The threshold comes from the legal or label limit and from the time the product still has to spend in the store: the less shelf life remains, the further inside the limit the acceptance threshold is set.
| Category | Limit | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Red meat | 7 °C, offal 3 °C | Regulation Art. 17 |
| Poultry meat | 4 °C | Regulation Art. 22 |
| Quick-frozen | -18 °C, brief rise at most 3 °C | Communiqué 2015/34 |
| Others | temperature on the label | label |
The frozen row causes the most argument: a short rise is allowed at handover, and the issue is how long the deviation lasted and whether it repeats. -15 °C seen once gets recorded; if it recurs on the same round, the round is reviewed.
The measurement method is written down with the threshold. Infrared gives the surface; for quick-frozen food the official method is a pre-chilled probe pushed into the product, with a calibrated instrument accurate to ±0.5 °C. Where there is doubt, the probe decides. If method, value and action on exceeding are not written down, every decision falls to whoever is at the door.
