Special Events, Farmers’ Markets, and Wild Game Dinners

If you are organizing an event or market where food will be served or sold to the public, or you are planning to sell or serve food to the public at a market or event, you are planning to operate a temporary food premises.

Under the Health Protection and Promotion Act, anyone intending to operate a food premises must notify the local health unit before they begin operation. This includes temporary food premises.

All food premises require assessment and approval by the NWHU prior to operating.

Invitation-only events such as weddings, birthday parties, and family picnics do not generally fall into the definition of a food premises due to their private nature, and do not normally require notification.

To access the correct notification form and information package for your situation, select the category below that best fits your role:

Special Event Coordinator

Complete the form within the Special Event Coordinator Package and submit it to NWHU at least 10 business days prior to the event*.

The special event coordinator package includes information about the vendor approval process; this includes information about which vendors we require to obtain and display a Temporary Event Food Vendor Permit, and which vendors may apply for an exemption from this requirement.

*notification in this category is only required if you are coordinating a special event where two or more food vendors will be in attendance. If only one vendor will be in attendance, the special event food vendor form is sufficient.

Special Event Food Vendor

Complete the Temporary Food Premises Notification Form and submit it to NWHU at least 10 business days before the event*. Attach any additional event/market information using the Additional Pages for Temporary Food Premise Notification Form.

Some vendors will have the option to apply for an annual Temporary Event Food Vendor Permit which provides approval to operate the temporary food premises on more than one event date. All approved dates are listed on the permit. If you hold an annual Temporary Event Food Vendor Permit and wish to operate at dates that are not currently on your permit, please contact the public health inspector (PHI) who issued your permit to have the extra dates added.

Farmers’ Market Coordinator

Complete the Farmer’s Market Coordinator Package and submit it to NWHU at least 10 days prior to the event or market season.

The farmers’ market coordinator package includes information about determining whether your market is exempt from the food premises regulation, and what vendor requirements are in each scenario.

Farmers’ Market Food Vendor

Please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for Farmers’ Market Food Vendors for more information about the approval process, including information about vendor requirements and when the market is exempt from the food premises regulation.

Wild Game Event Host

Complete the form within the NWHU Wild Game Event Application Package and submit it to NWHU at least 10 business days prior to the event.

The wild game event application package includes information about the NWHU approval process, as well as other relevant information about hosting a wild game event in Ontario. You must submit a satisfactory food safety to NWHU prior to approval.