Top tips for recording temperatures in food safety

Temperature control is one of the most important aspects of food safety. Recording temperatures accurately and consistently protects customers from foodborne illness, helps businesses stay compliant with the law, and provides clear evidence during inspections.

Below, we’ll cover the legal requirements, some expert tips that often get overlooked, and how digital apps such as Hubl can make the process easier and more reliable.

The legal requirements in the UK for recording temperatures

Food businesses are legally required to monitor and control temperatures at key stages of food handling. The main regulations include:

• The Food Safety (Temperature Control) Regulations 1995 – makes it an offence to keep high-risk food outside safe temperatures.

• Regulation (EC) 852/2004 – requires food businesses to have HACCP-based procedures, including temperature monitoring.

• Food Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013 (and equivalents across the UK) – sets limits such as keeping chilled food at or below 8 and hot-held food at or above 63.

  
  

In practice, Environmental Health Officers (EHOs) will expect to see accurate, up-to-date records of these checks during inspections.

Expert tips you might not know

1. Core vs air temperature

Checking the air temperature of a fridge is not always enough. Core food temperatures matter most, particularly for cooking, cooling, reheating, and hot holding.

2. Frequency of checks

“Once a day” is a minimum. For chilled storage, checks at the start, middle, and end of the day can prevent issues going unnoticed.

3. Short exemptions exist

Some foods can be held outside the usual limits for short, controlled periods (e.g. chilled food for preparation). These allowances must be documented and justified.

4. Corrective actions are key

Recording that a fridge was too warm is only half the story. You also need to note what you did about it (moved the food, called maintenance, discarded unsafe items).

Probe use and care for hot checks

Robert Morris, CEO of Complete Food Safety, shares the following advice for getting the most accurate and reliable results from hot food temperature checks:

• Allow time for accuracy – give the probe enough time to settle before recording. Fast-response probes can deliver readings quickly, but most insertion probes need a few seconds to stabilise.

• Insertion vs Infrared – where possible, use insertion probes over infrared. They provide more accurate and reliable readings.

• Multiple points for larger items – when checking joints of meat or larger dishes, measure in several places, including the core, to ensure a true reading.

• Clean and protect your equipment – always wipe probes with sanitising wipes before each use, and store equipment properly to prevent damage.

• Calibration – regularly calibrate probes so you can trust the readings.

• Invest in fast response probes – these can help teams check efficiently without risking inaccurate, rushed readings.

  
  

Review trends, don’t just store data

Looking back at records helps spot problems early, such as a fridge that runs warm at certain times or hot-holding equipment that drops after long periods.

Training and culture

Even the best system fails if staff don’t understand why they are doing the checks, or how to do them properly. Regular training and spot audits help.

Using digital apps to improve recording temperatures

Traditional paper logs are still common, but they come with risks: misplaced sheets, illegible writing, missed entries, and no easy way to see patterns over time.

Digital apps designed for food safety help by:

• Prompting staff to complete checks on time.

• Flagging issues immediately, so corrective actions can be taken away.

• Storing records securely, making them easy to access during audits or inspections.

• Allowing trend analysis, so managers can identify recurring issues and act before they become serious.

  
  

One example is Hubl, which provides digital food safety checklists, including temperature logs. By centralising checks in one place, apps like Hubl reduce paperwork, minimise errors, and make compliance more straightforward.

Key takeaways

• Recording temperatures is a legal requirement and a critical food safety practice.

• Pay attention to details that are often overlooked: core food temps, probe care, corrective actions, and regular calibration.

• Digital apps are increasingly becoming the standard way to manage food safety records. They save time, reduce errors, and provide reliable evidence for inspections.