The California Food and Agricultural Code, together with the Health and Safety Code provisions that work alongside it, governs how food is grown, handled, labeled, and sold in the state. Enforcement is split between the California Department of Food and Agriculture, the Department of Pesticide Regulation, and county agricultural commissioners. If you produce, process, or sell food in California, you will deal with all three at some point, and the penalties for missing a requirement run from $1,000 infractions to $100,000 fines and jail time.
What follows is what the code asks of you, in the order most operators encounter it.
Licenses and Permits You Need Before You Operate
Every commercial food or agricultural activity in California starts with a license or permit. The CDFA runs a centralized licensing portal that covers milk product plants, general samplers and weighers, brand inspection, and related programs.1California Department of Food and Agriculture. CDFA Licensing and Registration Portal The Market Enforcement Branch licenses dealers and processors of agricultural commodities, and applicants must file before they begin transacting business.2California Department of Food and Agriculture. Market Enforcement Branch Licensing Requirements
Dairy operations sit under a separate permit regime. Food and Agricultural Code Section 33222 requires anyone producing market milk to hold a permit from the CDFA secretary or the approved milk inspection service in their county before selling. Processing and distribution plants need a separate Section 33226 permit issued after facility inspection.3Justia. California Code FAC 33221-33228 – Article 7 Permits Both permits last one year at most and must be renewed.
Pesticide applicators go through the Department of Pesticide Regulation. Applying or supervising the application of restricted-use pesticides requires a Qualified Applicator License, which means passing the Laws, Regulations, and Basic Principles exam and at least one pest control category exam with a score of 70 percent or higher. The application fee is $180 and each exam costs $115. Licensees must complete 20 hours of approved continuing education every two years, including four hours on pesticide laws and regulations.4Department of Pesticide Regulation. Qualified Applicator License Requirements
If you sell organic products, you must register with the CDFA before your first sale. Registration fees scale with prior-year organic gross sales, starting at $25 for operations under $5,000 and topping out at $3,000 for operations above $25 million. Registration is renewed annually.5California Legislative Information. California Code FAC 46013.1 – Organic Registration Fees
Food Safety Rules for Daily Operations
The California Retail Food Code, in Part 7 of the Health and Safety Code, sets how food is handled, prepared, and stored in retail and food service settings.6Justia. California Health and Safety Code Division 104 Part 7 – California Retail Food Code California tracks federal standards in many areas and adds its own on temperature control.
Potentially hazardous foods must be held at or above 135°F or at or below 41°F, with narrow exceptions for preparation, cooking, cooling, and transport periods under 30 minutes.7California Legislative Information. California Health and Safety Code HSC 113996 – Temperature Requirements Temperature violations are among the most common inspection findings, and they can trigger immediate corrective action or temporary closure.
Food handlers must obtain a Food Handler Card within 30 days of hire and keep it valid the whole time they work as a food handler. The requirement covers most people who prepare, serve, or handle food in retail settings, though workers with equivalent training may be exempt. Handwashing, correct glove use, and sanitation of food contact surfaces are the core hygiene duties.
