A cook with a full beard is preparing exposed food. What does the Food Code effectively require?
a.Shaving the beard off before every shift, since no cover is accepted
b.A clean baseball cap (a head-hair restraint) that the Code treats as covering the beard
c.Nothing extra, because a trimmed beard is too coarse to shed hair into open food
d.An effective beard restraint (beard net/cover) in addition to a hair restraint
Explanation
Employees with facial hair who prepare exposed food should wear an effective beard restraint, along with a hair restraint for head hair, to keep hair out of food. Beards shed regardless of how coarse or well-trimmed they are, so doing nothing is incorrect. A baseball cap restrains head hair only and leaves the beard exposed, and the Code asks for an effective restraint, not for the beard to be shaved off.
Law Reference: FDA Food Code §2-402.11Practice all 500 questions free — no signup required.
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