What is the primary concern with bare-hand contact with food?

Transfer of pathogens from hands to food

Physical contamination from fingernails

Food becoming too warm from body heat

Chemical contamination from hand lotion

How should food handlers work with ready-to-eat foods?

Use utensils, deli paper, or gloves

Quick bare-hand handling is allowed

Clean bare hands only, washed first

Hands rubbed with sanitizer only

Which of the following is NOT allowed when wearing gloves in food service?

Washing and reusing disposable gloves

Washing hands before putting on new gloves

When should food handlers change their gloves?

When switching tasks or if they become torn

Only at the end of the shift or break

Every 4 hours, no matter the task

Only when they look dirty to you

Concept · under Hygiene and sick workers

Gloves and bare hands around ready-to-eat food

Food that won't be cooked again never touches bare hands. FDA Food Code 2022, section 3-301.11, names the alternatives: tongs, spatulas, deli tissue, single-use gloves or dispensing equipment. A single-use glove then covers one task and goes in the trash.

ExamPFH
Questions here7
UpdatedOct 14, 2026

On this page 6 sections

What counts as ready-to-eat
Four ways to keep hands off RTE food
Where the rule bends
Test your glove calls
One pair, one job
From the glove box

What counts as ready-to-eat

Ready-to-eat (RTE) food is anything that reaches the guest with no cook step after you handle it. On a real shift the list is longer than it sounds: the lettuce and onion on a burger, a lime wedge on a glass, toast on its way out, ice for a soda, a cookie from the case, cooked chicken going into a cold wrap.

A wash lowers what's on your skin. It doesn't take it to zero, and RTE food has no heat left to finish the job. That's why the hygiene rules under personal hygiene and sick workers pair the handwash with a barrier whenever food is ready to eat.

Four ways to keep hands off RTE food

The options in Food Code 3-301.11(B), and where each one fits on a line
Tool	Fits jobs like	Keep in mind
Tongs and spatulas	Fries into the basket, pastries from the case, burger toppings	Between uses they rest in the food with the handle up, or on a surface that's cleaned on schedule
Deli tissue	Bagels, muffins, a slice of pie	One sheet, one pick-up
Single-use gloves	Building sandwiches, plating salads, cutting fruit	One task per pair, put on over washed hands
Scoops and dispensers	Ice, cereal, candy bins	The handle stays out of the product

Where the rule bends

Washing produce: 3-301.11(B) carves out washing raw fruits and vegetables. Once they're cut for a salad or a garnish tray, they're RTE and the rule is back on.
RTE going into a cooked dish: Chopped herbs folded into raw meatball mix, or cheese scattered on a pizza that goes in the oven, can be handled bare-handed if the finished dish is cooked to its required temperature (3-301.11(D)).
An approved bare-hand plan: A kitchen can get prior approval from its health department for a written bare-hand procedure (3-301.11(E)). Never where the guests are a highly susceptible population (HSP), such as a nursing home or child care center.
Slash-resistant gloves: Only for food that gets cooked afterward, unless a smooth, nonabsorbent glove or a single-use glove goes over them (3-304.15(B), (C)).
Cloth gloves: Only on food that gets cooked later, such as frozen product or a primal cut of meat (3-304.15(D)).

Test your glove calls

Bare hands, glove changes, and the order of hands and gloves.

Each question is a chit, an order ticket. Answer it and it flips to show why every option is right or wrong.

