The ANAB-CFP certification exam is 100% scenario-based. This California food safety manager practice test uses scenarios drawn from CalCode §113947.1 (CFPM certification requirements), §113947.2 (county preemption), CalCode food-handling rules, and enforcement variations in Los Angeles, San Diego, Riverside, and San Bernardino. Work through all 25 questions first, then review the explanations. Use alongside AAA Food Handler’s national certified food manager practice test for full coverage.
What the California Food Safety Manager Exam Tests
The ANAB-CFP exam consists of 80 questions — 75 scored, 5 unscored — with a 70% passing threshold and a 2-hour limit. Administration and Critical Thinking together account for more than half of the scored questions. California adds specific CFPM requirements under CalCode §113947.1 — the 60-day grace period, the dual-facility prohibition, the certificate-on-file requirement, the 5-year recertification, and the rule that the CFPM need not be present at all hours.
1. Administration and Other — 7 Questions
CalCode §113947.1 governs CFPM certification — who must hold it, where the certificate must be kept, and what happens when a facility loses its CFPM. These questions test those decisions.
Question 1: Your CFPM resigned two weeks ago, and you have not yet found a replacement. A San Diego County inspector arrives. What does CalCode §113947.1(e) allow?
A. The restaurant must close immediately — operating without a CFPM is not permitted
B. The facility has 60 days from losing its CFPM to comply and may continue operating
C. Any on-site manager may serve as acting CFPM
D. You must hire a CFPM within 7 days
Answer: B §113947.1(e) gives a facility that no longer has a certified person 60 days to comply while continuing to operate.
Question 2: You hold a current ANAB-CFP certification at your LA County restaurant. The owner of a nearby restaurant with no certified manager asks if you can be listed as CFPM for both to pass their upcoming inspection. What is the correct response?
A. Agree — CalCode allows one CFPM to cover multiple facilities in the same county
B. Agree, provided both facilities share the same owner
C. Decline — §113947.1(a) prohibits serving as required CFPM at any other food facility
D. Agree for up to 60 days, while the second restaurant recruits its own CFPM
Answer: C §113947.1(a) prohibits any certified person from serving as required CFPM at any other food facility — regardless of ownership, county, or duration.
Question 3: A Los Angeles County inspector asks to see your CFPM. Your certified manager is home on his day off, but his ANAB-CFP certificate is on file at the facility. Is the restaurant in compliance?
A. No — the CFPM must be present during all hours of operation
B. Yes — §113947.1(a) explicitly states the certified owner or employee need not be present at all hours
C. Yes, only if the CFPM can be reached by phone within 15 minutes
D. No — the CFPM must be on-site whenever food is being actively prepared
Answer: B §113947.1(a) explicitly states the certified owner or employee need not be present during all hours of operation. With the certificate on file, the establishment is compliant.
Question 4 After a busy lunch service at your LA County restaurant, a large batch of chicken soup is left in a stockpot on a cooling rack. Two and a half hours later, you check the temperature and find it has only dropped from 135°F to 90°F. What is the correct action?
A. Continue cooling — the soup just needs more time and will eventually reach a safe temperature
B. Move the soup to the walk-in refrigerator immediately and monitor until it reaches 41°F
C. Discard the soup — it failed the first stage of the two-stage cooling requirement
D. Divide the soup into smaller containers and return it to hot holding above 135°F
Answer: C CalCode §114002 requires TCS foods to cool from 135°F to 70°F within 2 hours. After 2.5 hours, the soup is still at 90°F — it has already exceeded the first-stage time limit without reaching 70°F.
Question 5 A line cook arrives for his shift at your Riverside County restaurant, reporting a sore throat and a temperature of 101°F. He feels well enough to work and says he can manage through his shift. As the CFPM at a standard restaurant (not serving a highly susceptible population), what is the correct response?
A. Exclude him from the facility entirely — sore throat with fever always requires exclusion
B. Allow him to work his full shift since he feels well enough to manage
C. Restrict him from working with food and food-contact surfaces, but allow other non-food duties
D. Allow him to work if he wears a mask and avoids handling ready-to-eat foods
Answer: C In a non-highly-susceptible-population facility, sore throat with fever triggers restriction — not full exclusion. Restriction means the employee may remain at work but must not handle food, food-contact surfaces, or unwrapped single-use items.
