What permits do you need to open a food truck in Stanislaus County?

Itinerant / Mobile Vendor (Peddler's) Permit (unincorporated area)

County Code §6.68.020(A) says 'it is unlawful for any itinerant vendor to sell new or used personal property or services, or solicit orders in any unincorporated areas of Stanislaus County, without having first procured from the tax collector of Stanislaus County a permit for such purpose.' §6.68.010(B) defines an itinerant vendor as 'any person who sells personal property, services, or food items' other than from a permanent place of business owned or leased by the seller, and says the term 'includes, but is not limited to, persons who sell or solicit orders, food items on foot, door to door, in public places, from motor vehicles, trailers, pushcarts, motorized carts, or temporary structures'; §6.68.010(D) says a 'Mobile food vendor' has the same meaning as a mobile food facility under Health and Safety Code §113900. §6.68.020(B) and (C) limit itinerant vendors to privately owned property in commercial, industrial or highway frontage zoning districts and keep them off public rights-of-way, and say the right-of-way restriction 'shall not apply to mobile food vendors that have been issued a health permit issued by the department of environmental resources to operate on approved routes'. The Treasurer-Tax Collector's form is titled 'Application for Permit under Ordinance 6.68 Itinerant / Mobile Vendor' and lists the $19, $34 and $64 totals, matching the Fee Schedule effective July 1, 2024.

Mobile Food Facility Health Permit

The Department of Environmental Resources' Mobile Food Facility Permit Requirements sheet says 'According to California Retail Food Code, Section 114381(a), a food facility shall not be open for business without a valid permit', that an approved permit holder 'will be granted a valid health permit to operate and provide food service in Stanislaus County', and that 'The permit will expire in a year or less', with the holder responsible for arranging the renewal inspection before expiry. The sheet lists what is needed before the permit inspection, including the application, current vehicle registration, a commissary letter, a vending location verification form and the permit fee, and says Planning requires a plot plan for a fixed-location mobile food facility. It strongly recommends that owners of new vehicles submit plans for review by the Department. Amounts are from the Department of Environmental Resources fee schedule headed 'Fees Effective 07/14/26' (Ordinance C.S. 1414); the category numbers are the schedule's own labels. A vendor selling in the unincorporated area also needs the Treasurer-Tax Collector's itinerant / mobile vendor permit.

Food Handler Card

The state does not sell the card and sets no fee of its own — it caps the market instead. At least one accredited course and examination must cost no more than $15 including the card, and if no course is available at that price the requirement does not apply at all. A handler has 30 days from hire to obtain one, it lasts three years, and it travels with the person rather than the employer. Since Senate Bill 476 the employer must treat the training and examination as paid working time, relieve the worker of other duties while they do it, reimburse the cost, and may not require a card as a condition of being hired. The exemptions are broad: grocery and convenience stores, school cafeterias, certified farmers' markets, licensed health care facilities, and any workplace covered by a collective bargaining agreement with its food handlers. Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego counties run their own card programmes under a pre-2009 carve-out and charge their own fees. Do not confuse this with the separate food safety MANAGER certification, which is one certified person per facility and lasts five years.

Shared with other businesses in Stanislaus County

• Food Facility Permit — California Department of Public Health, Food and Drug Branch, No fee, set by the local enforcement agency. Also required for restaurants, coffee shops and retail stores; what it involves is set out on the retail stores page.