{"id":1596,"date":"2026-08-20T10:17:07","date_gmt":"2026-08-20T14:17:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/hampton-peninsula\/?page_id=1596"},"modified":"2026-08-20T10:17:07","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T14:17:07","slug":"what-to-expect-from-a-food-inspection","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/hampton-peninsula\/what-to-expect-from-a-food-inspection\/","title":{"rendered":"What to Expect from a Food Inspection"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>What to Expect From a Food Inspection<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>During the inspection, the EHS evaluates the manager\u2019s control over food-borne illness risk factors including food preparation, temperature of food during cooking, holding and storage, food handling practices and employee health and hygiene.<\/li>\n<li>The EHS also evaluates good retail practices including the condition of equipment and the physical facilities.<\/li>\n<li>The EHS then formulates corrective plans and implements interventions in non-compliance situations through education and enforcement.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Frequently Asked Questions About Inspections<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>How often are food service establishments inspected?<\/strong><br \/>\nFood establishments are inspected using a risk-based inspection system. Based on the complexity of the food preparation and the history of compliance, an establishment may be routinely inspected from one to three times per 12 month period. Other inspections may be conducted as needed.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Are the inspections announced (scheduled<\/strong>)?<br \/>\nVirtually all inspections (except for pre-opening inspections and training) are conducted on an unannounced basis.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What is a critical violation?<\/strong><br \/>\nA \u201ccritical item\u201d means a provision of the Code, that, if in non-compliance, is more likely than other violations to contribute to food contamination, illness, or environmental health hazard.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Are there different types of food inspections?<\/strong><br \/>\nYes, there are several types of food inspections. Please see this\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/hampton-peninsula\/food-safety-inspection-types\/\">list of food inspection types\u00a0<\/a>to learn more.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Enforcement Actions<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The Health Department imposes the following types of enforcement actions:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Suspension of Permit to Operate for Imminent Health Hazard:<\/strong>\u00a0The permit is suspended and a directive is given to cease and desist using unsafe portions of the facility or the entire facility to ensure public health. A hearing is not required to suspend a permit, but the opportunity must be given for a hearing after the suspension is in effect. Grounds for closure due to imminent public health risks may include but are not limited to:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>No water<\/li>\n<li>Sewage backups or overflows<\/li>\n<li>No utilities<\/li>\n<li>Fire<\/li>\n<li>Pest infestation<\/li>\n<li>Contaminated food<\/li>\n<li>Foodborne illness outbreak<\/li>\n<li>Inadequate refrigeration<\/li>\n<li>Flood<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Revocation of Permit to Operate:<\/strong>\u00a0Food establishment permits may be revoked due to serious or repeated violations of any of the requirements of the\u00a0<em><a href=\"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/admincode\/title12\/agency5\/chapter421\/\">Virginia Food Regulations<\/a><\/em>. Prior to revocation of the permit, the permit holder\u00a0<em>will<\/em>\u00a0be afforded an opportunity to appeal the Health Department\u2019s decision. Whenever a revocation has become final, the holder of the revoked permit may submit an application for a new permit. However, prior to the issuance of a new permit the food establishment must meet all applicable provisions of the\u00a0\u00a0<em><a href=\"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/admincode\/title12\/agency5\/chapter421\/\">Virginia Food Regulations.\u00a0<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What to Expect From a Food Inspection During the inspection, the EHS evaluates the manager\u2019s control over food-borne illness risk factors including food preparation, temperature of food during cooking, holding and storage, food handling practices and employee health and hygiene. The EHS also evaluates good retail practices including the condition of equipment and the physical [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":339,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1596","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>What to Expect from a Food Inspection - Hampton &amp; Peninsula Health Districts<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/hampton-peninsula\/what-to-expect-from-a-food-inspection\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What to Expect from a Food Inspection - Hampton &amp; Peninsula Health Districts\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"What to Expect From a Food Inspection During the inspection, the EHS evaluates the manager\u2019s control over food-borne illness risk factors including food preparation, temperature of food during cooking, holding and storage, food handling practices and employee health and hygiene. 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