Power Outage Food Safety
- English
When In Doubt, Throw It Out!
Food that has been out of temperature for more than 4 hours may cause illness. Throw away all spoiled food to avoid potential health risk. Take special care in handling potentially hazardous food (PHF). PHF is moist, perishable food in and on which bacteria can grow. If your home was impacted by a power outage, special considerations are necessary to ensure the safety of food in refrigerators or freezers.
Business owners should refer to the County of San Joaquin’s Environmental Health Department for more information on food safety compliance.
To dispose of spoiled foods, please go to one of the County operated solid waste disposal locations below:
North County Recycling Center and Sanitary Landfill
17720 East Harney Lane
Lodi, CA 95240
Lovelace Materials Recovery Facility and Transfer Station
2323 East Lovelace Road
Manteca, CA 95336
During Power Outage
Cold foods should be kept at or below 41°F. Try to limit how often refrigerator and freezer doors are opened to help maintain safe temperatures. If you plan to use dry ice to keep foods cold, use caution, as it can cause a dangerous buildup of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in enclosed areas.
Hot foods should be kept at 135°F or higher. If maintaining proper temperatures becomes difficult, consider offering a limited menu to help ensure food safety. Any food that has been between 41°F and 135°F for more than four hours should be discarded.
Taking these additional precautions will help protect your family's health:
- Keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible.
- Use dry ice or ice inside of refrigerators or freezers.
- Check for signs of power outage such as liquid or refrozen meat juices, soft or melted ice cream.
- If practical, group packages of cold food together to reduce heat gain.
- Discard any food that has an unusual color, odor, or texture.
- Discard perishable foods (including meat, poultry, fish, eggs and leftovers) in your refrigerator when the power has been off for 4 hours or more.
- Thawed food that contains ice crystals can be refrozen or cooked. Freezers, if left unopened and full during a power outage, will keep food safe for 48 hours (24 hours if half full).
- Reheating food that has become contaminated will not make it safe!
Related Resources
- County of San Joaquin Environmental Health Department
- Guidelines for Food Safety & Security
- Generators and Carbon Monoxide
- Food Safety During a Power Outage
- Public Health Flood Recovery Information
- California Department of Public Health
- California Department of Food and Agriculture
- U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
- Center for Disease Control
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration
- U.S. Department of Agriculture
When Power is Restored
Once power returns, take time to ensure your food is safe before resuming normal operations. Check temperatures, inspect food for signs of spoilage, and clean and sanitize all areas as needed to maintain food safety.
Here's what to check for:
- Electricity and gas services have been restored.
- Hot (minimum 120°F, except hand washing 100-108°F) and cold potable water, under pressure for hand washing and proper dishwashing.
- Keep receipts/invoices of foods purchased after power has been restored.
- Identify foods that may have been in the temperature danger zone.
- Check the internal food temperatures.
- Food that has exceeded 50°F must be discarded.
PG&E customer may file a claim for food replacement at PG&E Claims and learn more about their Accessibility Assistance & Resources.
How to Dispose of Unsafe Foods
- To dispose of spoiled foods, please go to one of the County operated solid waste disposal locations. Download the price sheets below:
- Discard spoiled food in the appropriate garbage bin.
- Whole produce may not need to be discarded. Cut produce needs to be discarded.
- Visit the County's Public Works, Solid Waste website to learn more about the locations and services.
Food Safety for Retail Food Facilities During Power Outages
Food facilities and operators must take the necessary steps to protect consumers from unsafe food before, during and immediately after power outages. Food operators should take special care in handling potentially hazardous foods (PHF). PHF are moist, perishable foods in and on which bacteria can grow. To learn more about food safety, please visit the County of San Joaquin Environmental Health Department.
County Resources
- Download the Guidelines for Food Safety & Security.
- Report foodborne illness to the Environmental Health Department at (209) 468-3420.
- After hours, holidays and weekends contact the Environmental Health Department at (209) 468-6000.
- For confirmed tampering contact 911 immediately. Additionally notify the Environmental Health Department at (209) 468-3420.