Environmental Public Health Division

• What establishments are inspected?
• What geographical areas does Harris County inspect?
• How often are Harris County’s food establishments inspected?
• What kinds of inspections does Harris County perform?
• What do investigators look for?
• What are critical and non-critical violations?
• What are the 5 Foodborne Illness Risk Factors?
• How are inspection reports graded or scored?
• What does COS mean?
• What enforcement actions are taken?
• What kind of training must retail food operators have?
• Please help us keep retail food establishments in unincorporated Harris County clean and safe.
• How do I view inspection results for a particular establishment under Harris County’s jurisdiction?
• How does a food establishment receive the HCPHES (Harris County Public Health & Environmental Services) Food Safety Award?

Food Safety Program

The mission of Harris County’s food inspection program is to prevent foodborne illness and injury from occurring at retail food establishments in the areas of Harris County outside of the city limits of Houston.  This web portal provides the opportunity to share information that may assist you in your decision making regarding your food service choices.

What establishments are inspected?

Harris County permits and inspects all retail food establishments in the unincorporated areas of Harris County including 20 small cities incorporated within Harris County.  Retail food establishments are facilities that prepare, process, serve, and/or sell food and/or drink to the consumer.  All retail food facilities inspected by Harris County must meet food safety and sanitation requirements to obtain an annual food establishment permit.

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What geographical areas does Harris County inspect?

All unincorporated (not in a city) areas of the county as well as the cities of

Bunker Hill                               Katy                             Southside Place
Deer Park                                La Porte                      Spring Valley
El Lago                                    Morgan’s Point            Taylor Lake
Galena Park                            Nassau Bay                Tomball
Humble                                    Piney Point                  Waller
Jacinto City                              Seabrook                     West University
Jersey Village                          South Houston

Areas that do not have a Houston mailing address, but are not incorporated as a city such as Cypress and Spring are also inspected by Harris County.

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How often are Harris County’s food establishments inspected?

Food establishment inspections occur from one to six times per year, depending upon factors such as the type of food prepared, the method of preparation, the establishment’s violation history, and the amount of control the manager has over food operations.  A bar that does not prepare food will be inspected once a year while a full service restaurant with a good food safety and sanitation history will receive three or four inspections per year.

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What kinds of inspections does Harris County perform?

Inspections and investigations are grouped into nine different types:

1. Routine – Routine inspections are thorough examinations of all food service operations that occur within a food establishment.   Inspectors look for compliance with state laws and regulations regarding the preparation, storage, and service of food; the cleaning and sanitizing of equipment, floors, walls, and other surfaces; employee hygienic practices; and water and sewage systems.
2. Follow-up – Follow-up inspections are conducted when an inspection reveals substantial non-compliance with laws and regulations.  Examples of situations which trigger a follow-up inspection include a score of 20 demerits or higher or two or more violations that cannot be corrected immediately that are also considered major risk factors for foodborne illness.
3. Permitting – A permitting inspection is a routine inspection that is conducted on an annual basis with the intention of issuing an application for a health permit. An establishment must exhibit compliance with food laws and regulations before a permit application is issued.  Non-profit food operations must exhibit compliance with food laws and regulations, but are exempt from the permit requirement.
4. Pre-opening – A pre-opening inspection is conducted by specialized inspectors to insure that a new or extensively remodeled food establishment has everything necessary to begin preparing safe and sanitary food and that it has followed pre-approved plans regarding layout, structure, utilities, and equipment.
5. Other– Other visits to an establishment may not require a facility inspection, but serve to provide advice upon the request of the establishment operator or to allow a quarantined piece of equipment back into service after repairs have been made.
6. SV Follow-up – A supervised follow-up inspection is conducted when a supervisor accompanies a district inspector on a follow-up inspection for training or evaluation purposes or to provide guidance regarding a questionable practice or piece of equipment.
7. CS Follow-up – A Compliance Services follow-up inspection is conducted after the establishment fails a second inspection.  The Compliance Coordinator for Food Safety accompanies the district inspector to provide additional recommendations for compliance, to reinforce the importance of following laws and regulations, and to initiate administrative enforcement action such as a permit denial or suspension hearing if necessary.
8. Foodborne Illness Investigation – An investigation is conducted when a consumer or a health care provider files a complaint of a suspected foodborne illness.  It is important to note that while the inspector may note deficiencies that could cause a foodborne illness, the source of the illness cannot be confirmed without laboratory testing of food samples and patient specimens. 
9. Complaint investigation – An investigation is conducted when a complaint is received regarding the food handling or sanitation practices of the establishment.

