Restaurants and food trucks.
Johnson County food-facility health permits run about $200–$750 annually, depending on size or sales volume. Confirm the exact amount with Kansas Department of Agriculture - Food Safety & Lodging (statewide restaurant/retail/mobile licensing); Johnson County Community Health Services - Environmental Health (temporary food event permits) before you budget.
Confirm the authority for your exact address. Some cities run their own health division, and building, planning, fire, sewer/grease and business-license approvals are separate even when Kansas Department of Agriculture - Food Safety & Lodging (statewide restaurant/retail/mobile licensing); Johnson County Community Health Services - Environmental Health (temporary food event permits) issues the health permit.
What the local foodservice landscape looks like — useful whether you’re opening here or sizing up the competition.
▲ 4.2% change in establishments since 2022 (1,200 → 1,250).
The average foodservice wage here is $3,278 above the Kansas average ($20,097); Kansas has about 5,914 food & drink establishments statewide.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023 (NAICS 722, food services & drinking places) — establishments with paid employees. Some small-county payroll figures are withheld by Census for confidentiality.
AUTHORITY: Restaurants in Johnson County are licensed by the STATE (Kansas Dept of Agriculture), not the county; KDA license fees are SIZE-BASED (square footage), NOT category-based; the Category I-IV designations govern inspection frequency, not the fee; Application fee $200 is paid on initial licensing only (statutory cap $350 per K.S.A; 65-688); Licenses run Apr 1-Mar 31 and are not prorated; School lunch program $415/yr; satellite school lunch $340/yr; (Prior record's category-based totals were incorrect and have been replaced with the size-based schedule.)
Kansas Dept of Agriculture Food Safety & Lodging inspects statewide under the Kansas Food Code (risk-based); no letter grade or score. Reports on KDA's online inspection portal.
Mobile units file the KDA Mobile Unit Log with the standard Food Establishment Application; Johnson County Community Health Services issues local TEMPORARY food event permits ($100 per unit)
Fees/payment and forms are on the department site; application steps vary by concept — see the checklist below.
The government permit & plan-review fees below total roughly $400–$1,500 for Johnson County:
That’s the paperwork only. Add buildout, equipment, deposits and licenses with the cost-to-open calculator. Fees change — confirm current amounts with the department.
Check the health-inspection history and violation scores for any food establishment in Johnson County and Kansas. The Kansas Department of Agriculture Food Safety & Lodging program runs a statewide inspection search covering restaurants and other licensed food establishments.
Kansas inspection lookup →Comparison uses the lowest published annual restaurant-permit figure in each county; confirm your exact tier with the department.
U.S. Census 2023 population; County Business Patterns 2022 (NAICS 722).
Plus building, fire, and business-license fees that vary locally — use the cost calculators and the checklist below to budget the full stack.
food establishments here must control fats, oils & grease (FOG) with a grease interceptor or trap, and typically register with the local sewer/wastewater authority. A grease interceptor or trap sized to the locally adopted plumbing code is required, with a municipal sewer-authority FOG discharge permit.
Size the interceptor with our grease-trap sizing calculator, compare units in the grease-trap catalog, and confirm the local FOG permit with Kansas Department of Agriculture - Food Safety & Lodging (statewide restaurant/retail/mobile licensing); Johnson County Community Health Services - Environmental Health (temporary food event permits) (contact above).
Hood fire suppression (IFC): commercial cooking under a Type I hood needs a wet-chemical suppression system to NFPA 96, permitted and inspected by the local fire marshal. Type I hood fire suppression must meet NFPA 96 and the state fire code enforced by the Kansas State Fire Marshal and local fire officials. See do I need a hood? and the hood CFM calculator.
Backflow prevention: An approved backflow preventer with a certified annual test is required by the local water purveyor. A certified backflow assembly (often an RPZ) on the water service, tested annually, is standard — confirm with your water utility.
| Category | Annual fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Bakery / food processing | Licensed by KDA as a food establishment; annual license fee is SIZE-based ($250-$750 by square footage) + $200 application; source https://www.agriculture.ks.gov/licenses/food-and-lodging-applications-and-licenses/license-information-food-safety | Licensed by the state (KDA), not the county; A separate KDA food processor license applies to wholesale/manufacturing operations |
| Bar / limited food service | Licensed by KDA as a food establishment (drinking establishments included); annual license fee SIZE-based ($250-$750) + $200 application; source https://www.agriculture.ks.gov/licenses/food-and-lodging-applications-and-licenses/license-information-food-safety | Licensed by the state (KDA); Fee is driven by facility square footage, not menu |
| Temporary / seasonal event | $100 per unit (non-refundable); $100 late fee if received <14 days prior; source https://johnsoncountyhealth.org/temporary-food-permit/ | Temporary food event permits are issued LOCALLY by Johnson County Community Health Services (Environmental Health), not by KDA |
| Pushcart / mobile vending | Licensed by KDA as a mobile food unit; SIZE-based annual license ($250-$750) + $200 application; most carts fall in the smallest tier (~$250/yr); source https://www.agriculture.ks.gov/licenses/food-and-lodging-applications-and-licenses/license-information-food-safety | Mobile units file the KDA Mobile Unit Log with the standard Food Establishment Application |
Health-department plan review looks for specific, code-compliant fixtures. Compare spec-filtered options, then confirm counts and sizes with your local requirements. See the full list in what equipment a commercial kitchen requires.
Permit costs and rules change at the county line — compare Johnson County with its neighbors.
This is a typical sequence — confirm the exact sequence with your authority having jurisdiction.
Official plan-check requirements: plan-check guide →