Free Dubai PIC Exam Flashcards

1) Conduct a hazard analysis, 2) Determine critical control points (CCPs), 3) Establish critical limits, 4) Establish monitoring procedures, 5) Establish corrective actions, 6) Establish verification procedures, 7) Establish documentation and record-keeping. Skipping any principle leaves a gap in the food safety management system.

A step in the food process where control can be applied and is essential to prevent, eliminate, or reduce a food safety hazard to an acceptable level - for example, the cooking step for raw chicken. Losing control at a CCP creates unacceptable risk, unlike a general good-practice step.

A PRP is a foundational hygiene practice - such as a cleaning schedule, pest control contract, or staff training - that supports food safety generally. A CCP is an essential control step that targets one specific identified hazard. PRPs make the HACCP plan workable; CCPs are its critical safeguards.

The maximum or minimum value - such as a temperature, time, or pH - that must be met at a CCP to keep a hazard under control. Cooking chicken below the required 75°C, for example, means the critical limit has been breached and the food is unsafe until corrective action is taken.

Monitoring is the real-time, routine check of a CCP, such as taking a probe temperature during cooking (Principle 4). Verification is a later check confirming the whole system is working as designed, such as auditing temperature logs or calibrating thermometers (Principle 6).

Continue cooking until the core reaches the required temperature (or a validated time-temperature equivalent), then record the corrective action taken. The food must not be served or hot-held until the critical limit is actually met.

The predefined step taken immediately when monitoring shows a critical limit has been breached - for example, discarding food, extending cooking time, or repairing faulty equipment. Corrective actions must be documented under HACCP Principle 5.

Biological (bacteria, viruses, parasites), chemical (cleaning agents, pesticide residues), physical (glass, metal, bone fragments), and allergenic (proteins that trigger allergic reactions). Missing any one category leaves the hazard analysis incomplete.

Food, Acidity, Time, Temperature, Oxygen, Moisture - the six conditions bacteria need to grow. Controlling even one factor, such as keeping food out of the temperature danger zone, can prevent dangerous bacterial growth.

Records - temperature logs, cleaning schedules, training records - are the evidence a PIC uses to demonstrate active managerial control during a Dubai Municipality inspection. Verbal assurance that a control was followed is not accepted as proof; documentation is Principle 7.

To identify every biological, chemical, physical, and allergenic hazard reasonably likely to occur at each step of the food process, so the business knows which steps genuinely need control measures. It is the foundation the rest of the HACCP plan is built on.

At least once a year, and also whenever a significant change is made to the product, process or any step, or after a justified food complaint or a food-related incident (Dubai Food Code 3.1.3.1). A plan that ignores a new high-risk ingredient or supplier no longer reflects the real hazards in the kitchen.

A step needs a CCP if a significant hazard is reasonably likely to occur there and no later step will control it. If a later step - such as cooking - will eliminate the hazard, the earlier step usually does not need a separate CCP of its own.

By periodically calibrating thermometers against a known reference, auditing temperature logs for recurring problems, and confirming that recorded corrective actions were actually completed - verification checks the whole system, not just today's single reading.

The hazard analysis must be redone for the new product and supplier before it is used, to identify any new biological, chemical, physical, or allergenic hazards it introduces and to update critical limits or CCPs as needed.

5°C to 60°C - the range in which most food-poisoning bacteria multiply fastest. High-risk food must be kept below 5°C or above 60°C, and any time it spends within this range must be minimized.

A core temperature of at least 75°C, or a time and temperature that gives an equivalent pathogen reduction. The cook checks it with a calibrated thermometer at the slowest-heating point, normally the core, and records the reading.

Only as an equivalent: food can be cooked to a time and temperature that gives the same pathogen reduction as a 75°C core, taking the nature of the product into account. The Code lists no table of equivalents, so the 75°C core is the figure to know.

It must exceed 75°C, reached within 1 hour of starting the reheat, to destroy any bacteria that grew during cooling or storage. Reheating should happen only once - food should never be re-cooled and reheated a second time. Food reheated once for immediate service may be served at any temperature, provided it spends no more than 2 hours between 5°C and 60°C (Dubai Food Code 3.2.14).

60°C or above. Below this, the food is back in the temperature danger zone and bacteria can begin multiplying again, even though the food was cooked correctly earlier.

Cool from 60°C to 20°C within 2 hours, then from 19°C to 5°C or less within a further 4 hours - 6 hours total. If cooling stalls past these windows, the food has spent too long in the danger zone and should be discarded, not carried through to the next stage.

Reject the delivery and record the rejection. Accepting stock that has already broken the cold chain before it even reaches storage risks accepting unsafe food.

-18°C or below. This halts bacterial growth rather than merely slowing it, which is why frozen storage is used for long-term holding while chilled storage is used for short-term, active-use stock.

Raw meat, poultry and fish thaw under refrigeration with air at 10°C or less, or under cold running water, as long as the food stays at or below 5°C. If not cooked straight away, it is stored below 5°C and cooked within 72 hours of the start of thawing.

