Walk-In Cooler Organization: A Chart and the Rules Behind It

A walk-in cooler is organized from top to bottom by risk: ready-to-eat and cooked food on the top shelves, then raw foods in order of the temperature they have to be cooked to, with raw poultry on the bottom, so nothing that drips can drip onto something that won't be cooked again. That order comes from the FDA Food Code, which asks that raw animal foods be kept apart from ready-to-eat food and unwashed produce, that different kinds of raw animal food be kept apart from each other, and explains the separation by cooking temperature: fish and pork, cooked to 145°F, go above or away from raw poultry, cooked to 165°F (FDA Food Code 2022, 3-302.11 and Annex 3). Add covered, labeled containers, a separate place for anything on hold, and oldest-first on every shelf, and the walk-in works. Below is the chart, the rules behind it, a maker's walk-in mapped out, and what to label.

The short version

• Top to bottom: ready-to-eat and cooked, then raw foods by cooking temperature, raw poultry at the bottom.
• Keep raw animal foods apart from ready-to-eat food and unwashed produce.
• Keep different raw animal foods apart from each other, by shelf or container.
• Cover everything, and label containers with what's in them and the date.
• Keep damaged, spoiled or recalled stock in its own marked place, apart from food.
• Oldest at the front of every shelf.
• TaroStack keeps held stock out of use, dates every lot and sends the oldest out first. More below.

The chart

The cooking temperatures come from the Food Code's cooking rules, and its explanation of the storage rule names the succession of cooking temperatures as the basis for the separation (FDA Food Code 2022, Annex 3). Raw foods with the same cooking temperature, like pork and fish, are still kept apart from each other, in separate containers or with space between.

The rules behind it

The Food Code is a model: state, local, tribal and territorial agencies adopt it for retail food and food service, often with changes of their own, so your health department's version is the one that applies to you (FDA). A food manufacturer registered with FDA works under FDA's manufacturing rules instead, which ask that raw materials be stored so they're protected against allergen cross-contact and contamination (21 CFR 117.80). Either way, ask your inspector what they expect to see.

All five are from the FDA Food Code 2022 (FDA). This is general information, not legal advice.

A maker's walk-in, mapped

Windward Roots, the made-up taro business I use in these examples, keeps finished products, cooked fillings and raw ingredients in one walk-in:

Every container carries what's in it and a date, and every product a lot code; how to choose between day dots and dated lot labels is in day dot labels. Oldest goes in front on every shelf, which for a maker means first expired, not first in; the difference is in FEFO vs FIFO. The marked shelf is the walk-in's version of a hold, and how a hold is placed and released is in hold and release procedure.

Where this stops working

A well-organized walk-in still runs on memory. Nobody can see from the door that the coconut milk on the hold shelf is waiting for a reply, that the pork in front expires before the pork behind it, or that the kūlolo on the top shelf is the lot a customer asked about this morning. And the count of what's in the walk-in is done with cold hands and a clipboard once a month.

How TaroStack does it

TaroStack keeps what's in the walk-in on record, lot by lot, as it moves.

Holds that hold. A lot can be put on hold or into quarantine in one step, and it's kept out of what's available to sell, pick or use in a batch until it's released, so the dented case on the marked shelf can't end up in Tuesday's kūlolo. A delivery can be received straight into quarantine.

Every lot dated, oldest out first. Every lot carries its dates, and batches and orders take stock first-expired-first-out by default, whatever shelf it's on. Lot labels print with the code and dates and a GS1-128 barcode. Lots close to their date show in your alerts.

And a count in the cold. Counting works on a phone with no signal, inside the walk-in, sends itself later, and shows what each difference is worth before you post it. Every movement is a permanent record of who, when and why.

Lots and expiry, holds and quarantine, first-expired-first-out, lot labels and counting are on every plan, from $49 a month. The first 30 days are free, with no credit card. If you'd like a hand setting up, ask, and we'll do it with you.

Questions people also ask

What is the correct storage order in a walk-in cooler?

Top to bottom: ready-to-eat and cooked foods, then raw fish and whole cuts of meat, then ground meats, then raw poultry at the bottom, following the temperatures each must be cooked to.

Why is raw chicken stored on the bottom shelf?

Raw poultry has the highest cooking temperature, 165°F, because of its higher expected microbial load, so it goes below foods cooked to lower temperatures and below anything ready to eat.

Where should damaged or recalled food go in a walk-in?

In a separate, marked area, apart from food and equipment, until it's returned, credited or destroyed. The FDA Food Code asks for a designated area for damaged, spoiled or recalled products.

Do containers in a walk-in need labels?

Yes. Working containers of food taken out of their original packaging should be labeled with the food's common name, and a date makes oldest-first possible.