🍗 Core temperatures: heating poultry & meat safely
Surface heat isn’t enough. What core temperature and holding time actually make food safe.
EU law mandates HACCP + an unbroken cold chain but leaves the exact figures to national rules — confirm your country's number.
Insufficient heating is one of the most frequently flagged problems in inspections. Poultry is the classic risk — it can carry Salmonella and Campylobacter — but minced and mechanically processed meat is critical too, because bacteria can be spread all the way through the product, not just on the surface.
The well-established standard
A core temperature of at least 70°C held for two minutes reliably reduces the relevant pathogens — or an equivalent time–temperature combination (higher temperature, shorter time). MiniAgent uses a 3-minute hold in its guidance to leave a safety margin.
Whole cuts are the exception
For whole muscle cuts of beef — a steak or a roast — bacteria sit mainly on the surface and are killed by searing all sides. That is why a rare steak can be safe while rare chicken never is.
The common practical failures: measuring at the surface instead of the core, checking only sometimes, or not writing the value down. The point isn’t to overcook everything — it’s controlled heating, measured at the core.
Based on EU/DK food-hygiene practice (Reg. 852/2004). The US FDA Food Code uses different figures.