Council accepts feasibility study for micro‑enterprise home kitchens, directs code updates and fee study

Long Beach health officials presented the results of a city‑funded feasibility study on micro‑enterprise home kitchen operations (MECO) on June 10, and the City Council approved staff recommendations to begin municipal-code updates and to study fee‑reduction and process streamlining for food‑safety permits.

Judith Leung, Environmental Health Bureau manager, told council the study — funded in part by state grant money (AB 178) — included community surveys, multilingual outreach (English, Spanish, Tagalog, Khmer), interdepartmental meetings and consultation with other California jurisdictions that have adopted MECO programs. The survey collected 216 responses; 74 percent said they would support a MECO program and respondents named food safety, grease disposal, trash and traffic as the main neighborhood concerns.

Leung summarized the state law changes that gradually created and broadened the MECO framework (AB 626 and AB 377 previously; AB 178 funding and updates more recently) including the current statewide maximum of 90 meals per week and $100,000 gross annual sales limits for MECO operations. The presentation described permitting steps: a written standard operating procedure, an initial inspection, an annual health permit and complaint‑driven follow‑ups. Typical start‑up costs the staff cited included a food safety certificate, an SOP review fee, and an annual health permit fee based on other cities’ implementations.

Councilmembers and community speakers framed the item as an economic‑inclusion policy: home cooks, immigrant entrepreneurs and families could use MECO as an incubation pathway before a brick‑and‑mortar opening. Dozens of public commenters — including organizers from the Home Cooks Coalition, local food incubators such as Partake Collective, and community economic development staff — urged the council to adopt the program and to identify startup grants or fee waivers to lower barriers for low‑income operators.

Staff recommended, and council adopted, a set of actions: request the city attorney to update the Long Beach Municipal Code to reflect state MECO law; consolidate and repeal conflicting code sections related to home‑based food enterprises; and direct the city manager to return with a presentation on food‑safety fees and fee‑reduction options within 120 days (a separate council communication, co‑sponsored by Councilmember Zendejas and Dr. Saro, asked staff specifically to report on health and food‑related fees within 120 days).

Councilmembers asked staff to prioritize language access for permitting and to explore fee‑offset programs and grant matches with state or nonprofit partners. Staff said they will use model ordinances from jurisdictions already operating MECO programs, and that program development work has begun; implementation will require cross‑departmental coordination and time for ordinance drafting and outreach.