How to Start a Packaged Food Business in California: CDPH Registration $524 to $1,482 Plus $100 Fee

Informational only: This article explains general California rules for food and business registration. It is not legal or tax advice. Fees and forms change, so confirm current figures with the named agency, and talk with a qualified attorney or CPA before you make decisions with legal or tax consequences.

If you plan to sell sauces, snacks, granola, or baked goods in packages to stores, distributors, or other wholesale buyers, you will likely need a state food registration before your first sale. In California, that is usually the Processed Food Registration from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), Food and Drug Branch. This guide covers which path fits your business, what the registration actually costs, what your label must include, and what to do next. Most of the work is paperwork, and it goes faster when you handle it in the right order.

Materials and information to gather first

Collect these items before you contact an agency or start a form:

• A list of every product you plan to sell, with the product name, a short description, and the package size.
• Your final recipes, with every ingredient and its supplier. Your ingredient statements come from these.
• The address where you will make or store product, and the name of the person responsible for the facility.
• An estimate of your annual wholesale revenue. This decides whether the Food Safety Fee is waived.
• The number of employees you expect to have, because the registration fee depends on facility size and employee count.
• Your business name and the names of all owners.
• A payment method for state fees. Confirm the accepted payment methods on the current form.
• The current Form CDPH 8611 (revised 7/2025) and, if your product contains industrial hemp, Form CDPH 8611 IH.

Step 1: Decide which path fits your business

California has two main routes for food made for sale. They are not interchangeable, so pick one before you spend money on equipment or packaging.

Path 1 is cottage food. You make the product in a home kitchen under the cottage food law. Cottage food needs no CDPH registration, and it stays an option up to the Class B cap of $177,756 a year in 2026. Check that your planned sales channels fit the cottage food rules before you rely on this path, because a path that works for direct sales may not work for wholesale accounts.

Path 2 is the Processed Food Registration. Under Health and Safety Code sections 110460 and 110470, processors, manufacturers, repackers, and warehousers of processed food that sell wholesale must register with CDPH. Most businesses making sauces, snacks, or baked goods for retail stores or distributors fall here.

A MEHKO (Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation) is a restaurant program, not a packaged food program. It is exempt from this registration, as cottage food is. If your goal is packaged product, a MEHKO is not the route.

Step 2: Register the processed food with CDPH

Path 2 starts with Form CDPH 8611 (revised 7/2025), filed with the CDPH Food and Drug Branch (FDB). Contact FDB at (800) 495-3232 or [email protected] if you have questions about the form.

The registration fee depends on the type of activity, the facility's size, and the number of employees. On the form's 2025 fee schedule, the range is:

Activity	Starting fee	Top of range
Warehousing only	$524	$871
Manufacturing, repacking, labeling, or salvaging	$524	$1,482

On top of the registration fee, you may owe:

• A $100 Food Safety Fee. This is waived for firms with under $20,000 in wholesale revenue. It is not the registration fee.
• An extra $250 if your firm is subject to mandatory seafood or juice HACCP.

As an example, a manufacturer paying the $524 starting registration fee and the $100 Food Safety Fee would pay $624 in total. Your real number depends on your activity, facility, and revenue, so calculate it from the form's fee schedule.

Work through the form in this order:

1. Pick the activity category. If you cook, bake, or blend product and then package it, you are usually in manufacturing. Confirm the category with FDB before you choose, because the fee range depends on it.
2. Report facility size and employee count as the form asks.
3. Estimate wholesale revenue to see whether the Food Safety Fee waiver applies.
4. Add the hemp attachment (Form CDPH 8611 IH) only if your product contains industrial hemp.
5. Pay on time. The form lists late penalties of 1 percent a month on the registration fee after 30 days, and 10 percent a month on the Food Safety Fee.

Commissary and shared kitchens

Many new food businesses rent time in a permitted commissary or shared kitchen instead of building their own facility. This is a common and practical way to start, but it raises a filing question. Ask FDB whether making product in someone else's registered facility changes what you must file, and get the answer in writing if you can.

Also ask FDB whether a county-permitted retail-only bakery must hold a Processed Food Registration. The answer is not clear from the form, so do not spend money on that setup until you have confirmed it.

Step 3: Build labels that meet federal and California rules

Packaged food labels must meet federal labeling rules. At a minimum, plan for each of these:

• The product name
• Net quantity of contents
• The ingredient list, in descending order by weight
• An allergen declaration
• A Nutrition Facts panel, where required
• The name and place of business of the manufacturer, packer, or distributor

Do not copy a label template from another product without checking each item against the federal rules for your specific product. Small differences in ingredient wording, allergen statements, or the business address line are common reasons for relabeling.

Proposition 65 may also apply. California's Proposition 65 warning rules can affect packaged food. Do not assume you are exempt, and do not write warning language from a template. Check with the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment and the FDB to find out whether it applies to your product.

Keep health claims careful. Describe your ingredients and product factually. Avoid language that says or implies a product prevents, treats, or cures a disease. If you want to make any health-related statement, have a qualified professional review the wording first.

Step 4: Handle sales tax and your seller's permit

Most food products are exempt from California sales tax. Prepared food and food sold through a vending machine are not exempt. Confirm your product's classification with the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA) before you set your prices.

