E. Food and drinks

E1. Overview

The public order offices (Ordnungsämter) are usually responsible for this. 

There are 3 categories of gastronomic offers. 

  1. Example: A classic cake bazaar that operates exclusively on a donation basis and does not generate any income. → As a rule, no registration is required for this. Please check with the competent authority whether someone is serving food at your stand who has a valid hygiene passport. If you do not have one, you can apply for one at the responsible veterinary office.
  2. Example: Your own gastronomic offer that you sell yourself as organisers. → For this, you have to observe several parameters. For the commercial sale of food and beverages, you need a catering trade permit and a hygiene passport for those of you who want to sell the products. You can obtain the catering trade permit from the relevant public order office. Please also pay attention to application deadlines, as processing times can sometimes take several weeks. You can apply for the hygiene passport at the veterinary office.
  3. Example: An external service provider sells at your event and may pay you a stand rental fee. → The easiest way to sell gastronomic offers is to use an external service provider who has all the necessary requirements and therefore requires little effort to apply. Mobile providers usually have a travel trade card and the necessary hygiene passports for their staff. You should name the provider as part of your event concept (complete company name incl. entry in the commercial register) and, if necessary, send it to the responsible office with a request for verification.

E2. Application procedure

Permission according to § 12 Gaststättengesetz (GastG)

If the gastronomic activity is only temporary catering on the occasion of an event (special occasion, e.g. club, town, music, school or folk festival, market, exhibition, etc.), the operation of a catering business requiring a permit can be permitted under simplified conditions according to § 12 Gaststättengesetz (GastG) by the municipality or administrative community responsible for the venue. This permission must be applied for in good time before the start of the event, as various authorities (e.g. police, youth welfare office, etc.) must be involved before it is granted.

Pursuant to § 12 of the German Restaurant Act (Gaststättengesetz), the permit is limited in time, is issued with conditions and is subject to revocation. The permit is only granted for a specific location and not, for example, for a specific beer tent or a specific food truck in such a way that the facility described in the permit (beer tent, food truck, etc.) may be set up and operated anywhere within the area of application of the Catering Act (GastG).

What should your application contain, or what requirements are necessary?

The most important thing is the event concept, which contains all the necessary parameters in written form. These are, among others: 

  1. Type of event, e.g. music, reading, theatre, etc.
  2. How many visitors do you expect?
  3. The date of the planned event and the time at which it is to take place.
  4. On which area should the event take place (see site plan)?
  5. Is there a charge for visitors to your event?
  6. Will the sale of food and drinks be commercial?

What attachments do I need for the application?

Depending on the constellation, you should send all necessary documents as attachments. This includes a copy of the travel trade card, a copy of the restaurant trade permit, a copy of the employees' hygiene passports and, if applicable, a site plan. 

When opening or continuing a restaurant, a large number of regulations of gastronomy law must be observed. This section is intended to provide an overview of gastronomy law. The individual problems are dealt with on separate pages.

The commercial operation of a catering trade with the serving of alcohol for consumption on the premises is subject to licensing.

E3. Other

Food hygiene

Various regulations must be observed in food hygiene.

During the production, handling and processing, transport, storage and sale of foodstuffs, all influences must be eliminated which could lead to the expectation of human illness after consumption of a foodstuff. For this purpose, appropriate self-checks in the enterprise (restaurant) are prescribed in all areas of food handling, from the receipt of goods to the dispensing of products. This control system should be tailored to the conditions in the business, involve the employees and specify what, when, where, how and by whom is to be controlled, arranged and verified. A minimum level of expertise in the field of food hygiene (e.g. knowledge of critical temperatures, standing times, microbiological relationships) is required. In addition, the instruction and training of employees who handle food is mandatory.

Beverage dispensing systems

Beverage dispensing systems are systems from which beverages are dispensed for final consumption with or without operating overpressure. The general requirements for the construction and operation of beverage dispensing systems are based on good food hygiene practice, the Equipment and Product Safety Act, the Ordinance on Industrial Safety and Health, the Occupational Safety and Health Act, BGR 228, and the state of the art. Such equipment may not be put into operation until it has been type-tested and labelled accordingly and an expert has certified the first test in the operating log.

Food waste

Food waste is understood to be all organic parts produced in the course of the preparation of food in the kitchen which contain the remains of animal body parts or animal products or which may be contaminated with these. This also includes food leftovers that have not been consumed by the guests. It is not permitted to feed such food and slaughter waste to cloven-hoofed animals and poultry or to dispose of it in any organic waste bin that may be available. Such waste must be disposed of properly via approved and contracted disposal companies.

E4. Links (in German)