Step One: Review Your Menu
Determine which foods of animal origin on your menu are being served in a ready-to-eat raw or undercooked form.
Step Two: Write The Disclosure
The foods identified in the first step will require a written disclosure on your menu. The disclosure can be made using one of the following methods:
In the menu description, include that the food item is (or contains) raw or undercooked animal food. Examples of this method include dish descriptions like “Raw oysters on the half shell”, “Raw egg Caesar Salad”, “Hamburgers can be cooked to order” or “Eggs cooked to order”.
Place an asterisk next to the food item requiring disclosure. Then, include a footnote on the bottom of any page of the menu that can be easily located by the consumer. The footnote must indicate the asterisked items are served raw or undercooked; contain or may contain raw or undercooked ingredients; may be requested undercooked; or can be cooked to order.
When the menu has a section of common food items that may be served raw or undercooked (e.g., hamburgers), you can provide one disclosure for the entire section. It is not necessary to provide a disclosure for each individual item within the section (e.g., cheeseburgers, bacon burgers, mushroom burgers, etc.).
Step Three: Write the Reminder
Finally, you will need to include a reminder about the risk of consuming raw or undercooked foods. You can use one of these three methods to issue the reminder:
Footnote: You must place an asterisk alongside items requiring disclosure on the menu that is linked to a footnote on the bottom of any page of the menu that can be easily located by the consumer. The footnote must state one of the following reminders:
- Consuming raw or undercooked meats, poultry, seafood, shellfish, or eggs may increase your risk of foodborne illness.
- Consuming raw or undercooked meats, poultry, seafood, shellfish, or eggs may increase your risk of foodborne illness, especially if you have a medical condition.
- Regarding the safety of these items, written information is available upon request. (The preferred written information is the United States Food and Drug Administration’s model consumer advisory brochure available from the Allegheny County Health Department.)
Brochure: The reminder can be made available in the form of a brochure that is separate from the menu; however, the disclosure must still be on the menu.
Placard: The reminder may also be provided to the public on a placard, table tent, or other written means using the reminder statements listed above; however, the disclosure must still be on the menu.