Mobile Food

Information for Vendors on Permits, Renewals, Documents and Inspections Required, and Location Requirements  

 

What is a Mobile Food Facility?  

California has TWO categories of Food Trucks and Carts.  

Mobile Food Facilities include any truck or trailer that prepares food or drinks in the vehicle or sells food and drinks prepared at an off-site commissary (a professional kitchen or catering facility). El Dorado County MFF operators must use an approved commissary.  

Compact Mobile Food Facilities (CMFOs) include individuals, pushcarts, stands, displays, wagons, etc. CMFOs may only sell prepackaged foods, whole uncut produce, or food with limited food preparation.

Mobile Food Facilities (MFF)

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El Dorado County Environmental Health Division is responsible for the inspection of various types of Mobile Food Facilities (MFF):

  • Mobile Food Preparation Units (MFPU)
  • Limited food vehicles
  • Food trucks
  • Ice cream trucks

The Vehicle Inspection Program conducts annual certification and complaint inspections of MFFs, and inspections that may involve commissaries that service these MFFs.  All MFFs are subject to Plan Review.  Any vehicle that is going to be occupied shall also be approved for operations by the California Housing and Community Development Department (HCD).

Please see below to apply for the appropriate permit.

MOBILE-FOOD-APPLICATION.pdf(PDF, 858KB)

MFF-OPERATOR-CHECKLIST.pdf(PDF, 229KB)

Compact Mobile Food Operations (CMFO)

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Senate Bill 972 (Gonzalez) was enacted and becomes effective January 1, 2023. This new bill changes the California Retail Food Code by establishing a new Chapter in the California Retail Food Code (CRFC) titled “Compact Mobile Food Operations.” These changes were intended to promote economic inclusion while modernizing the CRFC so that sidewalk food vendors can obtain a permit and join the regulated vending economy.

What is a CMFO? 

A CMFO is a type of mobile food facility that operates from any of the following:

  • An individual, stand, showcase, rack, or display – may be exempt from permitting if offering less than 25 sq. feet of prepackaged non-potentially hazardous food.

  • A stand, showcase, rack, display – limited to the sale of prepackaged non-potentially hazardous foods.

  • A pushcart, pedal-driven cart, wagon, or other nonmotorized conveyance – may be approved for limited food preparation, such as hot dogs or espresso carts.

A CMFO:
  • Must meet all the requirements listed in Chapter 10 (Mobile Food Facilities), except as provided for in the new Chapter 11.7 (Compact Mobile Food Operations).

  • Is required to operate in conjunction with a commissary, mobile support unit or other facility approved by the enforcement agency.

A CMFO is not:
  • A pop-up tent with multiple pieces of equipment set up. All equipment must be integral as part of a pushcart, pedal-driven cart, wagon, or other nonmotorized conveyance.

  • Motorized Mobile Food Facility

How to apply for a CMFO:

Files coming soon.

CMFOs that have less than 25 square feet of display space and sell only non-perishable prepackaged food or whole, uncut fruit and produce are exempt from permitting but are required to file a registration form with EMD.

 

 

Unpermitted Roadside Food Vending

Prevent unpermitted food vending in El Dorado County

The El Dorado County Environmental Management Department, Environmental Health Division, works to safeguard public health and ensure food provided to consumers is safe, unadulterated, and honestly presented by regulating the food sold or distributed to the public.

Who are the unpermitted food vendors?

Unpermitted food vendors are people who are selling/peddling food on a cart, truck, trailers, table, from the trunk of cars, or from their home without a health permit to operate from Environmental Management, nor have a valid business license. 

Vendors who sell/peddle ONLY prepackaged non-potentially hazardous foods and whole, uncut produce at a display less than 25 square feet are exempt from obtaining a permit to operate from Environmental Management.

What are some health concerns associated with unpermitted food vendor sales?

  • Poor personal hygiene
  • No handwashing on site
  • Don’t know where the food was purchased
  • Food is not kept hot and left out all day
  • Food may be prepared in a dirty home kitchen, in the garage, in a backyard, or outside
  • Food stored or prepared on the floor and on unclean surfaces
  • No food safety training to people who handle the food
  • Food is undercooked
  • No refrigerators to keep food cold
  • Unsafe cooking equipment
  • No restrooms
  • Sick employees preparing food
  • Chopping food using dirty knives or a cutting board                           
  • Insects, mice, or rats in the home

Where do unpermitted food vendors sell?

  • From the trunk of a car or the back of a truck
  • Roaming door to door in the neighborhood
  • On street corners and parking lots with a table and cooking equipment set up
  • From unpermitted homes; dining room, garage, or backyard (i.e. underground dining)
  • Outside stadiums after a sporting event, concert, or show

How do I know if these food sales are permitted with Environmental Management?

It is required by law that permitted food facilities, including mobile roadside vendors, display their health permit in a visible location for the public to see. If the permit expires, it is no longer valid until the owner obtains a new one. Permits from another county are valid within that county but not in our county unless issued by Environmental Management. If you do not see a health permit, ask the vendor to show and display it. If they do not have one, they are most likely unpermitted in the county.

Who should I notify if I suspect someone is selling food without a valid health permit (home, cart, truck)?

If you know of a vendor or suspect a vendor who is selling their food without a permit, contact Environmental Management at (530) 621-5300 or send us an email at emd.info@edcgov.us.

Please provide us with the following information:

  • Day and time the food is being sold.
  • The location, including cross streets, if no address available
  • The type of food sold and how (on a cart, truck, trailer, street corner, from the trunk of a car, under a tent, at a home)

Protect your family

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that each year, roughly 1 in 6 Americans (or 48 million people) get sick, 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die of foodborne diseases. Keep you and your family safe by being Smart and Eating Safe!

Environmental Management protects the public by inspecting facilities to ensure the food is being safely prepared at your favorite restaurant, grocery, truck, and cart. Our goal is to prevent the public from becoming ill with a foodborne illness (sometimes called "foodborne disease," "foodborne infection," or "food poisoning”). Avoid eating from unpermitted food vendors and report them to Environmental Management.

 

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