Harford County, MD Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Vending Zones (2026)

Chapter 197, Article II regulates itinerant retail produce dealers, defined at § 197-7 as anyone without an established place of business in the county who sells or offers fruits, vegetables, garden produce, eggs, cheese, game, veal, pork, mutton, lamb, rabbits or poultry from a cart, wagon, truck, automobile or other vehicle to any person, restaurant, hotel or public institution in the county. Section 197-8 makes it unlawful to operate as an itinerant retail produce dealer without first obtaining a license; the written application goes to the Department of Inspections, Licenses and Permits on Executive Branch forms and must be approved by the County Health Officer or a designee before it issues.

Section 197-9 sets the fee at $25 per vehicle per year, paid to the County Treasurer, and the license expires every January 1 and cannot be transferred; DILP's Director can revoke it under the same section. Section 197-10 requires each vehicle to display the dealer's name, address and license number, plus the words 'itinerant retail produce dealer' in letters at least three inches tall, painted or plated on both sides, and the dealer must carry and show the license to any police officer or other arresting officer on request.

The article does not confine selling to particular streets, districts or hours; it regulates who may sell rather than where, and § 197-11 exempts farmers or producers selling what they themselves raised or produced in the state, though those sellers remain subject to state law. A dealer with an established place of business in the county falls outside the article entirely.