Health approvals

Your own approval in a shared or rented kitchen

Renting time in someone else’s Approved kitchenA kitchen Island Health has approved to make food for sale: its plans were approved before it was built, and it holds an operating permit or approval. A home kitchen is not one, unless it is a separate kitchen that went through the same approval.All terms in the glossary doesn’t put you under their permit — a permit can’t be transferred. Island Health tells kitchen owners who rent to others that every renter must contact it “for necessary approval”. It publishes no separate process for renters, so call your local office before you start.

Who issues it
Island Health

Do you need it?

You need it if

  • You rent time in someone else’s approved kitchen, commissary or food hub to make food you sell.
  • You use another business’s kitchen as the base for your food truck.
Where this comes from

Sources

How to get it

The kitchen’s permit belongs to its operator and doesn’t transfer to you. Island Health’s form tells kitchen owners who rent to others to make sure every renter has “contacted our office for necessary approval”. Island Health publishes no separate process for renters, so the first step is a call.

  1. 1

    Find an approved kitchen

    Our directory lists commercial kitchens and food hubs on the Island that rent time.

  2. 2

    Call your local Island Health office

    Say which kitchen you’ll use and what you’ll make. Ask which application they want from you and what to attach.

  3. 3

    Send your application

    Expect to need an Application for Food Facility for your own operation, your menu or product list, a Food safety planYour written account of where food could become unsafe in your kitchen and how you prevent it — cooking and cooling temperatures, for example, and what you do when one is missed. BC requires one from every food premises, alongside a sanitation plan.All terms in the glossary and Sanitation planYour written routine for cleaning and sanitizing, pest control and garbage: what is cleaned, how, how often and with what. BC requires one from every food premises, alongside a food safety plan.All terms in the glossary, and FOODSAFEBC’s food handler course. The operator of a restaurant, café, food truck or other food service business must hold a FOODSAFE Level 1 certificate or an equivalent.All terms in the glossary Level 1 if you will serve food.

  4. 4

    Agree storage with the kitchen

    Where several businesses share a base, each tenant’s storage should be marked and secured.

Where this comes from

Sources

Once you have it

  • Moving to a different kitchen is a new location for Island Health — tell your office before you move.
  • Keep your own food safety plan; the kitchen’s doesn’t cover what you make.
Where this comes from

Sources

What comes next

Food safety plan and sanitation planYou write them; Island Health approves themHealth operating permitIsland HealthApproval to operateIsland Health

Which businesses need it

Caterers & personal chefsIf you rent a kitchenFood trucks & cartsFor your base of operationsDelivery-only & ghost kitchensIf you rent a kitchenPackaged food makersIf you rent a kitchenKombucha, juice & coffee makersIf you rent a kitchenFestival, event & fundraiser foodFor food prepared ahead

The rules behind this page

Last checked 9 October 2026. We check this guide regularly against Island Health, provincial and municipal sources, but regulations and laws change often and we can’t guarantee it is complete or current. Confirm with Island Health and your municipality before you apply, build or sell.

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