Long Branch, NJ Public Health Rules: Food Handler Certification (2026)

1, adopted by Ordinance No. 23-98 in 1998, the operator of any retail food establishment in the city must personally attend a food handlers training course offered by the Health Department, or submit a certificate from an acceptable outside course. In addition, one manager or other responsible individual from each shift must independently satisfy the same requirement. The course costs $25 per individual, with the Health Department authorized to offer a group rate of $200 for multiple attendees from the same establishment; everyone who completes the course receives a certificate.

1(B) forces the operator or a representative back into the training course regardless of prior attendance. The City Health Officer or a designated representative administers the program and interprets any disputed applications. This training duty sits inside Chapter 181's broader licensing scheme: § 181-3(D)(4) makes attendance at the periodic training course a condition of approving or renewing the establishment's annual retail food license, which under § 181-4 carries a basic fee of $100, rising to $150 or $200 depending on food preparation activity and square footage, plus a $25 late fee for renewals filed after January 31. C. 3, the state Sanitary Code, but the training obligation itself is a distinctly local Long Branch requirement layered on top of state licensing.