A. The Health Authority shall inspect each food establishment located in the County of McHenry as follows:
1. Category I Facilities: three times annually
2. Category II Facilities: two times annually
3. Category III Facilities: one time annually
B. The following substitute activities may be used in place of one annual inspection of a Category I or Category II facility:
1. Employees involved in food operations receive a HACCP training exercise, in-service training in another food service sanitation area, or attend an educational conference on food safety or sanitation.
C. The Health Authority shall inspect each food and/or beverage vending machine located in the County of McHenry as follows:
1. Category I Vending Machines: two annual inspections
2. Category II Vending Machines: no annual inspections
3. Category III Vending Machines: no annual inspections
D. The Health Authority shall make as many additional inspections as are necessary for the enforcement of this Ordinance. The Health Authority reserves the right to change the risk classification (i.e. poor sanitation) and thus increase the frequency for Category II and III operations.
E. Access to Establishments. The Health Authority, after proper identification, shall be permitted to enter, at any reasonable time, any food establishment, or upon any private or public property where vending machines or commissaries are operated, or from which such machines are otherwise serviced, within the County of McHenry, Illinois, for the purpose of making inspections to determine compliance with this Ordinance. He shall be permitted to examine the records of the establishment to obtain pertinent information pertaining to food and supplies purchased, received or sold, and persons employed. The operator shall make provisions for the Health Authority to have access, either in company with an employee or otherwise, to the interior of all vending machines operated by him.
F. Inspection Reports. Whenever an inspection of a food establishment, vending machine, or commissary is made, the findings shall be recorded on an approved electronic inspection report form. This inspection report form shall summarize the requirements of this Ordinance and shall delineate Core item, Priority Foundation item, Priority Item and Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) Plan deviations. Inspectional remarks shall be written to reference, by section number, the section violated and shall state the correction to be made. A copy of the completed inspection report form shall be furnished to the person in charge of the establishment via electronic mail at the conclusion of the inspection.
G. Issuance of Notices. Whenever the Health Authority makes an inspection of a food establishment or vending machine and discovers that any of the requirements of this Ordinance have been violated, he shall notify the permit holder or operator of such violations by means of an inspection report form or other written notice. In such notification the Health Authority shall:
1. Set forth the specific violations found.
2. Establish a specific and reasonable period of time for the correction of the violations found, in accordance with the following provisions:
a. Priority items should be corrected immediately if possible, and shall be corrected in a time period not to exceed 72 hours.
b. Priority Foundation or Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) Plan deviations shall be corrected within ten (10) calendar days.
c. Core items shall be corrected within ninety (90) calendar days.
d. The Health Authority may approve a compliance schedule that extends beyond the time limits specified in Subsection G. if a written schedule of compliance is submitted by the permit holder and no health hazard exists or will result from allowing an extended schedule for compliance.
e. In the case of temporary food establishments, violations must typically be corrected prior to receiving the approval to operate, but within a specific period of time not to exceed 24 hours. Failure to comply with such notice shall result in immediate suspension of the permit.
f. Second and subsequent re-inspections for the same violation will require a re-inspection fee specified in the Public Health Fee Ordinance. Whenever a permit to operate is suspended or revoked, a reinstatement fee specified in the Public Health Fee Ordinance shall be incurred by the permit holder.
g. Re-inspection fees must be paid within fifteen (15) days of notice by the Department. Failure to pay will result in suspension of the permit to operate and an additional fee to reinstate the permit.
h. The Health Authority may suspend a permit to operate a food establishment if it determines through inspection, or examination of employees, food, records or other means, that an imminent health hazard exists. The Health Authority may suspend a permit to operate a food establishment for serious or repeated violations of this Ordinance or for interference with the Health Authority in the performance of his duties. Upon reinstatement of the permit, a conditional permit will be issued. A conditional permit suspends the regular health permit.
3. State that failure to comply with any notice issued in accordance with the provisions of this Ordinance may result in immediate suspension of the permit.
4. Explain the procedure for review or appeal of the alleged violation.
H. Service of Notices. Notices under this Section shall be deemed to have been properly served when a copy of the inspection report form or other notice has been delivered to the permit holder or licensee or person in charge, or when such notice has been posted to the front door of the permit holder’s establishment, or by leaving such notice at his residence with some person of the family of the age of ten (10) years or upwards.
I. Examination and Condemnation of Food. Food may be examined or sampled by the Health Authority as often as may be necessary to determine freedom from adulteration or misbranding. The Health Authority may, upon written notice to the owner or person in charge, place a hold order on any food which he determines or has probable cause to believe to be unwholesome or otherwise adulterated, or misbranded. Under a hold order, food shall be permitted to be suitably stored. It shall be unlawful for any person to remove or alter a hold order notice, or tag placed on food by the Health Authority, and neither such food nor the containers thereof shall be relabeled, repacked, reprocessed, altered, disposed of, or destroyed without permission of the Health Authority except on order by a court of competent jurisdiction. The Health Authority may vacate the hold order, or may by written order direct the owner or person in charge of the food which was placed under the hold order to denature or destroy such food or to bring it into compliance with the provisions of this Ordinance: Provided, that such order of the Health Authority to denature or destroy such food or bring it into compliance with the provisions of this Ordinance shall be stayed if the order is appealed to a court of competent jurisdiction within three (3) days of the issuance of such order. Samples for the determination of adulteration and misbranding shall be taken and examined in accordance with the methods prescribed by the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists, the Food and Drug Administration, or by other standard methods.
J. Food-borne Illness Investigation. When cases of food-borne illness are reported, an immediate epidemiological and laboratory investigation shall be made by the McHenry County Department of Health in an effort to determine the vehicle and the source, so as to prevent a recurrence. Any food suspected of being a vehicle in a food-borne disease outbreak shall be placed under a hold order pending laboratory examination.
(Ord. O-201711-51-031, passed 11-14-2017)