Food & Lodging Program | Vermont Department of Health
Source: http://healthvermont.gov/environment/food-lodging-program
Archived: 2026-04-23 17:15
Food & Lodging Program | Vermont Department of Health
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Translations for you
Food & Lodging Program
In this section:
Retail Food Service Establishments
Food Processing Establishments
Lodging Establishments
Inspection Reports
Temporary Food Service Establishments
Home-Based Food Licenses and Exemptions
Resources for License Holders
What the Food and Lodging Program Does
The Food and Lodging Program works to protect health and prevent disease by promoting sanitation and food safety. To accomplish this, we license and inspect establishments where food is prepared, served, processed, or stored. We also regulate lodging facilities including hotels, bed & breakfasts, and children’s camps.
Translated information in:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
中文 (Simplified Chinese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
How to Get a License From the Health Department
Your first step is to determine
which type of license you need
. Once you know which type of license you need, click on the link below and follow the steps on that web page.
Retail service
- If you're licensing a restaurant, commercial catering business, food truck, pushcart, retail bakery, limited operation, seafood vending or shellfish reshipping/repacking business.
Food processing
- If you're licensing a manufacturing facility to make products like salsa, sauce, salad dressing, coffee, beverages, snacks, candy, chocolate, condiments, jam and jelly, etc. Warehouses and distribution centers also need this type of license.
Lodging
- If you're licensing a hotel, motel, tourist home or B&B that offers three or more guest rooms OR fewer units if you also prepare food.
Home-based food business
- If you want to sell certain allowable home-prepared foods to customers.
Temporary food service
- If you’re licensing a temporary stand to sell prepared food at a farmers market, fair or other special event.
In rare cases, a license is not required.
Learn more about license exemptions
The appeal process for a licensing decision can be found in the
Statement of Procedural Rights
.
Important Links
Look up Food Inspection Reports
Find a Certified Food Protection Manager Course
Guide to Opening a Food or Lodging Establishment
Guide to Opening a Home-Based Food Business
Look up Food Recalls
Event Coordinator Form
New! Handwashing Posters
Go to handwashing posters
We recently redesigned the handwashing posters! Two sizes
—
in both full color and grayscale
—
are available for you to print.
Go to handwashing posters
How to Renew Your Food or Lodging License
Renew Your Food or Lodging License Online
Instructions on how to renew your license online
Read the instructions for online license renewal
You can now renew your license online using a credit card or debit card. You'll need to set up a new account the first time you log in. You'll also need the Business Code included on your renewal notice. Watch the video below for detailed instructions on how to set up your account and renew your license online.
Call the Food & Lodging Program at
802-863-7221
if you need help with online license renewal.
How to Report Food Poisoning or File a Complaint
Report Food Poisoning
File a Sanitation Complaint
Instructions on how to report food poisoning or file a complaint about a food or lodging business
The Food and Lodging Program responds to complaints involving sanitation in food and lodging establishments, food product contamination, and suspected food poisoning.
If you want to file a report or a complaint, please be prepared with the following information. We may not be able to follow up on complaints with insufficient information.
The name and address of the establishment
Date and time you visited the establishment
Specific complaint details—describe the issue as completely as possible
Food poisoning complaints should also include details on symptoms experienced including time and date, duration of symptoms, whether you sought medical attention, and what foods were eaten in the three days prior to experiencing symptoms
Complaints are triaged and follow-up is scheduled according to public health risk.
You may make a complaint anonymously. If you wish to be anonymous, do not include your name or any contact information. If you include your name or any contact information it will become a part of the public record. Please be aware that complaints – including complainant identification - are public records and thus can be obtained by any member of the public. Please note that we understand your desire for privacy however we often have questions about the complaints we investigate. If we are unable to contact you, it could slow or stop our investigation.
The Food & Lodging Program can follow up on concerns within our jurisdiction. For other areas:
The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) manages consumer complaints for FDA-regulated products including human food, animal food, dietary supplements, drugs, devices, cosmetics, tobacco and biologics. Concerns about human foods manufactured outside of Vermont should be reported to the FDA. Consumer complaints can be reported at the FDA
SmartHub
or at
1-888-INFO-FDA
.
Rental housing
concerns should be reported to the Department of Public Safety
Division of Fire Safety
.
Senior residential community
(assisted living, nursing home) concerns should be reported to the Vermont Agency of Disabilities, Aging, and Independent Living (DAIL) at
802-241-2401
.
Dairy and meat product
concerns should be reported to the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets at
802-828-2426
or
online
.
Note: The Food & Lodging Program is not able to assist in obtaining a refund from a food or lodging establishment based on a complaint.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I request an opening inspection?
First submit the application and license fees to the central office, then a public health inspector will contact you to schedule an opening inspection.