Question 6: A San Diego County inspector asks to see the CFPM certificate. The certified manager is off-site today, and the certificate is stored at the manager’s home. What is the compliance status?
A. Compliant — the certificate need not be at the facility as long as the manager is reachable
B. Non-compliant — §113947.1(g) requires the certificate on file at the facility at all times
C. Compliant if the manager emails a photo of the certificate to the inspector within one hour
D. Non-compliant only if the inspector provided advance written notice
Answer: B §113947.1(g) requires the certificate on file at the facility at all times, available to enforcement officers on request. No advance notice is needed.
Question 7: Your CFPM certification was issued five years and two months ago. You have continued working as CFPM throughout. A health inspector notices the certificate date. What is your compliance status?
A. Compliant — a CFPM certification in California does not expire
B. Non-compliant — §113947.1(h) requires recertification every five years
C. Compliant — the five-year clock restarts each time you change employers
D. Compliant — the 60-day grace period under §113947.1(e) applies
Answer: B §113947.1(h) requires recertification every five years by passing an approved examination, regardless of employer changes. The §113947.1(e) 60-day grace covers a facility losing its CFPM — not an individual whose certification lapsed.
Critical Thinking — 7 Questions
These questions require the correct management decision under CalCode, under county inspection, and under operational pressure. The correct answer is always immediate and documented.
Question 8 A San Diego County supplier delivers raw poultry at 48°F. The driver offers a 30% discount to accept. What do you do?
A. Accept — the 30% discount compensates for the temperature variance
B. Accept and refrigerate immediately — temperatures will normalize in cold storage
C. Accept only packages testing at or below 41°F
D. Reject the entire delivery — CalCode requires TCS foods to be received at 41°F or below
Answer: D CalCode requires TCS foods to be received at 41°F or below. A reading of 48°F exceeds this threshold — no discount, supplier log, or refrigeration changes the requirement.
Question 9 During a Riverside County inspection, an inspector opens your walk-in refrigerator and observes the following arrangement from top to bottom: whole raw chicken on the top shelf, raw ground beef on the middle shelf, raw salmon fillets below that, and ready-to-eat salad greens on the bottom shelf. What will the inspector’s findings be?
A. Compliant — raw proteins are correctly separated from each other by type
B. Non-compliant — all raw proteins must be stored together on a single designated shelf
C. Non-compliant — ready-to-eat foods must be on top, raw proteins below in order of required cooking temperature
D. Compliant — as long as all items are held at 41°F, storage order is at the CFPM’s discretion
Answer: C CalCode requires refrigerated raw animal proteins to be stored below ready-to-eat foods, in order of their minimum required cooking temperature — highest cooking temperature on the bottom. Correct order top to bottom: ready-to-eat foods, then whole fish/seafood (145°F), then whole cuts of beef/pork (145°F), then ground meat (155°F), then poultry (165°F) at the very bottom.
Question 10 A San Diego County restaurant owner wants to add medium-rare burgers and sushi-grade tuna tartare to the menu. She asks you, the CFPM, what CalCode requires before these items can be offered to customers. What is the correct answer?
A. No additional steps are required — cooking temperature is the customer’s choice
B. A consumer advisory must be provided disclosing which items may be raw or undercooked and the associated risk
C. A variance from the regulatory authority is required before any raw animal food can be served
D. The restaurant must obtain written consent from each customer before serving raw or undercooked items
Answer: B CalCode requires a consumer advisory — including a disclosure identifying which menu items may be raw or undercooked and a reminder about the associated risk of foodborne illness — whenever raw or undercooked animal food is offered for sale. The advisory must appear on the menu, a table tent, or a placard wherever the food is offered.
Question 11 A Riverside County inspector observes a food handler placing sliced tomatoes into a salad bowl with bare hands. The handler says it was only a brief contact. How do you respond as the CFPM?
A. Instruct the employee to apply gloves and continue the task — handwashing before resuming is sufficient
B. Stop the practice, discard the tomatoes, retrain the employee, and document the corrective action.
C. Step back and allow the inspector to direct the corrective response
D. Explain that brief bare hand contact with produce is low-risk if the employee has washed their hands recently
Answer: B. CalCode prohibits bare-hand contact with ready-to-eat foods. The tomatoes must be discarded — contamination cannot be reversed by gloves or dressing applied after the fact.
