Environmental Health & Safety
Sanitarian's Office
Criteria for events serving pizza under the permit exemption*
- Pizza with cheese or cheese and pepperoni is the only food allowed under this exemption. Pizza with any others toppings are not allowed.
- The pizza must come from a food service establishment that has a valid permit issued by the Monroe County Health Department
- Pizza must be given away for free, and only to members of the University Community. If the Pizza giveaway is part of an event where the general public is in attendance, there must be a plan to dispense the pizza in a location and manner where only the University community has access to it.
- The pizza must be delivered by the vendor.
- No more than 100 pieces of pizza can be purchased for each event.
- Pizza must be consumed within two hours of pickup or delivery. Any pizza left at room temperature for more than two hours must be discarded. Suggestion: if serving for more than two hours, have the pizza delivered in shifts
- Servers and customers cannot touch anyone else’s pizza with their bare hands. This can be prevented by:
- Asking the vendor to slice the pizza as thoroughly as possible to make it easier to retrieve each piece
- Utilizing servers and not allowing customers to serve themselves. Servers should be healthy, thoroughly wash their hands before serving, and wear clean, disposable gloves while handling pizza. The pizza and plates should be held at a separate table away from the customer.
- If you absolutely cannot use servers and customers must serve themselves, a box of waxed tissue paper or an equivalent must be available to minimize the risk of contamination from touching someone else’s pizza.
If there is a concern regarding the wholesomeness of the pizza, don’t serve it. When in doubt, throw it out!
*PLEASE NOTE - If any of the above criteria cannot be met, the exemption is denied and you must contact the Sanitarian’s Office 14 days prior to the event.
QUESTIONS or COMMENTS?
Contact EH&S at (585) 275-3241 or e-mail EH&S Questions.
This page last updated 11/4/2019.
