Things You'll Need:
- Food service insurance
- Kitchen facilities
-
Step 1
Review all of the laws that you must abide by in order to be legally allowed to sell hot food. You'll have a large amount of reading to do, but you can find online directory sites that contain all of the food laws, including the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, Fair Packaging and Labeling Act and Food Quality Protection Act. An example of an online directory you can use is Food Law Org.
-
Step 2
Apply for a license to sell food. Most states will require that any type of establishment that sells hot food be licensed. You will obtain this license by contacting your state's Department of Agriculture. You'll need to fill out an application and pay an annual fee in order to renew the license.
-
Step 3
Prepare your hot food in approved kitchen facilities. The hot food you plan to sell must be prepared in a kitchen that has been inspected by both the zoning department of your city and the health department.
-
Step 4
Determine the price for the hot food that you plan to sell. Add up the cost of each ingredient that you include in the dish and how much time it takes to prepare each hot food item. Use these figures to determine your markup.
-
Step 5
Insure your business before you sell hot food. Speak to a commercial insurance agent about taking out a policy that protects your food service business. Progressive is an insurer that offers this type of coverage.
