Doña Ana County, NM Public Health Rules: Food Handler Certification (2026)

Section 350-502J of the Unified Development Code regulates mobile food vending businesses as a use category general to all zones. Subsection (1) requires that mobile food vendors follow all applicable state and local laws, expressly naming fire codes, zoning codes, and occupational tax codes, and obtain a State of New Mexico Food Handler's Card before operating. That card comes from the state's food-safety training program, not a separate county-issued credential, but the county folds it directly into its zoning compliance requirement so it is enforceable alongside the vendor's site and business registration.

The requirement sits alongside the vendor's other operating conditions in § 350-502J: an approved site plan must be submitted with the vendor's business registration (J(3)), the vending vehicle cannot park within 20 feet of a roadway, and it needs written approval from the property owner or, for legal parking spaces, from the property owner or business controlling that lot (J(2)). A minimum one thirty-gallon waste receptacle must stay on-site at all times, and display signage cannot obstruct traffic, a clear sight triangle, or the public view.

Because these are UDC zoning provisions rather than a separate county health code chapter, code enforcement checks compliance through the business registration and site plan process rather than through a county health inspector.