Question 12 The owner of your LA County restaurant wants to begin house-curing salmon this weekend using a dry-salt process she researched online. What guidance do you provide?
A. Proceed — curing is a standard preparation technique requiring no special regulatory approval
B. Post a consumer advisory on the menu — this satisfies CalCode for curing processes
C. CalCode requires a variance from the regulatory authority and an approved written HACCP plan before curing can begin
D. Notify the LA County health department within 30 days of starting the curing process
Answer: C CalCode requires a regulatory authority-approved variance and written HACCP plan before beginning any special process, including curing, smoking for preservation, acidification, or ROP. This approval must come before — not after — the process begins.
Question 13: During a Riverside County inspection, an inspector asks to see your probe thermometer and then places it in an ice-water bath. It reads 38°F instead of 32°F. The inspector asks how you typically verify the accuracy of your temperature readings. What does this finding indicate, and what corrective action is required?
A. The thermometer is within acceptable tolerance — a 6°F variance is normal
B. The thermometer is non-compliant — it must be accurate to within ±2°F and calibrated or replaced before use
C. The thermometer is non-compliant, but prior temperature logs remain valid
D. Thermometer accuracy is the supplier’s responsibility, not the CFPM’s
Answer: B CalCode and the FDA Food Code require food thermometers to be accurate to within ±2°F. A reading of 38°F in ice water (which should read 32°F) represents a 6°F variance — well beyond the acceptable tolerance.
Question 14: San Bernardino County sends your restaurant a notice requiring your CFPM to obtain an additional county-issued food manager certificate beyond the ANAB-CFP certification already held, and pay a $50 verification fee. Must you comply?
A. Yes — counties have full authority to require any food safety compliance measures they deem necessary
B. Yes — county requirements always supersede CalCode for food manager certification
C. No — §113947.2 prohibits counties from requiring additional certificates
D. Yes, but only if the county adopted this requirement before January 1, 2024
Answer: C §113947.2 prohibits counties from requiring any additional food safety certificate beyond §113947.1, or any fee for certificate verification. CalCode CFPM certification is recognized statewide — the county’s notice exceeds its statutory authority.
Food Safety Laws and Regulations — 7 Questions
This is where California diverges most from the national exam — CalCode §113947.1 requirements for CFPM certification, county preemption under §113947.2, temporary facility exemptions, allergen awareness obligations, and variance requirements for special processes.
Question 15 The owner of a pop-up booth at an LA County farmers’ market will serve fresh-cut fruit and pre-packaged sandwiches. Is a CFPM required under CalCode?
A. Yes — any California food operation selling to the public must have a CFPM on record
B. Yes — fresh-cut fruit is a TCS food requiring CFPM oversight regardless of facility type
C. No — temporary food facilities are explicitly exempt from the CFPM requirement under §113947.1(a)
D. Yes, unless the booth operates fewer than three days per week
Answer: C §113947.1(a) requires food facilities that prepare, handle, or serve nonprepackaged potentially hazardous food to have a CFPM — except temporary food facilities. Pop-up booths and farmers’ market operations are explicitly exempt regardless of food type or frequency.
Question 16 You are the CFPM at a Riverside County restaurant. A food handler reports that she set aside a large tray of sliced cooked roast beef to cool at room temperature before refrigerating it. Three hours have passed, and the roast beef is currently at 95°F — it has not yet been refrigerated. What is the correct action?
A. Refrigerate immediately — three hours is still within the total 6-hour cooling window
B. Discard the roast beef — it has been above 70°F for more than 2 hours and cannot be recovered
C. Reheat to 165°F to kill any bacteria that may have grown, then restart the cooling process
D. Slice the beef into thinner portions to speed up cooling and refrigerate immediately
Answer: B CalCode §114002 requires TCS foods to drop from 135°F to 70°F within the first 2 hours of cooling. After 3 hours, the roast beef is still at 95°F — it has not reached 70°F by the 2-hour deadline.
Question 17: LA County has adopted a requirement mandating temperature logs for TCS foods at 4-hour intervals — more frequent than CalCode specifically requires. A restaurant owner argues that this exceeds the county’s authority and refuses to comply. Is he correct?
