Huntington Park, CA Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Food Truck Permits (2026)

Article 20 of Chapter 7, Title 4 supplies the definitions. A compact mobile food operation, or CMFO, is a mobile food facility that operates from an individual or from a pushcart, stand, display, pedal-driven cart, wagon, showcase, rack, or other nonmotorized conveyance. A mobile food facility is any vehicle used in conjunction with a commissary or other permanent food facility upon which food is sold or distributed at retail. Section 4-7.2005 bars any sidewalk vendor activity in the City without first applying for and receiving a permit from the Director, meaning the Director of Finance or designated representative. The permit includes inspection of the nonmotorized conveyance.

Under § 3-1.1802, the permit comes from the Director of Finance after an investigation by the Police Chief and the Director of Community Development or designees, and the license tax must also be paid. County health approval is a second layer. Section 4-7.2003(b) requires the vendor to display the City permit and the County Health Department sticker, and the County Health Department is the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

Section 4-7.2004 covers kitchens. The County Health Department can approve existing permitted food facilities, commissary kitchens, and churches, schools, libraries and community centers with commercial grade kitchens for preparing non-potentially hazardous foods. A cottage food operation or microenterprise home kitchen operation can serve as preparation and storage space for a CMFO if the County deems it adequate, with no more than two CMFOs stored in a private home unless the County approves more.

Motor vehicles selling food on streets are handled in § 4-7.1612(a), which bars parking a vehicle, lunch wagon or eating car on any street to sell food except at the request of a bona fide purchaser for no more than 10 minutes at any one place.