Receiving & StorageQuestion 151 of 50074% of test-takers answer this correctly

When storing raw meats above nothing but each other (no ready-to-eat food nearby), the ordering principle by minimum cooking temperature still means whole fish and whole beef cuts go:

a.Below raw poultry, because poultry's 165°F minimum makes it the safest raw item to store on top
b.Above ground beef and poultry, because they have lower minimum cooking temperatures (145°F)
c.In any order among raw meats, since cooking later destroys the contamination
d.Below ground beef, because its 155°F minimum (ground-meat line) outranks whole cuts

Explanation

Whole fish and whole cuts of beef and pork have a minimum cooking temperature of 145°F, lower than ground meat (155°F) and poultry (165°F), so they are stored above ground beef and poultry. The shelf order runs by cook temperature, not by how safe an item is once cooked: poultry's 165°F requirement is exactly why raw poultry belongs on the bottom shelf, and ground beef's 155°F puts it below whole cuts, not above them. The order still matters among raw meats even with no ready-to-eat food nearby, because juices from a food that needs a higher cook temperature must never drip onto one that will be cooked less. A later cook does not license the drip: the item underneath is taken only to its own lower minimum, which is below what the contamination dripped onto it would require.

Law Reference: FDA Food Code §3-302.11

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