A. Yes — county regulations cannot exceed CalCode; the state standard supersedes all local rules
B. Yes — only the California Department of Public Health can impose requirements beyond CalCode
C. No — California counties are authorized to adopt food safety requirements more stringent than CalCode
D. No — but the restaurant must file a formal objection before the county requirement takes effect
Answer: C California counties may adopt food safety operations requirements more stringent than CalCode, but not less restrictive. LA County’s 4-hour logging requirement is a legitimate exercise of county authority.
Question 18: A restaurant owner is hiring a CFPM. One applicant holds a current ServSafe Manager certification, and another holds a current AAA Food Handler Food Protection Manager certification. Which satisfies CalCode’s requirement?
A. The ServSafe certification only — it is the only program recognized by the California Department of Public Health
B. Both — as long as both hold current ANAB-CFP Accredited certifications
C. Neither — California requires a separate state-issued CFPM certificate in addition to any national certification
D. The ServSafe certification only — independent providers are not recognized under CalCode
Answer: B CalCode requires an ANAB-CFP Accredited certification. Both ServSafe and AAA Food Handler are ANAB-CFP Accredited programs — what matters is the accreditation, not the brand.
Question 19 During an LA County inspection, an inspector asks you — the CFPM — to explain what would happen if a guest reported a severe allergic reaction after eating at your restaurant. Which response best demonstrates the food safety knowledge required of a Person in Charge under CalCode §113945.1?
A. Explain that allergen management is the responsibility of the kitchen manager, not the CFPM
B. Confirm that California requires all nine major allergens to be listed on your menu
C. Describe your establishment’s documented allergen control procedures — how staff identify allergens, communicate risks to guests, and prevent cross-contact
D. State that allergic reactions are a medical issue and should be referred directly to the guest’s physician
Answer: C CalCode §113945.1 designates the Person in Charge as someone who must have knowledge of safe food handling practices and major food allergens as they relate to specific food preparation activities at the facility. The CFPM is accountable for allergen management systems — not a task to delegate to other staff.
Question 20: Your LA County restaurant has received regulatory authority approval to begin a reduced-oxygen packaging (ROP) process for house-made cured meats. As you develop the required HACCP plan, you need to identify the Critical Control Points. Which of the following is a Critical Control Point in an ROP process?
A. Employee handwashing before handling the meat — it controls pathogen transfer at a specific, measurable step
B. The temperature at which the meat is held during packaging — a specific, measurable, monitorable control point
C. The brand of packaging film used — selecting the right material eliminates contamination risk
D. The frequency of equipment cleaning — proper sanitation schedules control all food safety hazards
Answer: B A Critical Control Point (CCP) is a step in the process at which a control measure can be applied to prevent, eliminate, or reduce a food safety hazard to an acceptable level, and where the absence of that control would result in an unacceptable safety risk. Temperature control during ROP packaging is a CCP because it directly prevents pathogen growth at a specific, measurable and monitorable point.
Question 21 During a routine inspection at your San Bernardino County restaurant, an LA County health inspector points out fresh rodent droppings near the dry goods storage area. As the CFPM, what is the correct immediate response?
A. Explain that the droppings are from a minor isolated incident and offer to clean before the inspector leaves
B. Remove affected dry goods from service, clean and sanitize the area, contact a licensed pest control operator, and document the corrective action
C. Close only the dry goods storage area and continue all other food service operations as normal
D. Advise the inspector that pest control is handled by the building landlord and is outside the restaurant’s control
Answer: B CalCode requires food facilities to be maintained free of insects, rodents, and other pests. Evidence of rodent activity — including fresh droppings — is a major violation requiring immediate corrective action.
Communications — 4 Questions
This domain tests how you communicate CalCode obligations to employees, managers, and inspectors in ways that create documentation and demonstrate compliance.
Question 22: A produce vendor approaches your LA County restaurant, offering to sell you a large quantity of fresh produce at a significantly reduced price. He explains that the produce comes from his personal farm, which is not licensed or inspected by any regulatory authority. As the CFPM, what is the correct decision?
A. Accept the produce — CalCode only regulates animal proteins, not fresh fruits and vegetables
B. Accept the produce if it passes a thorough visual inspection and temperature check at receiving
C. Decline — CalCode requires all food to come from approved, regulated sources, regardless of condition
D. Accept the produce for non-TCS preparations only, such as salads without animal protein
Answer: C CalCode requires all food served in a licensed food facility to come from approved sources — meaning regulated, licensed, and inspected suppliers. An unlicensed personal farm does not meet this standard, regardless of how the produce looks, its temperature, or how it will be used.
