San Francisco supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday, Nov. 10, to legalize the sale of home-cooked food under the state’s Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operations program, Mission Local reported. The rules had advanced earlier through the Board’s Budget and Finance Committee, SF Daily Brief reported.
Why it matters: Street vendors who now must use a certified commissary kitchen, which Mission Local said can cost about $1,000 a month, would be able to prepare food at home and sell it there or from a pushcart, wagon or pedal-driven cart after a Public Health inspection and an $828 permit fee.
District 9 Supervisor Jackie Fielder, who introduced the legislation in September, said it “will help break down barriers for aspiring food entrepreneurs, expand economic opportunities for immigrant-owned businesses and street vendors, and preserve the diverse culinary traditions that make San Francisco so special.” Vendors are limited to 90 meals a week and $100,000 in annual sales, Mission Local reported; those selling from a pushcart or wagon may go as high as 200 meals a week and $200,000. The sums will be adjusted annually for inflation.
Applicants must pass a food safety manager certification exam and describe how food will be stored and equipment cleaned, the newspaper said. Nearby counties including Santa Cruz, Monterey, Santa Clara, Sonoma, Alameda, San Mateo and Contra Costa, and the city of Berkeley, have already adopted MEHKO. Sasha Gaona, a legislative aide to Fielder, said the launch timeline is still to be determined. Related: Marin’s home kitchen pilot.