-like smell are signs of spoilage, and that product should be rejected. Be careful not to over-read colour on its own. Vacuum-packed beef often looks darker or purplish until the pack is opened and the meat blooms back to red in air, which is normal. Judge colour, smell, texture and packaging together, and when the overall picture points to spoilage, reject the delivery rather than trying to rescue it. Packaging, labelling and traceability Packaging should be intact, clean and dry. Reject cartons that are crushed, wet or stained with drip, and reject any pack that is torn, punctured or leaking, because damaged packaging lets bacteria in and can leak raw juices onto other food. Vacuum packs should be sealed and holding their vacuum; a pack that has lost its seal has lost part of its protection. Check the labelling and dates while you unload. Confirm the use-by dates give you enough shelf life to use the product, and that the supplier, product description and quantity match your order and invoice. Keeping delivery dockets and invoices supports traceability, so that if a product is subject to a recall you can quickly identify whether you received it and which stock is affected. Keep raw separate from ready-to-eat Cross-contamination is a serious risk the moment raw meat and poultry come through the door. Raw juices carry pathogens such as Salmonella and Campylobacter, so raw product must never sit above, touch or drip onto ready-to-eat food like cooked meats, salads, cheese or desserts. As you put stock away, store raw meat and poultry below and away from ready-to-eat food, ideally in dedicated fridges or coolroom sections, and always in covered, leak-proof containers. Handle raw deliveries with clean hands and separate or sanitised equipment, and wash and sanitise any bench, trolley or scale the raw product touched. Where raw meat or poultry is packed with declared allergens, keep it in its labelling and away from allergen-free stock so nothing is mixed up later. When to reject a delivery and what to record You are entitled to reject any delivery that fails your checks, and doing so is far cheaper than a foodborne illness or a failed inspection. Reject product that is above temperature, has thawed and refrozen, smells or looks off, or arrives in damaged or leaking packaging or past its use-by date. Set the rejected stock aside clearly so it is not mistakenly put away, and contact the supplier to arrange a return or replacement. Record what you receive and what you reject. A simple receiving log noting the date, supplier, product, measured temperature and any action taken shows an inspector that your receiving controls actually work, and it helps you spot a supplier whose cold chain keeps failing. Combine this with your traceability paperwork so recalls and follow-up are straightforward. Reject: product above 5°C, evidence of thawing and refreezing, off colour or smell, slimy texture, damaged or leaking packaging, or past use-by.. Isolate rejected stock so it is not put away by mistake.. Log the date, supplier, product, temperature and outcome for each delivery.. Keep dockets and invoices to support recalls and traceability.. Checklist: Receiving area clean and fridge or coolroom space ready before arrival. Probe thermometer calibrated and sanitised. Vehicle and packaging clean, intact, dry and not leaking. Chilled raw meat and poultry at or below 5°C; frozen product frozen hard. Colour, smell and texture checked; nothing off, slimy or discoloured. Use-by dates, supplier and quantity match the order and invoice. Failed product rejected, isolated and reported to the supplier. Accepted stock moved straight into refrigeration. Raw stored below and away from ready-to-eat food in covered containers. Delivery temperature and any rejection recorded in the receiving log. Common mistakes: Signing for a delivery before checking it, which transfers responsibility for unsafe food to you.. Measuring the air in the van instead of probing between packs, giving a falsely cool reading.. Assuming a trusted supplier means the cold chain held, and skipping the temperature check.. Leaving raw meat and poultry on the dock or bench while other deliveries are dealt with.. Rejecting good vacuum-packed beef because it looks dark, before it has bloomed back to red in air.. Accepting torn, wet or leaking packaging that lets bacteria in and drips onto other food.. Storing raw product above ready-to-eat food, allowing raw juices to drip and cross-contaminate.. Keeping no record of delivery temperatures or rejections, so problems and recalls are hard to trace..