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Public Health
Seattle & King County
401 5th Ave., Suite 1300
Seattle, WA 98104

Phone: 206-296-4600
TTY Relay: 711

Toll-free: 800-325-6165

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Food Protection Program
Environmental Health Division
401 - 5th Avenue, Suite 1100 [MAP]
Seattle, Washington 98104-2333
Phone:
206-296-4632


Public Health - Seattle & King County's Food Protection Program aims to promote healthy people and healthy communities through education and regulation of food service establishments.

In Seattle and King County, there are nearly 10,000 "permitted" permanent food establishments, including restaurants, food and espresso carts, coffee shops, delis and the fresh food sections of grocery stores. Each of these establishments has owners, managers and employees who have passed a test on handling food safely and received a food worker card. In addition, Health and Environmental Investigators inspect establishments several times each year and, if requested, offer an educational session for staff.

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Questions about the Food Protection Program

Learn about Public Health's Food Protection Program, inspection of food establishments, safe food handling, and much more.

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Inspection reporting system

Learn about Public Health's Restaurant Inspection Reporting System, search the inspection records of King County food establishments, learn about safe food handling practices as well as when and why Public Health closes food establishment.

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Food worker permit and class schedule

Find out how to obtain a Food Worker's Permit and where to go for training testing. The online study guide is available in English, Chinese, Filipino, Korean, Russian, Spanish and Vietnamese.

eating utensils How to start a food business in King County

Information and local contacts for starting and maintaining a food business including catering, mobile food carts, food worker's card, meat wrapper's permit process, food service establishment plan guide and fee table, applications for permanent and temporary food service, and more.

Washing hands with warm water and soap for at least 20 seconds to kill germs Food Safety streaming videos

New videos you can watch from your computer on no-bare-contact and "Food Safety Basics for Working Healthy" to help prepare you for passing the exam to get your Food Worker Card.

What not to do:  Barehand contact with ready-to-eat food Food safety fact sheets

Explanations of common food borne diseases as well as information and fact sheets on what you can do to protect yourself and your family at home.

Sell by date on product:  Learn how the dates are set and what they mean to you
Myths and misunderstandings about food safety

Did you know that bad smell, bad taste and slime are signs that the food has lost its quality, but not that it has the germs to cause foodborne illness? Learn more about common myths about food safety.

searching the web for food inspection histories External food safety links
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Recently questions have been raised about the safety of diacetyl, a butter flavor substitute commonly found in cooking oils. Please see the following to find out more:


King County Board of Health Code
Includes the Food Codes for food establishments, food workers, meat cutters, and other related programs.

Trans fat and nutrition labeling for chain restaurants

A trans fat regulation by the King County Board of Health requires all establishments with a food permit from Public Health – Seattle & King County to remove artificial trans fat from their cooking process.

A menu labeling regulation requires chain restaurants to label calorie, saturated fat, sodium and carbohydrate information on menus and menu boards.