Who is my health inspector?
Use the
map to find a public health inspector in your area
.
Which license do I need?
Use the
Guide to Opening a Food or Lodging Establishment
to help determine which license(s) are appropriate.
Do I need to submit plans for review?
A plan review is required for new construction and for significant renovations. There is no fee for the plan review.
How long does it take to get a license?
You should apply at least 30 days before you plan to open your business, especially if you require a preliminary inspection.
My license has expired. Why can’t I renew it online?
If your license has been expired for more than 120 days, a new application is required. You cannot renew online.
More Information
FoodSafety.gov
Food Safety Moderization Act (FSMA)
Food Recalls and Safety Alerts (FDA)
Translated Information
Applications
Application for License to Operate a Lodging Establishment or Children's Camp:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
中文 (Simplified Chinese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
Application to Operate a Manufactured Food Establishment:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
中文 (Simplified Chinese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
Application for License to Operate a Retail Food Establishment:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
中文 (Simplified Chinese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
Application for License to Operate a Temporary Food Service Establishment:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
中文 (Simplified Chinese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
For Emergencies
Guidance for Re-opening Food and Lodging Establishments After Flooding:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
Boil Water Notice Guidance for Food Establishments:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
Electrical Outage Guidance for Food Establishments:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
Contact Us
Mailing address:
VT Dept. of Health
Environmental Health
Food & Lodging Program
280 State Drive
Waterbury, VT 05671-8350
Phone:
802-863-7221
or
800-439-8550
(toll-free within Vermont)
Fax:
802-863-7483
Email:
[email protected]
Find the public health inspector in your area
Resources for License Holders
Search here for free food safety resources for our license holders.
Home-Based Food Licenses and Exemptions
Health Department regulations allow some small businesses to operate in a primary residence using standard...
Temporary Food Service Establishments
What You Need to Know About Temporary Food Service at Events A temporary food service...
Inspection Reports
Through this web portal, you can learn more about the inspection process and view recent...
Lodging Establishments
Establishments that offer lodging to the traveling, transient public must apply for a Health Department...
Food Processing Establishments
Establishments that process food—such as sauces, salsa, salad dressings, candies, chocolates, jams and jellies, etc.—for...
Retail Food Service Establishments
Retail food establishments include restaurants, catering companies, food trucks and push carts, as well as...
Subscribe to Food & Lodging Program
Last Updated:
April 21, 2026
Skip to main content
MENU
x
CLOSE
Translations for you
Food & Lodging Program
In this section:
Retail Food Service Establishments
Food Processing Establishments
Lodging Establishments
Inspection Reports
Temporary Food Service Establishments
Home-Based Food Licenses and Exemptions
Resources for License Holders
What the Food and Lodging Program Does
The Food and Lodging Program works to protect health and prevent disease by promoting sanitation and food safety. To accomplish this, we license and inspect establishments where food is prepared, served, processed, or stored. We also regulate lodging facilities including hotels, bed & breakfasts, and children’s camps.
Translated information in:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
中文 (Simplified Chinese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
How to Get a License From the Health Department
Your first step is to determine
which type of license you need
. Once you know which type of license you need, click on the link below and follow the steps on that web page.
Retail service
- If you're licensing a restaurant, commercial catering business, food truck, pushcart, retail bakery, limited operation, seafood vending or shellfish reshipping/repacking business.
Food processing
- If you're licensing a manufacturing facility to make products like salsa, sauce, salad dressing, coffee, beverages, snacks, candy, chocolate, condiments, jam and jelly, etc. Warehouses and distribution centers also need this type of license.
Lodging
- If you're licensing a hotel, motel, tourist home or B&B that offers three or more guest rooms OR fewer units if you also prepare food.
Home-based food business
- If you want to sell certain allowable home-prepared foods to customers.
Temporary food service
- If you’re licensing a temporary stand to sell prepared food at a farmers market, fair or other special event.
In rare cases, a license is not required.
Learn more about license exemptions
The appeal process for a licensing decision can be found in the
Statement of Procedural Rights
.
Important Links
Look up Food Inspection Reports
Find a Certified Food Protection Manager Course
Guide to Opening a Food or Lodging Establishment
Guide to Opening a Home-Based Food Business
Look up Food Recalls
Event Coordinator Form
New! Handwashing Posters
Go to handwashing posters
We recently redesigned the handwashing posters! Two sizes
—
in both full color and grayscale
—
are available for you to print.
Go to handwashing posters
How to Renew Your Food or Lodging License
Renew Your Food or Lodging License Online
Instructions on how to renew your license online
Read the instructions for online license renewal
You can now renew your license online using a credit card or debit card. You'll need to set up a new account the first time you log in. You'll also need the Business Code included on your renewal notice. Watch the video below for detailed instructions on how to set up your account and renew your license online.