Within 48 hours from the start of thawing, with the warmest part of the food kept at or below 5°C (Dubai Food Code 3.2.7 a). Thawed food does not carry the same shelf life it had while frozen.

They must be excluded from all food handling duties until at least 48 hours after symptoms have completely stopped, because they can still shed infectious organisms, such as norovirus, after they start to feel better.

A brightly coloured, waterproof dressing that can be spotted easily if it falls into food. A food handler with an open infected cut or wound must not handle food or touch food-contact surfaces, utensils or equipment.

Rings, bracelets, and watches can harbour bacteria in crevices, can physically fall into food, and can catch on equipment. Where local rules permit an exception, it is usually limited to a plain wedding band.

Nails must be kept short, clean, and unpolished with no false nails, and hands must be washed with soap and warm water at key points - before handling food, after using the toilet, and after touching raw food or waste.

Between handling raw food and ready-to-eat food, whenever gloves become torn or contaminated, and at regular intervals during a task. Gloves are not a substitute for hand washing and can spread bacteria just as bare hands can if reused across tasks.

Sanitiser reduces bacteria but does not physically remove dirt, grease, or organic material the way washing with soap and water does, and it is not reliably effective against some pathogens such as norovirus. It supplements hand washing rather than replacing it.

Norovirus - a highly contagious virus causing vomiting and diarrhoea that spreads via contaminated hands, surfaces, and food. It is a key reason behind the 48-hour symptom-free exclusion rule.

It must be kept clean, washed at least once a day (or sooner if it becomes soiled or sticky), and worn only within the food preparation area. Walking outside the kitchen in food-prep whites - to a bin area or the street, for example - can bring contamination back into food areas.

The PIC is accountable for implementing, monitoring, and maintaining the establishment's food safety management system every day - not for personally performing every task, but for ensuring the system is actually followed.

Standard PIC Certification covers standard-risk food businesses. Advanced PIC Certification is required for high-risk or specialised operations and adds a dedicated HACCP module on top of the core PIC content.

5 years from the date of issuance, unless the certification is withdrawn because of the poor food safety performance of the food establishment (Dubai Municipality guideline DM-FSD-GU64).

The PIC must be able to demonstrate - through records, direct explanation, and observed practice - that food safety controls such as temperature checks, cleaning, and staff training are actually being carried out, not just that a written policy exists.

Dubai Municipality's digital food safety systems. Its PIC guidance names Foodwatch for registration, records and food safety checks; DMChecked is its app for self-assessment, training and real-time notifications, part of the FoodDXB.AI system. Dubai Municipality describes daily monitoring of school canteens through the DM Checked platform, and Highfield, a PIC certification body, says all food establishments must be registered on DMChecked as Dubai Municipality requires.

The PIC must be able to trace ingredients one step back to the supplier and one step forward to where the food was sent or served, so that if a safety issue is found, the affected product can be located and recalled quickly.

Cleaning removes visible dirt and grease using detergent and hot water. Disinfecting reduces bacteria to a safe level using a chemical or heat treatment. A surface must be cleaned before it is disinfected - disinfectant cannot work reliably through grime.

It is the length of time a disinfectant must stay wet on a surface, as stated by the manufacturer, to actually kill bacteria. Wiping it off too soon leaves the surface looking clean but still contaminated.

Cleaning spills, utensils, and surfaces continuously throughout service, rather than leaving all cleaning until the end of the day. This prevents cross-contamination and pest-attracting mess from building up during service.

In a separate, clearly labelled, secure storage area away from food, food-contact surfaces, and food preparation areas, to prevent accidental chemical contamination of food.

A use-by date is a safety deadline - the food must be discarded after it passes, even if it looks and smells fine. A best-before date is a quality indicator only; food may still be safe to eat after that date, just not at its peak quality.

Potable, drinking-quality water only. Using non-potable water for food, ice-making, or cleaning food-contact surfaces is a direct violation of the Dubai Food Code.

Smooth, impervious, and easily cleanable materials, such as stainless steel. Porous or damaged surfaces trap food debris and bacteria and cannot be reliably disinfected.

Allergen proteins are not destroyed by heat the way most bacteria are, so even fully cooked food can trigger a severe allergic reaction if it contains, or was cross-contacted with, an allergen. Unlike bacterial cross-contamination, cooking does not neutralize this hazard.

Raw meat must be stored below ready-to-eat food, typically on the bottom shelves, so that any drips or juices cannot fall onto food that will not be cooked again before it is eaten.

Droppings, gnaw marks on packaging or structures, and grease smears along walls or skirting boards where rodents repeatedly travel. Any of these signs should trigger an immediate investigation.

Stop using that area, isolate and protect any unaffected food, and contact a licensed pest control contractor. Attempting DIY chemical treatment near food is not an acceptable substitute for a licensed pest management programme.