Submit shelf-stable product(s) with the appropriate form (under Forms on Cannery Webpage) for testing to the lab. This process could take 4-6 weeks to complete testing.
Receive Official Process Letter(s) (S-Letter) showing results of testing from the lab. All questions regarding the results of the letter should be directed to the lab.
If Official Process Letter(s) stated products must be packed under a Cannery license, fill out the Cannery License Application (PDF) and submit with payment ($118.00 non-refundable fee) to the California Department of Public Health. It could take up to 2 weeks before the cannery desk receives your application with payment.
The cannery desk will notify the district supervisor in the firm's area of your cannery license application.
The district supervisor will assign an inspector to the firm. The inspector will notify the firm to set a time for an initial inspection. This could take 4-8 weeks depending on the inspector's workload. All questions about the initial inspection can be answered by the inspector when a firm receives a phone call to schedule the inspection.
Once a firm has their initial inspection, the inspector will notify the cannery desk when a new license should be issued.
License is mailed out to mailing address stated on the application. The entire process may take several months to obtain a cannery license. Licenses must be renewed annually until end of business operations. Please notify the licensing desk or any facility relocations, ownership changes, or business closure.