How should food be stored, and why does temperature control stop food poisoning?
Understanding and demonstrating knowledge of the safe storage of food, including the danger zone, fridge and freezer temperatures, the conditions bacteria need to multiply, and the correct cooking and reheating of food.
An SQA National 5 Practical Cookery answer on safe food storage and temperature control, covering the four conditions bacteria need, the danger zone, fridge and freezer temperatures, storing food correctly, and the safe cooking, cooling and reheating of food.
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What this dot point is asking
The SQA wants you to know how to store food safely and to use temperature control to stop food poisoning: the conditions bacteria need, the danger zone, fridge and freezer temperatures, and the safe cooking, cooling and reheating of food. This is examined in the question paper and demonstrated whenever you store ingredients in a practical.
The conditions bacteria need
Temperature control only makes sense once you know what bacteria need to grow.
Bacteria multiply by splitting in two, and in the right conditions one bacterium can become millions in a few hours, which is why a short delay at the wrong temperature is dangerous.
The danger zone, fridge and freezer
- Fridge: 0 to 5 degrees Celsius. This is too cold for most harmful bacteria to multiply quickly, so chilled food stays safe for longer. Chilling slows bacteria but does not kill them.
- Freezer: minus 18 degrees Celsius or colder. This makes bacteria dormant (inactive) so they cannot multiply at all. Freezing does not kill bacteria; they become active again when the food thaws, which is why thawed food must be treated as fresh and not refrozen raw.
Storing food correctly
How food is arranged in the fridge prevents cross-contamination as well as controlling temperature.
Cooking, cooling and reheating
Temperature control continues right through cooking and after.
- Cooking. Cook food thoroughly so the centre reaches at least 75 degrees Celsius, which kills harmful bacteria. Check that meat juices run clear and there is no pink centre in poultry, burgers and sausages.
- Cooling. Cool leftovers quickly, within about 90 minutes, by dividing food into shallow containers so it passes through the danger zone fast, then refrigerate. Never put hot food straight into a packed fridge, as it warms everything around it.
- Reheating. Reheat food once only, until it is piping hot all the way through (at least 75 degrees Celsius), then serve. Repeated reheating gives bacteria more chances to multiply between heatings.
Common mistakes
Examples in context
Example 1. Cooking chicken in a practical. A candidate checks that the chicken pieces have no pink centre and that the juices run clear before serving, showing the centre has reached a safe temperature.
Example 2. Saving leftovers. After a practical, a candidate divides leftover curry into two shallow tubs to cool quickly, then refrigerates them within 90 minutes rather than leaving the hot pot on the side.
Try this
Q1. What is the correct fridge temperature, and what is the correct freezer temperature? [1 mark]
- Cue. Fridge 0 to 5 degrees Celsius; freezer minus 18 degrees Celsius or colder.
Q2. To what core temperature should food be cooked to kill harmful bacteria? [1 mark]
- Cue. At least 75 degrees Celsius in the centre.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of SQA exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
SQA N5 style4 marksState the four conditions bacteria need to multiply, and explain how chilling food in a fridge controls two of them.Show worked answer →
A 4-mark answer needs the four conditions named (worth up to 2 marks) and an explanation of how the fridge controls two of them (worth up to 2 marks).
The four conditions bacteria need to multiply are food, warmth, moisture and time.
A fridge controls warmth: it keeps food at 0 to 5 degrees Celsius, which is too cold for most harmful bacteria to multiply quickly, so they stay at safe numbers.
A fridge also controls time in effect, because by slowing bacteria right down it lets food be kept safely for longer than it would last at room temperature. The most direct control, though, is removing warmth.
Markers reward each of the four conditions named and a clear explanation of how cold storage slows bacteria by taking away the warmth they need.
SQA N5 style3 marksExplain what the danger zone is and why hot food should be cooled quickly before being put in the fridge.Show worked answer →
This question tests the danger zone and the reason for rapid cooling, so the answer must give the temperatures and the bacteria reason.
The danger zone is the temperature range from 5 to 63 degrees Celsius, in which harmful bacteria multiply most quickly. Food should spend as little time as possible in this range.
Hot food left to cool slowly sits in the danger zone for a long time, giving bacteria the warmth and time they need to multiply to dangerous numbers.
Cooling food quickly, for example by dividing it into shallow containers, moves it through the danger zone fast so bacteria have little chance to multiply, and it should be in the fridge within about 90 minutes.
Markers reward stating the danger zone range, linking slow cooling to bacterial multiplication, and giving a way to cool food quickly.
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Sources & how we know this
- SQA National 5 Practical Cookery Course Specification — SQA (2026)
- Food Standards Scotland - Chilling and freezing — Food Standards Scotland (2024)