Pesticide Rules Specific to California
California’s pesticide rules go beyond federal requirements. The Department of Pesticide Regulation evaluates every pesticide for California conditions before it can be sold or used in the state, on top of the federal EPA registration that all pesticides already need.8Department of Pesticide Regulation. How Pesticides are Evaluated Applicants submit the same data package they filed with the federal EPA, plus anything additional DPR requests.9Legal Information Institute. California Code of Regulations Title 3 6170 – Application
The state has used that authority to restrict products still legal federally. Chlorpyrifos, an organophosphate insecticide widely used in agriculture, was pulled after evidence linked it to impaired brain development in children; California reached an agreement with manufacturers ending sales by February 2020 and banning all possession and use by December 31, 2020.10California Environmental Protection Agency. Press Release – Agreement Reached to End Sale of Chlorpyrifos in California by February 2020
Groundwater and Schoolsite Restrictions
DPR maintains a Groundwater Protection List under 3 CCR Section 6800 identifying pesticides that can leach into drinking water supplies.11Legal Information Institute. California Code of Regulations Title 3 6800 – Groundwater Protection List Listed pesticides face restrictions on how and where they can be applied.12California Department of Pesticide Regulation. Groundwater
Under 3 CCR Section 6690, any agricultural pesticide application within a quarter mile of a schoolsite faces special restrictions. “Schoolsite” includes child day care facilities and K-12 properties, covering all areas children use on weekdays.13Legal Information Institute. California Code of Regulations Title 3 6690 – Pesticide Use near Schoolsites
Worker Protection
Agricultural employers must comply with the federal Worker Protection Standard, which requires annual pesticide safety training, posted safety information accessible during work hours, and proper protective equipment for workers and handlers.14U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Worker Protection Standard Materials California adds its own layer, including restricted entry intervals that keep workers out of treated fields for a set waiting period.
Quarantines and What They Mean for Your Operation
The CDFA has authority under Division 4 to impose quarantines restricting the movement of plants, animals, and agricultural products. Quarantines can be county-level, regional, or statewide, and inspectors can enter premises, examine records, and collect samples. During quarantine enforcement, the secretary or a commissioner can inspect any plant or item potentially carrying a pest and block it from crossing a quarantine boundary without a signed certificate of inspection and release.15Justia. California Food and Agricultural Code 5021-5029 – General Provisions
Two active quarantine programs illustrate how disruptive this can be. When Mediterranean fruit fly is detected, CDFA and USDA APHIS establish zones that expand one square mile per new confirmed detection; a late-2025 Santa Clara County quarantine covered 198 square miles and 47 acres of commercial agriculture across grape, olive, orange, pepper, stone fruit, and tomato production.16USDA APHIS. APHIS Expands Mediterranean Fruit Fly Quarantine in California For huanglongbing (citrus greening disease), a single host plant testing positive triggers a quarantine covering at minimum a five-mile radius, and all regulated citrus nursery stock inside the zone is barred from movement unless it was produced in a departmentally approved insect-resistant structure under a compliance agreement or certified as meeting specified treatment requirements. Infected material must be destroyed, and any facility where the disease is found must complete approved treatment before it can resume moving plant material.17California Department of Food and Agriculture. Section 3439 – Huanglongbing Disease Interior Quarantine
Animal Welfare Standards and Proposition 12
Health and Safety Code Section 25990, enacted through Proposition 12, prohibits confining covered farm animals for the majority of any day in a manner that prevents them from lying down, standing up, fully extending their limbs, or turning around freely.18California Legislative Information. California Health and Safety Code 25990 – Prohibitions The law covers egg-laying hens, veal calves, and breeding pigs. Breeding sows need at least 24 square feet of usable floor space per animal, on top of the movement requirements.19California Department of Food and Agriculture. Prop 12 Sow Housing Guide
Prop 12 also bars the sale of pork, veal, and eggs in California from operations that fail to meet the standards, regardless of where the animals were raised. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld this in 2023. The CDFA’s Animal Care Program handles compliance and investigations.20California Department of Food and Agriculture. Animal Care Program Division 9 of the code separately requires humane slaughter methods for cattle, horses, sheep, swine, goats, and poultry, and sets transport rules for ventilation, water, and rest.
Labeling: Sherman Law, Organic, and Proposition 65
California’s food labeling operates on two tracks. The Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law in Part 5 of the Health and Safety Code prohibits false or misleading food label information about composition, nutrition, or health benefits, and covers misbranding, adulteration, and deceptive advertising.21Justia. California Health and Safety Code Division 104 Part 5 – Sherman Food Drug and Cosmetic Laws Violations can result in recalls, fines, and criminal charges.
