A line cook has a long, painted set of acrylic fingernails. Under the California Retail Food Code, what is the correct policy when she handles exposed food?
Explanation
California Retail Food Code HSC §113973 requires food employees who contact exposed food, clean equipment, or single-service items to keep fingernails trimmed, filed, and maintained so the edges and surfaces are cleanable and not rough. Unless wearing intact gloves in good repair, employees may not wear fingernail polish or artificial nails when working with exposed food, because polish can chip into food and the seam between an acrylic nail and the natural nail harbors bacteria that are not removed by handwashing. Option A is wrong because clean appearance does not eliminate the chipping and harborage risk. Option B is wrong because handwashing frequency does not address the polish/acrylic hazard. Option D is incomplete because the polish/artificial nail rule applies regardless of length. The combination of (a) no bare-hand contact with ready-to-eat food and (b) intact single-use gloves resolves the compliance problem.
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