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What do investigators look for?

Harris County has adopted the state’s rules for retail food establishments.  The rules cover all aspects of food safety designed to insure the safety of food offered to the consumer.  Select this link for a complete copy of the Texas Food Establishment Rules.  Violations of the state rules are grouped into critical and
non-critical violations.

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What are critical and non-critical violations?

• Critical violations are violations that, if left uncorrected, are more likely than other violations to contribute to food contamination, illness, or an environmental public health hazard.   Examples of critical violations include improper cooking, cooling, or reheating of foods.  Ideally, an establishment should have no critical violations.  Establishments that are repeatedly and significantly out of compliance are given a follow-up inspection by the Compliance Coordinator for Food Safety to insure correction of the violations.

• Non-critical violations are not directly related to the cause of food contamination, illness or environmental hazards, but if left uncorrected, could lead to critical violations.  Examples of non-critical violations include burned out light bulbs, damaged ceiling tiles, and dirty floors. Although non-critical violations must be corrected, the inspectors focus on the correction of critical violations.

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What are the 5 Foodborne Illness Risk Factors?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified the most significant factors that contribute to foodborne illness in retail food establishments.  The foodborne illness risk factors are:

• Food from unsafe sources

• Inadequate cooking

• Improper holding temperatures

• Contaminated equipment

• Poor personal hygiene

Violations which involve one of the five major foodborne risk factors are designated by an asterisk in the online inspection report. 

Emphasis during routine inspections is placed on the establishment’s active managerial control over the five risk factors.  Active managerial control refers to basic management principles that should be used in day to day operations.  Examples of active managerial control are:  monitoring procedures, record keeping, an employee health policy restricting or excluding ill employees, and manager and employee training.

 More information regarding the foodborne illness risk factors may be found at:  http://vm.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/retrsk.html

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How are inspection reports graded or scored?

All critical violations are assigned a demerit value of 3, 4, or 5 points.  Each critical violation is marked only once although there may be multiple instances of the same item.  The demerits are totaled for a final score.  A perfect score is 0 while a score of 20 or higher automatically requires a follow-up inspection.  Non-critical violations are documented on the report, but are not assigned a demerit value. 

It is important to read the violation descriptions to understand the conditions seen by the inspector during the time of the inspection.  The total score alone may not provide sufficient information.   For example, failure to cook meat to the proper temperature (5 demerits) and failure to wash hands properly (4 demerits), two violations that are considered major risk factors for foodborne illness, will yield a score of 9 demerits.  However, three violations not considered major foodborne illness risk factors, such as failure to renew a food establishment permit (3 demerits), failure to calibrate a thermometer (3 demerits), and failure to post a choking poster (3 demerits) will also yield a total score of 9 demerits.

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What does COS mean?

A violation that is marked as COS (corrected on site) is a violation that has been corrected during the inspection.  Inspectors urge food establishment operators to correct as many violations during the inspection as possible.  Violations that are corrected on site are still given a demerit value and are factored into the total score.

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What enforcement actions are taken?

• Red tags – Inspectors may place a piece of equipment out of service by affixing a  red tag to a piece of equipment that could cause a health hazard such a rusty meat slicer that cannot be effectively cleaned and sanitized or a dish machine that is not dispensing adequate amounts of sanitizer.  The red tag remains on the equipment until the inspector confirms that the equipment has been sufficiently repaired.

