Daly City, CA Home Business: Cottage Food Operations (2026)
Key Facts
- City Carve-Out
- MEHKOs exempt per DCMC 17.36.020
- MEHKO Permit
- San Mateo County Environmental Health
- MEHKO Meal Limits
- 30 meals/day, 90 meals/week
- MEHKO Sales Cap
- $100,000 gross annual sales
- City Requirement
- Register as Daly City business
Summary
Daly City's zoning excludes general 'food preparation' as a home occupation, but state law overrides: residents can run a county-permitted Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation (MEHKO) or a state cottage food operation. DCMC Sec. 17.36.020 expressly removes MEHKOs from the home occupation rules, deferring to state and San Mateo County permitting.
Recently approved legislation allows home-based San Mateo County chefs to operate food facilities (i.e., Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation - MEHKO) from their home kitchens. The program is available to San Mateo County residents living in private homes equipped with a kitchen who are locally licensed and have been issued an operating permit from San Mateo County's Environmental Health Services Division. A Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation (MEHKO) is "a food facility that is operated by a resident from their private home kitchen." Once permitted, a resident can store, handle, prepare, and serve food to the public as allowed by State law like a restaurant. State law does place limits on the number of meals that can be served, revenue that can be received, and on some foods that can be prepared, among other requirements.
Full Breakdown
DCMC Sec. 040 lists 'food preparation' among occupations that cannot be a Daly City home occupation. However, Sec. 020 (amended by Ord. No. 1453, 11-22-2021) states that any Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation as defined by California Health and Safety Code Sec. ' Under HSC Sec. 113825, a MEHKO is a home food facility limited to no more than 30 individual meals per day and 90 per week, with no more than $100,000 in verifiable gross annual sales, selling directly to consumers. The city's MEHKO page directs residents to obtain an operating permit from San Mateo County Environmental Health Services and to register as a local business with Daly City.
Separately, California Government Code Sec. 51035 bars cities from prohibiting cottage food operations (HSC Sec. 113758) in residential dwellings; CFOs register with San Mateo County Environmental Health and sell only approved non-potentially-hazardous foods.
Violations & Fines
Preparing and selling food from a home without a San Mateo County MEHKO permit or cottage food registration falls back into the 'food preparation' exclusion of DCMC Sec. 17.36.040 and is an unlawful home occupation, subject to permit denial or revocation and code enforcement. County health permits can also be suspended or revoked for violating the California Retail Food Code.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I cook and sell meals from my Daly City kitchen?
Does Daly City allow cottage food operations?
Why is 'food preparation' listed as an excluded home occupation?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Daly City
California rules heatmap·Compare Daly City to another location·View the California home business overview
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