Only operations certified through the USDA’s National Organic Program or California’s State Organic Program can sell, label, or represent products as organic. The USDA’s Organic Integrity Database lets anyone verify a farm or business’s certification.22USDA Agricultural Marketing Service. Organic Integrity Database Falsely labeling conventional products as organic carries penalties under both state and federal law.
Proposition 65, codified at Health and Safety Code Section 25249.6, requires businesses to give clear and reasonable warnings before knowingly exposing anyone to chemicals the state has identified as causing cancer or reproductive harm.23California Legislative Information. California Health and Safety Code 25249.6 – Required Warning Before Exposure The state’s list of covered chemicals includes both naturally occurring and synthetic substances.24Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment. The Proposition 65 List For food producers this often means warning labels on products containing even trace amounts of listed chemicals. Prop 65 also authorizes private lawsuits by individuals and advocacy groups seeking civil penalties, which is why it is one of California’s most actively litigated consumer protection statutes.
If You Hire H-2A Workers
H-2A is federal, but the obligations bind any California employer using it. You must pay the highest of the Adverse Effect Wage Rate, the prevailing wage, any collective bargaining rate, or the applicable minimum wage. You must guarantee at least 75 percent of the workdays in the contract period, and if you fall short, you owe the worker the difference. Housing must be provided at no cost, and you must either furnish three meals per day at a regulated cost or provide free cooking and kitchen facilities.25U.S. Department of Labor. Section H-2A of the Immigration and Nationality Act You must also engage in positive recruitment of U.S. workers and hire any qualified domestic applicant until 50 percent of the contract period has passed. Laying off U.S. workers within 60 days of the stated date of need and then hiring H-2A workers is prohibited unless those workers were offered and rejected the job.
What Inspections Look Like
The CDFA and county agricultural commissioners share inspection duties. Most Produce Safety Program inspections are scheduled, but unannounced ones happen when a farm is unresponsive to scheduling, has a history of uncorrected safety issues, needs a follow-up, or is tied to a complaint, recall, or foodborne illness investigation.26California Department of Food and Agriculture. About CDFA Produce Safety Program Inspection Procedures Inspectors check plant health, livestock conditions, food safety, sanitation, and pest control. Dairy operations face particularly intensive oversight including microbial testing and equipment inspections. Violations generate compliance notices with corrective-action deadlines, and repeat violations escalate to formal enforcement.
Penalties by Category
Pesticide Violations
A violation of the pesticide provisions in the Food and Agricultural Code is a misdemeanor. First offense: a fine of not less than $5,000 and not more than $50,000, up to six months in jail, or both. A second or subsequent conviction of the same provision raises the minimum fine to $10,000 and the maximum to $75,000. If the violation was intentional or negligent and created or could have created a hazard to human health or the environment, penalties rise to up to one year in county jail or state prison and a fine between $15,000 and $100,000, or both.27California Legislative Information. California Food and Agricultural Code FAC 12996 – Penalties
County agricultural commissioners can levy civil penalties in lieu of criminal prosecution. The standard cap is $3,000 per violation, but Class A violations face civil penalties up to $15,000 each. Pesticide drift near a school that results in a Class A violation triggers additional monitoring fees of up to $50 per subsequent application that poses drift risk, continuing until the applicator goes 24 months without another Class A violation.28California Legislative Information. California Food and Agricultural Code 12999.5 – Civil Penalties
Quarantine Violations
A first quarantine violation is an infraction with a fine up to $1,000. A second or subsequent offense within three years becomes a misdemeanor. Civil liability runs up to $10,000 per violation, and the CDFA secretary or a county commissioner can instead levy an administrative civil penalty of up to $2,500 per violation.29Justia. California Food and Agricultural Code 5301-5311 – Quarantine Penalties
Food Safety and Labeling
Knowingly selling contaminated or mislabeled food can bring misdemeanor charges under the Sherman Law, with CDFA investigating through inspections, consumer complaints, and whistleblower reports. Proposition 65 violations carry their own enforcement track, and the availability of private civil suits is what makes Prop 65 exposure so significant for anyone selling into the California market.