• Citations – Inspectors may issue a citation (ticket) for operating without a valid permit, operating under unsanitary conditions such as serious, repeated or multiple violations, or operating during an imminent public health hazard such as sewage back up in the kitchen.  (The establishment will also be asked to cease food operations if an imminent public health hazard exists.)

• Voluntary closures –  A food establishment will be asked to discontinue operations in instances where an imminent public health hazard exists because of an emergency such as a fire, flood, and extended interruption of electrical or water service, sewage back up, or other conditions that may endanger public health.

• Other administrative actions –  In rare cases, when citations or closures are ineffective, a temporary court injunction to cease operations or a hearing to deny, suspend, or revoke a food establishment permit may be imposed.

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 What kind of training must retail food operators have?

Harris County requires a manager trained in food safety to be on duty during all hours of operation.  Establishments that do not prepare or package food and handle only prepackaged food are exempt from this requirement.  State law also exempts day care centers from the trained food manager requirement.  Harris County offers free food manager training classes to operators of all establishments within its jurisdiction.  City of Houston training and training approved by the Texas Department of State Health Services is also accepted.

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Please help us keep retail food establishments in unincorporated Harris County clean and safe.

Most food establishments realize that it is in their best interest to provide safe and sanitary food to the consumer.   Our food inspectors’ job is to make sure that the food safety regulations are followed by the establishment.  But our inspectors cannot be at a food establishment all the time.  Therefore, if you have a concern regarding a food establishment’s operations or believe you and/or others have become ill from eating food obtained at an establishment or at an event, please contact us.  By investigating your concerns, Harris County may be able to prevent future outbreaks of foodborne illness.   If you need to contact a physician, please do so before calling us. 

If you believe you have become ill from ingesting food from an establishment in unincorporated Harris County or in a city inspected by Harris County, please file a complaint at HCPHES Environmental Health Services Division or call us at (713) 439-6270.

If you are concerned about a food establishment’s operations such as cleanliness, food handling procedures, etc., please file a complaint at Environmental Public Health Home  or contact us at (713) 439-6270.

If you have a foodborne illness complaint or other complaint regarding a food establishment located outside Harris County or if the establishment is located in a city not inspected by Harris County, please contact the local health department in that location.

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How do I view inspection results for a particular establishment under Harris County’s jurisdiction?

This website provides food inspection information for all establishments that are currently open and operating under Harris County’s jurisdiction.  The food inspection information provided on the website reflects the information that is captured in a database.  To view an inspection report, please call (713) 920-2831 for information on filing an Open Records Request.

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How does a food establishment receive the HCPHES (Harris County Public Health & Environmental Services) Food Safety Award?

All restaurants and mobile food establishments that prepare food will be considered for the HCPHES Food Safety Award.  The Award will be announced on an annual basis and will be good for the year issued.  A special plaque and a door decal will be issued to the awardees.  A food establishment must meet the following stringent criteria in order to receive the Award.  (Select this link for pictures of the award.)  All information will be confirmed prior to issuance of the Award. 

1. The establishment has been in business for at least one year and has undergone at least three routine HCPHES food inspections over the past year.

2. The establishment has received no critical violations and no more than four non-critical violations for the past year. 

3. None of the non-critical violations are repeat violations.

4. No re-inspections were required in the past year.

5. No enforcement actions (warnings, citations, voluntary closures, or hearings) have been taken in the past year.

6. A trained food manager has been on duty during all inspections conducted over the past year.  A trained food manager is one who has completed an HCPHES-approved training program.

7. At least 50% of an establishment’s food handlers have completed an HCPHES-approved food worker training program.

8. The establishment has initiated a procedure requiring no bare hand contact with ready-to-eat food.

9. The establishment has initiated two or more active managerial control measures (documented employee health policy, risk control plan, time and temperature records, and buyer specifications.)

10. No laboratory confirmed or epidemiology-linked food borne illness in the past year has been associated with the establishment.

11. The permit fee has been paid on time.

12. An inspection conducted at the conclusion of the 12-month award period reveals continued compliance with criteria #1-11 above.