How long can a cold-held TCS food remain in the Temperature Danger Zone before it must be served or thrown out?

Cold-held TCS food can remain in the Temperature Danger Zone for up to 6 hours before it must be served or thrown out. Cold-held TCS food is different from raw and hot-held TCS food - which can only remain in the Temperature Danger Zone for up to 4 hours. The reason cold-held TCS food is different is that it's less likely to have spent as much time within the temperature range where bacteria grow the most rapidly. The Temperature Danger Zone is a wide range of temperatures between 41°F and 135°F. But bacteria grow the most rapidly within the smaller range of 70°F and 125°F. Hot TCS food is held at 135°F or higher and cold TCS food is held at 41°F or lower. Hot food only has to drop 10°F before it enters the temperature range where bacteria grow the most rapidly. But cold TCS food has to rise 29°F before it enters that temperature range. This is why 6 hours is allowed for cold-held TCS food, but only 4 hours is allowed for hot-held TCS food. Although raw TCS food is stored at 41°F or lower, it has not been cooked, so the pathogens have not been killed yet. This is why raw TCS food is only allowed 4 hours in the Temperature Danger Zone.