0 right · 0 missed · 7 to go

No. 01
What is the primary concern with bare-hand contact with food?
Pick one. The chit flips to a note on every option.
Notes on No. 01
1. A
  Physical contamination from fingernails Fingernails can break off into food, but the bigger, invisible risk from bare hands is germs.
2. B
  Transfer of pathogens from hands to food Correct: Hands carry Norovirus, Hepatitis A, and Staph even after washing, and ready-to-eat food gets no cooking step to kill them, so bare-hand contact is not allowed.
3. C
  Food becoming too warm from body heat A few seconds of handling doesn't warm food enough to matter.
4. D
  Chemical contamination from hand lotion Lotion residue is a minor issue; germs are the reason bare-hand contact is restricted.
More notes below ↓
No. 02
How should food handlers work with ready-to-eat foods?
Pick one. The chit flips to a note on every option.
Notes on No. 02
1. A
  Use utensils, deli paper, or gloves Correct: The Food Code bans bare-hand contact with ready-to-eat food, so you use tongs, deli paper, or single-use gloves instead.
2. B
  Quick bare-hand handling is allowed Even a quick touch can leave germs on food that won't be cooked again.
3. C
  Clean bare hands only, washed first Washing lowers the germ count but doesn't remove every germ, so clean hands still don't touch ready-to-eat food.
4. D
  Hands rubbed with sanitizer only Hand sanitizer is not a substitute for washing and doesn't make bare-hand contact acceptable.
More notes below ↓
No. 03
Which of the following is NOT allowed when wearing gloves in food service?
Pick one. The chit flips to a note on every option.
Notes on No. 03
1. A
  Changing gloves between tasks Changing gloves between tasks is required, not banned.
2. B
  Washing and reusing disposable gloves Correct: Single-use gloves are worn for one task and thrown away; washing them doesn't clean them and can damage them.
3. C
  Disposing of gloves after use Throwing gloves away after use is exactly what single-use means.
4. D
  Washing hands before putting on new gloves Washing hands before putting on gloves is required.
More notes below ↓
No. 04
When should food handlers change their gloves?
Pick one. The chit flips to a note on every option.
Notes on No. 04
1. A
  Only at the end of the shift or break A whole shift in one pair carries germs from task to task.
2. B
  Every 4 hours, no matter the task Some kitchens cap one long task at 4 hours, but the clock doesn't replace changing gloves at every new task or tear.
3. C
  Only when they look dirty to you Gloves can carry germs long before they look dirty.
4. D
  When switching tasks or if they become torn Correct: Gloves are single-use, so change them when you start a new task, after handling raw meat, after an interruption, and right away if they tear or get soiled.
More notes below ↓
No. 05
What is the proper way to remove used gloves?
Pick one. The chit flips to a note on every option.
Notes on No. 05
1. A
  Remove one finger at a time Pulling one finger at a time puts your bare fingers on the dirty outside.
2. B
  Pull from wrist inside out Correct: Peeling from the wrist so the glove turns inside out traps the dirty surface inside; then wash your hands.
3. C
  Cut them off Cutting gloves off risks injury and is not how gloves are removed.
4. D
  Pull from fingertips Pulling from the fingertips snaps the glove and can flick contamination onto you or the food.
More notes below ↓
No. 06
What should food handlers do when moving between raw vegetable preparation and ready-to-eat food handling?
Pick one. The chit flips to a note on every option.
Notes on No. 06
1. A
  Continue with same gloves Gloves used on raw produce can carry soil and germs onto ready-to-eat food.
2. B
  Wash hands and change gloves Correct: Moving to ready-to-eat food is a new task, so take the gloves off, wash your hands, and put on a fresh pair.
3. C
  Only wash hands Clean hands still can't touch ready-to-eat food, so a fresh pair of gloves goes on after washing.
4. D
  Just change gloves New gloves over unwashed hands pick up whatever was on your skin.
More notes below ↓
No. 07
What should food handlers do before putting on a new pair of gloves?
Pick one. The chit flips to a note on every option.
Notes on No. 07
1. A
  Wash and thoroughly dry hands Correct: Hands are washed before putting on gloves, and drying them well makes the gloves go on easily and keeps the inside from staying damp.
2. B
  Remove jewelry Only a plain band is allowed on the hands anyway, and taking off jewelry doesn't clean them.
3. C
  Check the new pair for tears Checking the new pair is reasonable, but skipping the handwash puts germs inside it.
4. D
  Use hand sanitizer instead Hand sanitizer doesn't replace handwashing before gloving.
More notes below ↓

One pair, one job

The code ties a pair of single-use gloves to one task, such as working with RTE food or with raw animal food, and tells you to throw them out when they're damaged, soiled, or when the work gets interrupted (3-304.15(A)). The food truck window is where this slips: card, cash, wipe, then a burrito fold, all in the same pair.

Hands get the full 20-second handwash before every new pair. A glove that handled raw chicken spreads it as surely as a hand would, which is cross-contamination in its plainest form, and the same logic covers allergens under contamination and allergens.

From the glove box

I have a cut on my finger. Can I still work with food?

Cover it with something waterproof, like a finger cot, and wear a single-use glove over that. An infected wound or a boil with pus is also something you report to the person in charge under FDA Food Code 2022, section 2-201.11.

Do bartenders need tongs for the lime wedges?

Garnish is RTE food, so yes: tongs, a pick or a gloved hand. The same goes for ice, which gets a scoop.

Is "no bare-hand contact" a state law or a Food Code rule?

It's a Food Code rule, section 3-301.11 of the FDA Food Code 2022. States write the Food Code into their own food rules, each picking its edition and sometimes changing details. Your local health department can say exactly what applies in your kitchen.