South Dakota Food Handler Card: A Comprehensive Guide

A food handler card — also known as a food handler certificate or license — proves that you have completed a course on basic food safety principles.

Many states and counties require that you earn a food handler card to work at a food establishment to demonstrate to health inspectors that you know how to keep food safe.

However, you may wonder whether South Dakota or any of its counties require you to earn a food handler card to work in foodservice.

This article explains everything you need to know about a South Dakota food handler card, including whether you need one, how to get one, and more.

Do you need a food handler card in South Dakota?

Neither South Dakota nor any of its counties require a food handler card to work at a food establishment.

However, owing to the importance of food safety, many South Dakota restaurants and other foodservice operations like schools and hospitals still require that you do.

Additionally, long-term care facilities may require dietary staff to complete food handler training to meet specific in-service education requirements.

For example, all nursing homes and assisted living facilities in South Dakota must provide in-service training for their dietary and food-handling employees within 30 days of hire and annually (1, 2).

These topics must include:

• proper handwashing techniques
• safe food handling and preparation techniques
• foodborne illnesses
• safe serving and distribution practices
• safe leftover food handling
• time and temperature controls for food safety
• general cleaning and sanitation

Because food handler training programs touch on each of these topics, nursing homes and assisted living facilities often turn to them to meet the state’s required dietary in-service training.

Other healthcare facilities like hospitals also rely on food handler training programs since they too must provide regular in-service training to their dietary staff on various food safety topics.

Even though South Dakota doesn’t require that you earn a food handler card, doing so can make it easier to land your next foodservice job or even negotiate a higher salary.

How do you get a food handler card in South Dakota?

Whether your employer requires it as a condition of employment or to meet in-service requirements, or you want to increase your marketability or pay, earning your food handler card is simple and usually takes less than two hours.

To get started, enroll in a valid online food handler training program, like the one offered by FoodSafePal.

After you enroll, complete the course modules, which cover essential food safety topics, including:

• how food becomes unsafe
• good personal hygiene
• time-temperature controls for food safety
• cross-contamination and cross-contact prevention
• cleaning and sanitizing procedures

After you complete the course content, you must pass a test, which usually consists of 40 multiple-choice questions.

If you took your time and took notes throughout the course, you should be able to pass the test your first time, but most organizations allow free retakes.

Once you pass the test, you earn your food handler certificate, which you can print, but should always save to your desktop or phone in case you lose it.

How long does a South Dakota food handler card last?

A South Dakota food handler card usually expires 3 years from the date you earn it.

Renewing your food handler card every three years — even if you’re a seasoned foodservice professional — keeps you fresh and current on important food safety principles to keep people safe from foodborne illnesses.

If you work in a nursing home or other healthcare facility, you may need to complete food handler training annually to meet South Dakota’s in-service requirements.

You can find the date your food handler card expires on the certificate.

Always keep your food handler card in a secure location.

In places like nursing homes, health inspectors or surveyors will ask to verify that you have successfully completed the training and that they are not expired.

You should always save your food handler card as a PDF to your desktop or phone immediately after you earn it.

It’s also wise to email a PDF copy to your manager and yourself in case you change jobs or are assigned a new manager.

FoodSafePal provides you with a secure link to your food handler certificate so that you can share, download, or print it.

South Dakota cottage food law

Cottage food is homemade or home-produced food that a person then sells directly to consumers.

These foods are generally shelf-stable like baked goods, nuts, grains, and seeds, but they can also include products that require temperature controls.

To sell temperature-controlled foods, South Dakota cottage food law requires producers to complete a food safety training course every five years.

Examples of temperature-controlled foods include:

• canned goods
• non-heat-produced fermented food stored at 41ºF (5ºC) or below
• soft pies, cheesecake, baked goods having a custard or cream filling, and sauces and pesto stored at 41ºF (5ºC) or below
• home-processed frozen fruit and produce stored at or below 0ºF (-18ºC)

Alternatively, cottage food producers can submit their recipes for verification from a third-party processing authority, but this is more costly and time-consuming.

The only requirement for this food safety training course is that it’s approved by the South Dakota health department.

However, the state is unlikely to approve a food handler training course since they don’t cover food preservation techniques.

The bottom line

Neither South Dakota nor its counties require foodservice workers to earn a food handler card.

However, owing to the importance of food safety, your restaurant or other food establishment may still require it.

Additionally, nursing homes and other healthcare facilities often rely on food handler training to meet South Dakota’s in-service requirements.

To earn your food handler card, simply complete a valid online course and pass the test.

South Dakota requires cottage food producers to take a food safety course every five years to sell temperature-controlled foods, but this course likely cannot be a food handler course since they don’t cover food preservation.