You need a seller's permit for taxable sales. The permit is free. Apply through the CDTFA at https://www.cdtfa.ca.gov/. The statewide base rate is 7.25 percent, and with district taxes, city rates run from 7.25 percent to 11.75 percent.

When you buy ingredients or packaging that you will resell as part of a product, your supplier may ask for a resale certificate. California does not require a specific form for it, so accept the format your supplier uses, and keep a copy in your records.

Step 5: Register the business and check local requirements

California has no general state business license. The Secretary of State issues no license, and the CDTFA seller's permit is not a business license. Your business needs separate pieces, and each one has its own rules.

Entity filing with the Secretary of State

If you form an LLC, file Articles of Organization (Form LLC-1) for $70 with the Secretary of State through bizfile Online at https://bizfileonline.sos.ca.gov/. Online filings are normally processed within about 5 business days or less. The LLC name must include an allowed designator such as LLC or L.L.C., and it cannot contain words such as bank, trust, or corporation. You can reserve a name for $10 for 60 days.

An LLC must keep an agent for service of process in California and an office in California. The agent must be an individual who lives in California or a corporation that holds a Corporations Code 1505 certificate.

Two ongoing filings matter. The Statement of Information (Form LLC-12) costs $20 and is due within 90 days of filing the articles, then every two years during the window ending on the last day of the anniversary month. The Franchise Tax Board assesses a $250 penalty if you miss it after a Secretary of State notice.

Every LLC organized or registered in California in 2024 through 2026 owes the $800 minimum annual franchise tax from its first year. An LLC whose first taxable year begins in 2027, 2028, or 2029 pays $400 in year one under RTC 17941(g)(2), so confirm the first-year amount with the Franchise Tax Board. The LLC fee of $900, $2,500, $6,000, or $11,790 applies once California-source total income reaches $250,000, $500,000, $1,000,000, or $5,000,000.

A corporation files Articles of Incorporation for $100 and a Statement of Information (Form SI-550) for $25 every year, due within 90 days of filing the articles and then annually. If you operate as a sole proprietor, you skip the entity filing, but the fictitious business name rules below still apply.

Fictitious business name

If you sell under a name other than your legal name or the entity's exact name, file a Fictitious Business Name Statement with the county clerk-recorder in the county of your principal place of business. File it within 40 days of starting, then also publish the statement in a newspaper once a week for four weeks. The name expires after five years. The statutory filing fee is $10 plus $2 for each additional name or owner, but counties charge more, and the newspaper publication fee is separate. Details are at https://www.sos.ca.gov/business-programs/business-entities/fictitious-business-names.

City and county requirements

Most California cities charge a local business tax or require a registration certificate. Of the 483 cities, 445 report revenue from one. There is no common formula, so the right answer depends on your city. Counties license only regulated activities. Ask your city's business license or tax office what applies to your address before you start selling.

If you hire anyone, you also register with the Employment Development Department (EDD).

Expected results

Registration is a regulatory filing, not a guarantee of sales or of a finished compliance program. Results depend on your product, your sales channel, and your market. Registration may be a prerequisite for wholesale sales, but it does not mean a buyer will carry your product.

Treat registration as the start of your obligations, not the end. Plan for ongoing duties such as keeping your label current when you change a recipe, paying the fees and taxes that apply to your entity, and filing your Statement of Information on time.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Calling $100 the registration fee. The $100 is the Food Safety Fee. The registration fee starts at $524.
• Assuming cottage food covers wholesale sales. Check the cottage food rules before you rely on them for any channel.
• Choosing the wrong activity category. The category sets your fee range, so confirm it with FDB.
• Paying late. The form lists penalties of 1 percent a month on the registration fee after 30 days and 10 percent a month on the Food Safety Fee.
• Using a label template without checking federal rules or Proposition 65.
• Assuming a commissary needs no filing. Ask FDB how your kitchen arrangement affects your filings.
• Buying equipment or packaging before you confirm your path. Confirm the registration route first, then spend.
• Missing local and county requirements. The state registration does not replace a city business tax registration or a county permit.
• Missing the 40-day deadline for a fictitious business name or the 90-day deadline for your Statement of Information.

Tips for getting it right

• Put every question to FDB in writing, and save the reply in your records.
• Ask your city and county the same question about what licenses your address requires, and get the answer in writing.
• Ask the California Small Business Development Center network at https://californiasbdc.org/ for help with planning and paperwork.
• Keep a single folder with your recipes, ingredient suppliers, label versions, and filing receipts. Agencies will ask for them.

Next steps

1. Confirm that Path 2 fits your business, and that your product is not better suited to cottage food.
2. Ask FDB about your commissary arrangement and any county-permitted retail bakery questions.
3. Complete Form CDPH 8611, pay the registration fee and any applicable Food Safety Fee, and file on time.
4. Finish your labels against the federal rules, and check Proposition 65 with OEHHA and FDB.
5. Get a seller's permit from the CDTFA if you will make taxable sales.
6. Form your entity with the Secretary of State if you need one, and check city and county requirements at your address.

This article is general information, not legal or tax advice. Because food labeling, entity choice, and tax treatment depend on your specific facts, speak with a qualified attorney and a CPA before you sign agreements or file with the state.