Types of food business licences
The nature of your food-based business will determine the type of licence you will need. Council has three types of food business licences you can apply for, fixed, mobile, and temporary.
Fixed food business
Fixed food businesses operate from a fixed premise with a permanent address, such as:
- cafes or restaurants
- takeaway food shops
- bakeries
- home businesses
- childcare centres
- fruit and vegetable shops
- food manufacturers
- caterers.
Fixed food businesses planning to place tables and chairs on a footpath may need approval for outdoor dining.
Mobile food business
Mobile food businesses operate entirely from a vehicle or on a boat.
They include:
- food trucks
- ice cream vans
- pie vans (smoko trucks)
- mobile snack trucks
- mobile food trailers
- domestic water carriers
- unpackaged food from vending machines.
Mobile food businesses need licensing from one local council area in Queensland.
A mobile food business that wants to operate from Council land, including the side of the road, may need additional approvals. These include:
Temporary food business
Temporary food businesses operate from a stall or tent. They are set up and packed away at the end of an event or activity such as a market or fete stalls.
Issuing of temporary food business licences is for an annual period or as a once-off for a single event.
You must hold a food business licence with each local government area where you intend to operate your temporary business.
Find out how to apply for a food business licence.