Do I need a food handlers card in California?

Step 1. Check that the rule covers your job. The California Health and Safety Code, section 113948, requires food handlers to get a food handlers card and keep it valid for their entire employment in a retail food establishment. Fresno County lists workplaces that are exempt. They include drug stores, convenience stores, school cafeterias, licensed health care facilities, and grocery stores along with their delis, bakeries, and meat and produce departments all under one owner. Anyone who works as the person in charge of a retail food establishment needs more in-depth training under a separate section of the code.

Step 2. Choose an ANSI accredited provider. The California Department of Public Health says courses that satisfy the California Retail Food Code must come from one. The department does not run food handler courses itself. Read your county's rules before you pick. San Bernardino County takes only its own card, and San Diego County says not all California courses are accepted there.

Step 3. Take the course. ANSI keeps a website that links to the companies that give the training, and each company's page lists its prices. Fresno County says most of these classes are online.

Step 4. Get your card in time and keep it current. Fresno County says food handlers need a California Food Handler Card within 30 days of being hired, and that employers must keep documentation of their employees' cards. It also says employees who hold a valid Food Manager Certificate do not also need a food handler card. Your card is valid for three years, after which you need more training. The state's own page names no deadline.