Home-cooked meals
AB 626 allows food prepared in private homes to be sold to the public
SACRAMENTO — Caterers, bakers and other food preparation entrepreneurs in California will soon be able to sell food made in their private homes to the public.
Assembly Bill 626, authored by Assemblyman Eduardo Garcia, D-56th District, makes California the first state in the nation to allow a permitting process for home cooks to prepare and sell meals to the public.
Assembly Bill 626 was signed by Gov. Jerry Brown on Tuesday. Also signed into law was Senate Bill 946, the Safe Sidewalk Vending Act, which decriminalizes sidewalk vending.
AB 626 adds clarity to existing food laws, improves public health safeguards and creates a new, county-level permitting and inspection process for “microenterprise home kitchens.”
Californians operating MHKs will have to first apply for a permit, according to the Los Angeles Times. Those who receive a permit will be allowed to sell no more than 60 meals per week, must interact directly with their customers and consent to inspections of their homes. The MHKs also are exempted from rules focused on commercial restaurants that would not be applicable in a private home setting such as requirements for a three-compartment sink.
Additionally, food must be prepared and delivered on the same day, and the operation must not earn more than $50,000 a year.
Finally, raw milk products and oysters are not eligible to be sold under AB 626.
removing barriers
Past restrictions on the preparation and sale of meals in private homes limited the ability of cooks legally to earn income, according to background information provided by Garcia’s Office. The goal of this legislation is to reclaim cooking as a means of economic empowerment for the people who need it most.
Before AB 626, options for selling food were severely prohibitive and made it difficult for many cooks to benefit independently from their labor, skills and limited resources. Under existing law, there were only two avenues under which individuals could legally sell food.
The first was through a commercial food facility such as a working kitchen or permitted restaurant, which require a business license, insurance and expensive retail space. These requirements made home cooking inaccessible to those without the capital to afford the overhead costs.
The second avenue under which food could be legally sold was through the Cottage Food Act of 2012, which only allows for sales of a very restrictive list of food items, including mostly non-perishable foods.
This legislation stands to have an overwhelmingly positive impact on local economies throughout the state as well as for immigrants, women, low-income residents and communities of color, according to Garcia.
“The success of AB 626 will propel California into the
new food enterprise frontier, one that is just, inclusive and contains opportunities for all,” Garcia said in a prepared statement. “Legitimizing these home businesses will offer a means of economic empowerment and pathways for many to achieve the ‘American dream’ of success and income self-sufficiency.”
This measure will knock down barriers for marginalized populations who often lack access to the professional
food world.
“For many people throughout the state, cooking and selling meals from their home kitchen is the only means by which they are able to earn an income to help their families,” said Emmanuel Martinez, city of Coachella mayor pro tem.
“Many of us have seen and bought food from these folks, such as the famous Elotero, or person who sells hot dogs, tacos, or cakes who, because
of the barriers to entry, cannot afford to establish a traditional restaurant. AB 626 brings these people out of the shadows and creates a regulatory framework that nourishes their entrepreneurial spirit and facilitates the public’s access to healthy, home-cooked meals.”
Angela Janus, executive director of ShareKitchen, a non-profit organization based in Coachella that has been helping culinary entrepreneurs
launch agreed.
“AB 626 will help foster and grow small businesses in our community and create jobs,” Janus said. “Both our local and regional partners throughout Riverside County strongly feel this measure will provide valuable opportunities to local cooks who can launch and grow small food businesses from home, eliminating barriers to entry into the local food economy.”
businesses,