South Carolina § 44-1-145 - Minimum cooking temperature for ground beef; exceptions.

§ 44-1-145. Minimum cooking temperature for ground beef; exceptions.

(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, ground beef or any food containing ground beef prepared by a food service provider for public consumption must be cooked to heat all parts of the food to at least one hundred fifty-five degrees Fahrenheit (sixty-eight degrees Celsius), unless otherwise ordered by the immediate consumer.

(B) The food service provider, its business or its employees or agents, are not liable for any adverse affects to the purchaser or anyone else for providing a ground beef product cooked at an internal temperature less than one hundred fifty-five degrees Fahrenheit (sixty-eight degrees Celsius), if providing the product is at the request of the purchaser and if the food service provider has notified the purchaser in advance that a possible health risk may exist by eating the product. The notice must state that a possible health risk may exist in eating undercooked ground beef at an internal temperature less than one hundred fifty-five degrees Fahrenheit (sixty-eight degrees Celsius), and be given to the purchaser:

(1) in writing;

(2) as stated on the menu; or

(3) by visible sign warning.

(C) In order for an immediate consumer or purchaser, as used in this section, to request or order ground beef to be cooked to a temperature less than one hundred fifty-five degrees Fahrenheit (sixty-eight degrees Celsius), the individual must be eighteen years of age or older.

HISTORY: 2006 Act No. 338, SECTION 1, eff June 8, 2006.