Heat kills most disease-causing bacteria. But the food must be hot enough, and it must be kept hot or cooled down in time. The rules are in the Hygiene Executive Order and in sections 26 and 27 of the Hygiene Guidance.
Heating and reheating
Food must be heat-treated so that it is safe. This also applies when you reheat dishes that were made in advance.
- If the food is heated all the way through to at least 75 °C, the business does not need to document that the method is safe.
- If the business goes below 75 °C, it must be able to document that the lower temperature is not a health hazard.
- Dishes with raw egg must as a main rule be heated to at least 75 °C. If the eggs are pasteurised, the temperature can be lower.
- Fish only needs a core temperature of 60 °C for at least one minute.
Measure with a probe thermometer in the middle of the food, where it is coldest. Never go by colour alone.
There are exceptions. One example is minced-meat burgers, where the guest is clearly told that the meat is not cooked through and that this carries a greater risk. It is the business's responsibility to have such exceptions under control. Ask your manager before you change a method.
Hot holding
When you keep food hot, for example on a hot counter, the temperature must be a constant minimum of 56 °C throughout the food (Hygiene Executive Order § 29 and Hygiene Guidance section 27.3). Then the business does not need to document the method. There is no time limit on hot holding.
The requirement used to be 65 °C. It has been changed to 56 °C: in the Hygiene Guidance from July 2025 and in the Hygiene Executive Order (no. 1331 of 2025), which applies from 1 January 2026. If you have an old note at work that says 65 °C, ask your manager whether the business's own-checks have been updated. The business can still choose a higher limit in its own rules.
Food that has been heated to 75 °C does not need to be cooled down if it is kept hot at 56 °C or above.
Cooling
If hot food is to be served or stored cold, it must be cooled down quickly. Otherwise bacteria can grow while the food is lukewarm.
- Fødevarestyrelsen recommends that the temperature falls from 56 °C to 10 °C in at most four hours. This is a guiding rule of thumb, not a fixed limit in the law.
- You can help the cooling by dividing large amounts into several small, shallow containers. A large, hot pot cools slowly.
- The business can use a different combination of time and temperature. It must then be able to document that the method is safe. The agency's digital tool Sikre fødevarer (Safe Food) can help with the calculation.
The rule of thumb used to be 65 °C to 10 °C. It is now 56 °C.
Thawing and leftovers
When you thaw food, it must be kept somewhere it does not contaminate anything else, for example in a fridge. Drips from meat must not hit other products. Leftovers that are to be used again must be handled according to the business's rules: either they are cooled down quickly, or they are heated through. If you are in doubt, ask before you use them. Leftovers that have stood out for a long time must be thrown away.
Critical control points
Heating and cooling are typical critical control points. This means there are fixed limits and fixed checks. The business must always document its critical control points. You need to know:
- which temperature applies
- how and when you measure
- what you do if the limit is not reached
Remember
- Heating to at least 75 °C is the safe standard.
- Hot holding: a constant minimum of 56 °C, no time limit.
- Cooling: from 56 °C to 10 °C in at most four hours.