Food business license

Where this applies

This record is scoped to China. Scope is part of the claim: a rule that binds one part of a country does not bind the whole of it, and this library states the scope its sources state.

Instrument

食品安全法 (Food Safety Law), Art. 35, and 《食品经营许可和备案管理办法》(Order No. 78, effective 1 December 2023)

Who it binds

Food production, sales and catering-service businesses in mainland China

What it requires

Anyone engaged in food production, sales or catering must obtain a license, except sellers of edible agricultural products and packaged-food-only retailers, who instead file a simpler registration. Unlicensed food production or business carries a fine of RMB 50,000–100,000 if the value of goods is under RMB 10,000, or 10–20x the value of goods for RMB 10,000 or more, per Art. 122 — article numbering should be re-checked against the law's most recent consolidated text before publish.

Related records and requirements

• Food retail licence (Singapore) — Operating a food retail business in Singapore — restaurants, catering, coffeeshops, canteens, food courts, stalls, butchers and mobile vehicles — without an SFA licence is an offence.
• Food business licence (Hong Kong SAR China) — Hong Kong's FEHD issues a food business licence only to premises meeting prescribed statutory safety and hygiene standards.
• Food business licence or notification (Japan) — The 32 sector types named in Japan's Food Sanitation Act Enforcement Order require a prefectural governor's licence before a food business may operate.