Call the Food & Lodging Program at
802-863-7221
if you need help with online license renewal.
How to Report Food Poisoning or File a Complaint
Report Food Poisoning
File a Sanitation Complaint
Instructions on how to report food poisoning or file a complaint about a food or lodging business
The Food and Lodging Program responds to complaints involving sanitation in food and lodging establishments, food product contamination, and suspected food poisoning.
If you want to file a report or a complaint, please be prepared with the following information. We may not be able to follow up on complaints with insufficient information.
The name and address of the establishment
Date and time you visited the establishment
Specific complaint details—describe the issue as completely as possible
Food poisoning complaints should also include details on symptoms experienced including time and date, duration of symptoms, whether you sought medical attention, and what foods were eaten in the three days prior to experiencing symptoms
Complaints are triaged and follow-up is scheduled according to public health risk.
You may make a complaint anonymously. If you wish to be anonymous, do not include your name or any contact information. If you include your name or any contact information it will become a part of the public record. Please be aware that complaints – including complainant identification - are public records and thus can be obtained by any member of the public. Please note that we understand your desire for privacy however we often have questions about the complaints we investigate. If we are unable to contact you, it could slow or stop our investigation.
The Food & Lodging Program can follow up on concerns within our jurisdiction. For other areas:
The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) manages consumer complaints for FDA-regulated products including human food, animal food, dietary supplements, drugs, devices, cosmetics, tobacco and biologics. Concerns about human foods manufactured outside of Vermont should be reported to the FDA. Consumer complaints can be reported at the FDA
SmartHub
or at
1-888-INFO-FDA
.
Rental housing
concerns should be reported to the Department of Public Safety
Division of Fire Safety
.
Senior residential community
(assisted living, nursing home) concerns should be reported to the Vermont Agency of Disabilities, Aging, and Independent Living (DAIL) at
802-241-2401
.
Dairy and meat product
concerns should be reported to the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets at
802-828-2426
or
online
.
Note: The Food & Lodging Program is not able to assist in obtaining a refund from a food or lodging establishment based on a complaint.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I request an opening inspection?
First submit the application and license fees to the central office, then a public health inspector will contact you to schedule an opening inspection.
Who is my health inspector?
Use the
map to find a public health inspector in your area
.
Which license do I need?
Use the
Guide to Opening a Food or Lodging Establishment
to help determine which license(s) are appropriate.
Do I need to submit plans for review?
A plan review is required for new construction and for significant renovations. There is no fee for the plan review.
How long does it take to get a license?
You should apply at least 30 days before you plan to open your business, especially if you require a preliminary inspection.
My license has expired. Why can’t I renew it online?
If your license has been expired for more than 120 days, a new application is required. You cannot renew online.
More Information
FoodSafety.gov
Food Safety Moderization Act (FSMA)
Food Recalls and Safety Alerts (FDA)
Translated Information
Applications
Application for License to Operate a Lodging Establishment or Children's Camp:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
中文 (Simplified Chinese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
Application to Operate a Manufactured Food Establishment:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
中文 (Simplified Chinese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
Application for License to Operate a Retail Food Establishment:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
中文 (Simplified Chinese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
Application for License to Operate a Temporary Food Service Establishment:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
中文 (Simplified Chinese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
For Emergencies
Guidance for Re-opening Food and Lodging Establishments After Flooding:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
Boil Water Notice Guidance for Food Establishments:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
Electrical Outage Guidance for Food Establishments:
العربية (Arabic)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
Contact Us
Mailing address:
VT Dept. of Health
Environmental Health
Food & Lodging Program
280 State Drive
Waterbury, VT 05671-8350
Phone:
802-863-7221
or
800-439-8550
(toll-free within Vermont)
Fax:
802-863-7483
Email:
[email protected]
Find the public health inspector in your area
Resources for License Holders
Search here for free food safety resources for our license holders.
Home-Based Food Licenses and Exemptions
Health Department regulations allow some small businesses to operate in a primary residence using standard...
Temporary Food Service Establishments
What You Need to Know About Temporary Food Service at Events A temporary food service...
Inspection Reports
Through this web portal, you can learn more about the inspection process and view recent...
Lodging Establishments
Establishments that offer lodging to the traveling, transient public must apply for a Health Department...
Food Processing Establishments
Establishments that process food—such as sauces, salsa, salad dressings, candies, chocolates, jams and jellies, etc.—for...
Retail Food Service Establishments
Retail food establishments include restaurants, catering companies, food trucks and push carts, as well as...
Subscribe to Food & Lodging Program
Last Updated:
April 21, 2026