Certified Food Manager — Florida
Florida restaurants must designate a Certified Food Manager and provide food-handler training for staff.
What it is. A designated Certified Food (Protection) Manager with an accredited certificate, plus basic food-handler training for non-managerial employees, under FAC Rule 61C-4.023.
Who issues/enforces it. Florida DBPR — Division of Hotels and Restaurants (State layer); the manager passes an accredited exam.
When you need it. At all times you operate; proof of certification must be available to DBPR at inspection.
How to comply. Have at least one certified food manager; keep the certificate and staff food-handler training records on site.
Cadence. Manager certificate is renewed periodically (commonly every 5 years — ⟢ VERIFY).
What SpoonSeal tracks. The document(s) you upload for this requirement, with automatic renewal/expiration tracking (Current, Due Soon, Expired). Where the city publishes health-inspection results (e.g., NYC and Chicago), SpoonSeal syncs them automatically; elsewhere they can be added manually.
References
- Florida DBPR, Division of Hotels and Restaurants — https://www2.myfloridalicense.com/hotels-restaurants/licensing/general/ — Official source last checked: 2026-07-02
Stay ahead of this requirement
SpoonSeal stores your documents, tracks expirations, and reminds you before anything lapses — so you are always inspection-ready.
Get started free →This guide is informational and not legal advice. Always confirm current requirements with the official agency linked above.