Fruit and Custard Desserts

Definition:

  • Custard dessert: Custard is a based on a cooking a mixture of milk or cream and egg yolk. Depending on how much egg or thickener is used, custard may vary in consistency from a thin pouring sauce to a thick pastry cream used to fill pastries. The most common custards are used as desserts or dessert sauces and typically include sugar and vanilla.
  • Fruit dessert: A dessert such as a pastry, pie, or other baked product containing fresh cut or cooked fruit.

Food Safety:
Fruit: Rinse all fruits before eating. This recommendation also applies to produce with rinds or skins that are not eaten. Rinse produce just before preparing or eating to avoid premature spoilage.

  1. Clean all surfaces and utensils with soap and hot water, including cutting boards, peelers, counter tops, and knives that will touch fresh produce.
  2. Wash hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds before and after handling fresh fruit.
  3. Rinse fresh fruits, including those with skins and rinds that are not eaten, under clean running water and avoid using detergents or bleach.
  4. Dry fruit on a clean paper towel and prepare, cook, or eat.

Custard: The use of eggs in custard dishes make it a potentially hazardous food if it is not processed properly to kill harmful Salmonella. Low temperatures are often required to cook custard without curdling the dairy products. Because of these low cooking temperatures, harmful pathogens may survive and thrive in the custard dish. Raw eggs have been implicated with countless outbreaks of foodborne illness caused by Salmonella. As a safe alternative, use pasteurized eggs in your recipe or fully cook the custard to kill harmful pathogens. Once prepared, keep custard refrigerated to prevent the potential growth of bacteria.

You are required to wash hands after handling shell eggs before handling other foods or equipment.

Always properly store leftover dessert covered and in the refrigerator to reduce the potential for harmful microorganisms to grow.

Good Handling Practices (GHP): The use of raw eggs in this product may become a potential hazard to the health of those who consume the product, if not prepared and stored properly. The manufacturer must adhere to the highest standards of cleanliness and product protection by using Good Manufacturing Practices.

Distribution Method (Expand All | Collapse All)

You are selling your product at a farmers’ market, CSA, roadside stand, or other direct to consumer outlet

Licensing:

Selling a fruit or custard dessert that you have produced

  • If you are selling a fruit or custard dessert that you have produced using products you have grown, you will need a Retail Food Establishment License,  issued by your county health department. You may also need additional licensing and your processing facility may require inspection from your county health department. If you sell at farmers’ markets or other direct to consumer outlets in different counties, you should check with the health department in each county where you sell your product direct to consumers. Although not mandatory at this time, you may also register your processing facility with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
  • If you are selling fruit or custard desserts you have produced using unprocessed farm products you purchased from another Colorado producer or from a wholesaler, you will also need a Farm Product Dealers License. Unprocessed farm products do not include flour, oats, or eggs but would include raw fruits and vegetables, milk and raw honey. For more information on what is considered an unprocessed farm product, consult General Licensing Requirements.

Selling a fruit or custard dessert produced by someone else

  • You must purchase from a licensed wholesaler.

Labeling: If you are selling wrapped fruit or custard desserts you will need to follow the general labeling requirements. If you are selling unwrapped custard desserts no label is required. If you buy individual packages in bulk, many do not have labeling on the package (may even be labeled “not for individual sale”) or the labeling is on the bulk box.  You will want to have the labeling information on hand so you can answer customer questions (source, allergens, ingredients, etc.).

Sales Tax Liability: General sales tax information.

Weights and Measures: If you choose to sell your product by weight, you must follow the Colorado weights and measures requirements. More often, these products are sold by count and therefore do not fall under regulations in this category.

You are selling your product to a store, restaurant, food cart, K-12 school, university, hospital, or other retail food establishment

Licensing:
  • If you are selling a fruit or custard dessert that you have produced using products you have grown, you must first register with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) as a wholesale food manufacturing facility. Once you have registered your food manufacturing business, you may be inspected by CDPHE.  Some manufacturing processes require specific certification and/or training that must be completed before you can manufacture an acidified food or process seafood products. If you are interested in doing either of these, you should first contact the Division of Environmental Health and Sustainability at (303) 692-3620 for further information and visit their page on wholesale food program information and requirements.
  • If you are selling fruit or custard desserts you have produced using unprocessed farm products you purchased from another Colorado producer or from a wholesaler, you will also need a Farm Product Dealers License. Unprocessed farm products do not include flour, oats, or eggs but would include fruits, vegetables, milk and raw honey.

Note that if you are selling at farmer’s market and as a wholesaler, you will need a to obtain a retail food establishment license and register as a wholesale food manufacturer.

Labeling: General labeling requirements.

Sales Tax Liability: General sales tax information.

Weights and Measures: If you are selling your product by weight, you must follow the Colorado weights and measures requirements. If you are selling your product by some other measure, such as count,  there are no regulations in this category.

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