Open a bakery in Winnipeg: no City business licence is needed, so the work is zoning, an occupancy permit, and the Manitoba Health permit.
Applies in: Manitoba
There is no City business licence to get — and that is the first thing to know. The City of Winnipeg states that as of April 1, 2015, no City of Winnipeg licence is required for a food handling establishment. The City licenses only 11 business activities, and food handling establishments are not among them. So the City's part of opening a Winnipeg bakery is zoning approval and an occupancy permit, while the permit that decides whether you can open is Manitoba Health's Food Handling Permit, plus the certified food handler rule in the City of Winnipeg Food Service By-law. This guide walks the Winnipeg application only. It does not repeat the national bakery guide's general steps for picking a format or registering a business — those are in our How to Start a Bakery Business in Canada guide.
Start with the City department that handles planning, property, and development. The City's Food Handling Establishment page says a food service establishment is any place where food is kept, handled, manufactured, packaged, stored, prepared, served, or sold, whether consumption is on or off the premises, and then states plainly that no City licence is required. For zoning approval and occupancy permits, it directs applicants to the Zoning Branch, at 31-30 Fort Street.
The City's Business Licences page confirms the shape of the system: the City licenses 11 business activities through the Community Safety Business Licensing By-law, and each activity requires one or more permits or approvals from other City departments. The Business Licence Index lists bicycle dealers, converted residential dwellings, designated growers, flea markets, precious metals dealers, shared facilities dwellings, short-term rentals, temporary trade shows, used goods dealers, and used material yards — no food category. Zoning restrictions may apply depending on the type of business activity, and the City says to contact the Zoning Branch before applying for a business licence to find out about specific land use. Do not sign a lease until the zoning check is done.
Manitoba Health is the health authority, and its plan review comes before construction. Manitoba Health's Food Handling Establishment Inspections and Health Permits page says a food handling establishment is any facility where food is prepared, stored, or served to the general public, and it names bakeries in the list. Submit your detailed floor plans with equipment listed directly to your area public health inspector for review prior to any construction or renovation. The plans need a detailed drawing showing the food preparation, processing, storage, and service areas, washrooms, refrigeration facilities, equipment layout, and a listing of equipment and construction materials in food preparation areas.
Public health inspectors inspect food handling establishments for compliance with the Food and Food Handling Establishments Regulation under The Public Health Act. Inspections cover general food handling, storage temperatures, sanitation, employee hygiene, and equipment or food contact surface disinfection, and they pay particular attention to food being protected from contamination and to temperature controls during the heating, cooling, and storage of potentially hazardous foods.
To prepare, sell, or distribute food to the public in Manitoba, you must register your food handling establishment and obtain a permit from your public health inspector before operating. For a new food handling establishment or a change of ownership, complete and submit the Food Handling Permit Registration Form, your menu, and a detailed floor plan to your area public health inspector. The form's instructions say the proposed menu must be provided and all items in the box must be received at the time of application, or the application will be considered incomplete and the whole process delayed. Return the completed form to healthprotection@gov.mb.ca.
Two details on the form matter for a bakery. First, home kitchens are not allowed — the food must be made in a commercial kitchen. Second, the form asks whether you hold a food handler certificate and, if so, the date of issuance, and it notes that a food handler certificate is not required outside of the City of Winnipeg but is recommended — which is the form's way of saying it is required inside Winnipeg, as Step 4 covers.
Winnipeg has its own certification rule on top of the provincial permit. Manitoba Health's Certified Food Handler Training Program page states the rule from the City of Winnipeg Food Service By-law: no person shall operate a food service establishment unless the person in charge has successfully completed the Certified Food Handler Training program. Food service establishments with less than 5 food handlers must have a person on staff who has successfully completed the program. Food service establishments with more than 5 food handlers working at any one time must have a person who has completed the program on duty at all times.
Manitoba Health runs the program and directs learners to approved private contractors for the full course. It also runs a challenge exam: registration is $36 including GST, the workbook can be bought separately for $20 including GST, photo ID is required, there are no walk-ins, and pre-registration is required. To register, download the registration form and return it by email to foodsafe@gov.mb.ca. Manitoba Health accepts MasterCard, Visa, Debit or Interac, and cheque, and payment is required to guarantee a spot. Arrange the certification before opening day, so there is a certified person in place from the first day of trading.
The permit is issued only after inspection. The Manitoba Health page states the permit must be obtained before operating, and public health inspectors inspect on a routine and a complaint basis after that. The bakery must be in a commercial kitchen, the plans must have been reviewed before construction, and the registration form, menu, and floor plan must all be in. If the bakery also sells packaged goods, the federal labelling rules apply — the full routine is in our How to Start a Bakery Business in Canada guide, and this guide does not repeat it.
The opened City pages do not state a fee for a Winnipeg occupancy permit, so this guide states none. The City's licence fee page, effective January 1, 2026, lists fees for the 11 licensed activities only, and no food handling establishment fee appears there, which matches the City's statement that no licence is required. The opened Manitoba Health pages do not state a fee for the Food Handling Permit or a processing time for it, so this guide states neither. The opened pages also do not state a full-course fee for the Certified Food Handler Training program, only the $36 challenge exam registration and the $20 workbook, so this guide states no course fee. Confirm the current figures with Manitoba Health and the City before paying.
Manitoba Health sets out an emergency routine for food establishments when an imminent health hazard hits: an interruption of electrical service or water service, contaminated water supply, fire, flood, or sewage backup. First assess the situation, and discontinue operation immediately if a safe operation cannot be maintained. Notify your public health inspector about the hazard, discuss alternate procedures, and work out whether the problem is widespread. Follow the emergency procedures only if the public health inspector approves them, or stay closed until the regulatory authority grants approval to reopen. An establishment that was ordered or otherwise required to stop operating may not reopen until authorization has been granted.
No. The City of Winnipeg states that as of April 1, 2015, no City of Winnipeg licence is required for a food handling establishment. The City licenses only 11 business activities through its Community Safety Business Licensing By-law, and food handling establishments are not among them. A bakery still needs zoning approval, an occupancy permit, and the provincial health permit.
Zoning approval and an occupancy permit. The City directs bakery applicants to the Zoning Branch at Planning Property and Development, at 31-30 Fort Street, for zoning approval and occupancy permits. The City's business licence fee page lists no fee for a food handling establishment, because no City licence is required.
To prepare, sell, or distribute food to the public in Manitoba, you must register your food handling establishment and obtain a permit from your public health inspector before operating. For a new establishment, complete and submit the Food Handling Permit Registration Form, your menu, and a detailed floor plan to your area public health inspector. Submit the detailed floor plans with equipment listed to your area public health inspector for review before any construction or renovation.
No. The Food Handling Permit Registration Form states that home kitchens are not allowed and the food must be made in a commercial kitchen. The form also asks for the name of the food establishment as shown on the signage above the door, or the business name if renting a kitchen.
Yes, in Winnipeg. Under the City of Winnipeg Food Service By-law, no person shall operate a food service establishment unless the person in charge has successfully completed the Certified Food Handler Training program. Establishments with less than 5 food handlers must have a person on staff who has completed the program, and establishments with more than 5 food handlers working at any one time must have a person who has completed the program on duty at all times. Outside Winnipeg, the certificate is not required but is recommended.
Manitoba Health publishes two figures, both including GST: registration for the challenge exam is $36, and the Food Safe Workbook is $20. The workbook is available in English, Chinese, Punjabi, Korean, Arabic, and French. To register for the challenge exam, download the registration form and return it by email to foodsafe@gov.mb.ca. Manitoba Health accepts MasterCard, Visa, Debit or Interac, and cheque.