United States
Hong KongCalifornia: one certified manager per facility, plus handler cards
California Health and Safety Code section 113947 requires every food facility preparing, handling or serving non-prepackaged potentially hazardous food to have at least one Certified Food Protection Manager, holding an ANAB-accredited certificate valid five years.
- Requirement
- At least one Certified Food Protection Manager per facility
- Legal basis
- California Health and Safety Code, in the Retail Food Code
- Accreditation
- ANAB-accredited, against the Conference for Food Protection standard
- Validity
- Five years
- Course required first
- No state-wide course prerequisite
- Separate handler requirement
- Yes - food handler cards for most food workers
- Authority
- Your local environmental health department
The manager requirement
One certified person per facility, not per shift, under the state rule. The certificate is held by the owner or an employee and is valid for five years.
Any ANAB-accredited exam satisfies it. California does not run its own exam and does not require a specific provider.
The handler card is a separate thing
California also requires food handler cards from most people who handle food, obtained through a short accredited course rather than a proctored exam.
Two different requirements, two different documents. Holding manager certification does not automatically exempt you from a handler card requirement, and a room full of handler cards does not satisfy the manager requirement.
San Bernardino, Riverside and San Diego counties operate their own food handler programs and are treated separately from the state handler card scheme. If you work in one of them, check the county rather than assuming the state rule.
Where local rules go further
California delegates enforcement to county environmental health departments, and several go beyond the state minimum - on how many certified people a facility needs, on which local training is accepted, and on how the certificate must be displayed.
Los Angeles County, San Francisco, Santa Clara and the three counties above all have their own pages worth reading.
Getting it
- Pick any ANAB-accredited provider - no state approval list applies.
- Prepare for eight to fifteen hours.
- Sit the 80-question proctored exam, at a center or remotely.
- File the certificate with your employer and note the five-year expiry.
- Check separately whether you also need a handler card.
State rules change, and counties and cities routinely impose requirements the state does not. Treat this page as a starting point and confirm with the authority named above before booking anything.
Common questions
Does California require a certified food manager?
Yes. Every food facility preparing, handling or serving non-prepackaged potentially hazardous food must have at least one Certified Food Protection Manager holding an ANAB-accredited certificate.
How long is California food manager certification valid?
Five years from the exam date, after which the full exam is sat again. There is no shorter renewal course.
Is a food handler card the same thing?
No. California separately requires food handler cards from most food workers, obtained through a short accredited course. Holding one does not satisfy the manager requirement, or the reverse.
Which counties are different?
San Bernardino, Riverside and San Diego run their own food handler programs rather than the state card scheme. Several other counties add requirements on top of the state minimum.
Does California require a training course before the exam?
Not at state level. Any ANAB-accredited exam satisfies the requirement, so the exam-only route is available unless your county says otherwise.