Food safety: Asian rice-based noodles.

Existing law, the Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law, requires all manufacturers of Asian rice-based noodles to place labels on the Asian rice-based noodles that indicate the date and time of manufacture and include a warning that the Asian rice-based noodles are perishable and must be consumed within 4 hours of manufacture. Existing law prohibits the sale of Asian rice-based noodles unless they have this labeling. Existing law, the California Retail Food Code, establishes uniform health and sanitation standards for retail food facilities, as defined. The law requires the State Department of Public Health to adopt regulations to implement and administer those provisions, and delegates primary enforcement duties to local health agencies. This bill would revise the definition of Asian rice-based noodles, as specified, and require the labels to instead indicate the date and time that the Asian rice-based noodles first came out of hot holding, as specified. This bill would exempt Asian rice-based noodles from these labeling requirements if the Asian rice-based noodles meet specific criteria. Existing law authorizes the sale of Asian rice-based noodles, as defined, that have been at room temperature for no more than 4 hours, and requires that Asian rice-based noodles that have been kept at room temperature be consumed, cooked, or destroyed within 4 hours of manufacture. This bill would require Asian rice-based noodles kept at room temperature to be segregated for destruction after 4 hours of the date and time labeled on the product. This bill would exempt Asian rice-based noodles from the above-described time-temperature requirements if the Asian rice-based noodles meet specific criteria. By imposing new enforcement duties upon local agencies, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.