Florida’s Division of Hotels and Restaurants has published its annual report for the 2025-26 fiscal year, and it shows exactly what inspectors cited most often. The report covers every inspection from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026.
We read all of it. This post pulls out what matters most to food service operators, with percentages and plain-English examples you can use at your next manager meeting. Every percentage below is the share of all 600,504 food service violations cited that year. You can download the full report at the end of this post, or email us and we’ll send it over.
The year at a glance
Inspectors made 129,749 food service inspections across 68,360 active food service licenses.
- Initial inspections made up 105,837 of those visits, and callback inspections made up the other 23,912.
- Inspectors cited 600,504 food service violations.
- Across all of its inspections, the Division reports that more than 31% of violations were corrected during the inspection.
- About 4 in 10 licensed food service establishments were inspected once. Just over half (52.9%) were inspected twice, and about 6% were inspected three or more times.
The most common violations
Surfaces and structure led the list, and the top 10 together made up about 51% of all food service violations.
| Rank | What inspectors cited | Violations | % of all food service violations |
| 1 | Food-contact and nonfood-contact surfaces not designed, built, maintained, or installed properly | 52,841 | 8.80% |
| 2 | Food-contact surfaces not clean and sanitized | 47,793 | 7.96% |
| 3 | Floors, walls, ceilings, and attached equipment not built or kept clean, or rooms not properly vented | 45,011 | 7.50% |
| 4 | Food not protected during preparation, storage, and display | 28,812 | 4.80% |
| 5 | Nonfood-contact surfaces not clean | 26,094 | 4.35% |
| 6 | Handwashing supplies or handwash sign missing | 25,779 | 4.29% |
| 7 | Raw animal foods not separated from each other, ready-to-eat foods, and unwashed produce | 22,175 | 3.69% |
| 8 | Cold foods not received or held properly | 19,217 | 3.20% |
| 9 | Handwash sink not installed, not accessible, or used for other purposes | 19,146 | 3.19% |
| 10 | In-use utensils not stored properly | 19,109 | 3.18% |
Here is what the top three look like on the floor of a real operation.
- Equipment design and condition (8.80%). Think a cracked cutting board or a torn cooler gasket.
- Food-contact surfaces not clean and sanitized (7.96%). Think a prep table or slicer that wasn’t sanitized between uses.
- Floors, walls, and ceilings (7.50%). Think grimy floors under equipment or damaged ceiling tiles.
Handwashing
Handwashing showed up twice in the top 10, and those two categories together made up about 7.5% of all food service violations.
- Missing supplies or signs (4.29%, 25,779 violations). Think an empty soap dispenser, no paper towels, or no handwashing sign at the sink.
- Sink problems (3.19%, 19,146 violations). Think a hand sink blocked by a bus tub, or one used for dumping mop water.
A third handwashing category, hands not clean or washed properly, added another 2.21% (13,280 violations).
Cold holding and food separation
Two food-handling problems keep showing up, and nearly all of these violations were classed as high priority in the report.
- Cold foods not received or held cold enough (3.20%, 19,217 violations). Think a walk-in running warm or a delivery of chilled food accepted at the wrong temperature.
- Raw animal foods stored where they can touch other foods (3.69%, 22,175 violations). Think raw chicken on a shelf above salad ingredients or ready-to-eat food.
Training and manager certification
Training showed up in the numbers too, and these are two categories your team can check before an inspector arrives.
- Food handler training and job-specific knowledge (2.27%, 13,660 violations). Think an employee who can’t show proof of training, or doesn’t know the steps for their own station.
- Food manager certification and knowledge (1.26%, 7,564 violations). Think no certified manager on site, or a manager who can’t explain the controls in place.
Florida requires every DBPR-licensed food service establishment to have at least one certified food protection manager, present whenever four or more employees are working with food at the same time (F.S. 509.039 and Rule 61C-4.023). Temporary food service vendors and vending machine operators are exempt.
If your team needs training, we offer the Florida Food Handler course, a DBPR-approved Food Safety First program (#1519600), and our 4-hour ServSafe Food Manager course. The exam is the ServSafe® Food Manager Exam, which is ANAB-CFP accredited.
Where inspectors were busiest
The Orlando district was the busiest by a wide margin, with the most food service licenses and the most food service inspections. Panama City had the fewest of both.
| DBPR district | Office | Food service licenses | Food service inspections |
| 4 | Orlando | 14,852 | 28,157 |
| 3 | Tampa | 11,991 | 21,486 |
| 1 | Miami (Doral) | 10,202 | 20,494 |
| 2 | Fort Lauderdale | 10,383 | 20,179 |
| 5 | Jacksonville | 7,840 | 17,104 |
| 7 | Fort Myers | 7,869 | 13,779 |
| 6 | Panama City | 5,223 | 8,550 |
| Statewide | 68,360 | 129,749 |
Inspections combine initial and callback visits. The report does not break violations out by district, so this table shows where inspectors spent their time, not where establishments were cited most.
DBPR also assessed more than $2.1 million in food service fines during the year.
Use this for your next walkthrough
Most of what inspectors cited is something your team can check every day. Here is a short list to take through your kitchen.
- Hand sinks are clear, stocked with soap and paper towels, and have a handwashing sign.
- Cutting boards, gaskets, and other equipment are in good repair.
- Food-contact surfaces are cleaned and sanitized between uses.
- Floors, walls, and ceiling tiles are clean and intact.
- Cold units hold the right temperature, and deliveries are checked when they arrive.
- Raw animal foods are stored below ready-to-eat foods and produce.
- Training records are on hand, and a certified food protection manager is on site.
Get the full report
You can download the full DBPR Annual Report for 2025-26 here. Prefer email? Write to info@serveitupsafe.com or call (813) 781-8884 and we’ll send it over.
Source: Florida DBPR Division of Hotels and Restaurants, Annual Report FY 2025-26, dated September 30, 2026. Data covers July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026.
Last updated: November 2026 | Requirements change – always verify with your local health department