Question 23 You are the CFPM at a busy San Diego County restaurant. A server approaches you and reports that she noticed an unfamiliar person in the kitchen near the food prep area earlier in the shift — someone she did not recognize and who was not wearing staff clothing or a name tag. The person left quickly when she looked in their direction. What is the correct response?
A. Take no action — unauthorized visitors in restaurants are common and rarely indicate a food safety risk
B. Review security footage, segregate any food the person may have accessed, document the incident, and notify the regulatory authority if tampering is suspected
C. Discard all food currently in preparation and begin fresh preparation to be safe
D. Issue a verbal reminder to all staff about keeping kitchen doors closed and continue normal operations
Answer: B Food defense — protecting the food supply from intentional contamination — is a CFPM responsibility under the FDA Food Code and federal Bioterrorism Act requirements. When unauthorized access to food is suspected, the CFPM must investigate by reviewing available surveillance, identifying and segregating any food the individual may have accessed, documenting the incident, and notifying the regulatory authority if tampering is suspected.
Question 24 You are preparing a new kitchen manager to take on the role of CFPM at your San Diego County restaurant. Which description most accurately captures her key obligations under CalCode §113947.1?
A. She must be on-site at all hours of operation every day the kitchen is open
B. She may hold CFPM certification for this and one other facility simultaneously if both owners agree
C. Her certification is valid for three years, then she must complete a refresher course to renew it
D. Her certificate must be on file at the facility at all times; she may not serve as CFPM for any other facility, and she must recertify every five years
Answer: D §113947.1 establishes three key obligations: the certificate must be on file at all times (§113947.1(g)); the certified person may not serve as CFPM for any other facility (§113947.1(a)); and recertification is required every five years (§113947.1(h)). Critically, the CFPM is not required to be on-site at all hours — §113947.1(a) explicitly says so.
Question 25 At the start of a busy Friday dinner service at your LA County restaurant, a food handler tells you he has had a yellow tint to his skin and the whites of his eyes for two days. He wants to work his shift. What must you do?
A. Allow him in a non-food-contact role, such as busing tables or taking orders
B. Send him home and monitor his symptoms
C. Allow him to work wearing gloves and a mask
D. Exclude him from the establishment immediately and notify the regulatory authority
Answer: D Jaundice is associated with Hepatitis A and other Big Six pathogens requiring immediate exclusion under CalCode and notification of the regulatory authority. Restriction to non-food-contact duties is not sufficient.
Score Your California Food Safety Manager Practice Test Results
18 correct out of 25 (72%) represents the 70% passing threshold on the real exam.
22–25 correct: Exam-ready. Book your exam.
18–21 correct: On track. Review which domains produced errors before booking.
14–17 correct: More preparation needed. Focus on CalCode §113947.1 CFPM requirements, the 60-day grace period, §113947.2 county preemption, and CalCode food handling corrective actions.
Below 14: Complete the AAA Food Handler’s full ANAB-CFP training before retesting.
California Food Safety Manager Practice Test — Five Things to Know Before Booking
CalCode §113947.1 governs your CFPM certification — one per facility, need not be on-site at all hours, 5-year recertification, 60-day grace when a facility loses its CFPM, certificate on file at all times.
Administration and Critical Thinking cover more than half the exam. Overfocusing on temperatures leaves you underprepared for most scored questions.
CalCode requires ANAB-CFP accreditation — not a specific brand. Any current ANAB-CFP Accredited program satisfies CalCode, including the AAA Food Handler.
County requirements stack on top of CalCode — LA, San Diego, Riverside, and San Bernardino, each adding to the state standard.
Allergen management is part of CFPM knowledge under CalCode §113945.1. As the Person in Charge, you are responsible for documented allergen-control procedures—identifying allergens in dishes, communicating risks to guests, and preventing cross-contact in the kitchen.
Get Certified — AAA Food Handler and the California Food Safety Manager Practice Test
AAA Food Handler’s ANAB-CFP Accredited program satisfies CalCode’s §113947.1 CFPM requirement and is accepted across all 50 states. The Diamond Package includes 4-hour training, the proctored exam, 160 sample questions, and one free retake.
Content reflects the California Retail Food Code (CalCode), including §113947, §113947.1, §113947.2, and related food handling requirements, as of June 2026. Verify current requirements with your local California county health department.
