It is a point, step or procedure at which controls can be applied and a food safety hazard can be prevented, eliminated or reduced to acceptable (critical) levels.
The most common CCP is cooking, where food safety managers designate critical limits.
CCP identification is also an important step in risk and reliability analysis for water treatment processes.
These values can be superseded by state or local health code requirements, but they cannot be below the FDA limits.
Temperatures should be measured with a probe thermometer in the thickest part of meats, or the center of other dishes, avoiding bones and container sides.