Logan anchors Cache Valley in northern Utah, a college town built around Utah State University with a strong farmers market, an agricultural valley character, and the same statewide reciprocity that makes Utah easy to work across. The licensing here is clear and the city license is one of the cheapest in the state, but Logan has some specific operating limits, especially on public property and downtown, that you need to plan around. This guide covers the Bear River health permit, the Logan city license, the fire and zoning rules, and where the business actually is in the valley.
The layers of approval in Logan
- Bear River Health Department (BRHD). Your mobile food permit and plan review.
- City of Logan. A mobile food vendor license, tied to the vehicle.
- Logan City Fire Department. An annual fire-safety inspection, honored statewide under reciprocity.
The statewide framework, including how reciprocity works, is in our Utah food truck permits guide.
Step 1: Your Bear River Health permit
Logan is served by the Bear River Health Department, which covers Cache, Box Elder, and Rich counties, with its environmental health office at 85 East 1800 North in North Logan, (435) 792-6570. The process is plan-review first: you submit the application with construction plans, equipment cut sheets, your menu, a license-plate photo, and a signed commissary agreement. Tier 2 trucks need a food safety manager certification, while Tier 1 needs only food handler cards, and a pre-opening inspection is mandatory. Fees follow Utah’s standardized mobile tiers, generally $350 for Tier 1 and $500 for Tier 2 plus a plan review, but confirm the exact current 2026 figures with BRHD at (435) 792-6570, since their published schedule was not current online. This BRHD permit plus one fire inspection is honored statewide under Utah’s reciprocity law.
Step 2: The City of Logan license
Logan’s mobile food vendor license is a $75 new application, governed by chapter 5.20 of the Logan Land Development Code, through the city office at 290 N 100 W, (435) 716-9230. The city’s ordinance implements Utah’s reciprocity: the license is tied to the truck rather than a fixed location, and Logan will issue on presentation of another Utah jurisdiction’s business license, health permit, and fire approval. Apply at least 15 days before you intend to operate, and have a state sales tax number ready. Logan eliminated its background-check requirement when it adopted the reciprocity ordinance.
Step 3: The fire inspection
Logan requires an annual fire-safety inspection under its ordinance, and a current fire approval from another Utah jurisdiction satisfies it under reciprocity. The Logan City Fire Department business office is at (435) 716-9500. Build to the standard: a Type I hood with suppression over a cook line, a properly secured propane system, and serviced extinguishers. The specific fee and checklist are not published, so confirm with Logan Fire Prevention. Our fire suppression guide covers it.
Health and build requirements
The county inspection follows Utah’s food truck rule, and the build is what passes or fails:
- An approved BRHD-permitted commissary, with the agreement renewed annually. No storage or cleaning at a home, and if the commissary’s permit lapses, your truck permit is suspended.
- A fully self-contained water and waste system, which Logan’s ordinance requires for private-property operation.
- A dedicated hand wash sink separate from the three-compartment warewashing sink.
- Refrigeration holding cold food at or below 41 degrees, with thermometers, sanitizer and test strips, and NSF cleanable surfaces.
Where you can legally operate in Logan
Logan’s ordinance is specific about location, and the public-property limits are the ones to watch:
- Trucks are allowed only in the Airport, Commercial, Commercial Services, Gateway, Industrial, Mixed Use, and Town Center districts.
- The historic downtown core is open to trucks only as part of a Logan-licensed special event, not for daily vending, and you cannot operate on vacant or undeveloped property.
- On public property you cannot prepare, cook, or sell within the public right-of-way, cannot sell where the speed limit is over 25 mph, are capped at 30 minutes in any one public spot, and cannot sell within 300 feet of a city-licensed concessionaire.
- On private property you need written owner permission and restroom access within 300 feet, are limited to 180 consecutive days per parcel per year, generally one truck per parcel under an acre, and need a separate license per location, with no overnight parking.
- Hours are 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
What it actually costs the first year
- County health permit: generally $350 Tier 1 or $500 Tier 2 plus plan review, confirmed with BRHD.
- City license: $75 new application.
- Fire inspection: confirm the fee, plus extinguisher and suppression service.
- Commissary: your largest recurring cost.
- Insurance: general liability, required for public-property operation.
For the bigger picture, see how much a food truck can make and our financing guide.
Step by step, in order
- Sign a BRHD-permitted commissary agreement and register your business.
- Submit BRHD plan review before building and get approval.
- Build to plan, fully self-contained, with winter freeze protection.
- Pass the Logan fire inspection.
- Apply for the Logan license at least 15 days out.
- Pass the pre-opening inspection.
Common reasons Logan trucks get held up
- Planning daily downtown vending, which is special-event only.
- Overstaying the 30-minute limit on a public spot, or selling within 300 feet of a concessionaire.
- Building before BRHD plan review and then failing inspection.
- A unit that is not fully self-contained for private-property work.
- Letting the commissary agreement lapse, which suspends the permit.
Where the business actually is in Logan
Utah State University drives the market, with around 30,000 students and a calendar that sets the rhythm of demand, plus Aggie football game days at Maverik Stadium, which seats over 25,000 and packs the area on game weekends. The Cache Valley Gardeners Market runs Saturdays from Mother’s Day weekend into mid-October and now sits at the Historic Courthouse at 199 N Main downtown, a popular recurring venue for trucks. The Summerfest Arts Faire in June draws around 30 food vendors, and the Utah Festival Opera, the American West Heritage Center, and the Cache Valley Center for the Arts add events. With Logan Canyon and Beaver Mountain nearby, there is some winter draw too, though the student calendar and the summer market season are the main engines.
Building for Cache Valley
Logan sits at about 4,500 feet in Cache Valley, a mild altitude that calls for modest derating on propane and generators. The valley is known for cold, snowy winters and strong temperature inversions, so water-line freeze protection is important if you work the winter and shoulder seasons, while the warm summers call for solid refrigeration and ventilation. Our generator size guide covers powering it.
How Zion builds trucks that pass in Logan
We build every unit to Utah’s food truck rule and the fire code from the first drawing, and we submit cleanly to Bear River plan review: a fully self-contained, commissary-based water and waste system, a dedicated hand wash and three-compartment setup, a Type I hood with suppression over the cook line, and winter freeze protection for Cache Valley, so you pass BRHD and the Logan fire inspection the first time and earn the statewide package. A custom truck runs about $65,000 and a trailer $40,000 to $55,000, ready in about six weeks. Here is a recent Utah build:
Key Logan contacts
- Bear River Health Department, Environmental Health: (435) 792-6570, for the permit and plan review.
- City of Logan, 290 N 100 W: (435) 716-9230, for the mobile food vendor license.
- Logan City Fire Department: (435) 716-9500, for the fire inspection.
Related guides
- Utah food truck permits (statewide guide)
- Food truck fire suppression systems
- Do I need a commissary kitchen?
- Food truck generator size guide
Frequently asked questions
How much is the Logan license?
The mobile food vendor license is a $75 new application, one of the cheapest in Utah, and it is tied to your truck.
Can I vend downtown?
Only as part of a Logan-licensed special event. The historic downtown core is not open to daily food truck vending.
How long can I stay at a public spot?
A maximum of 30 minutes in any one public location, and you cannot sell within 300 feet of a city-licensed concessionaire.
Who licenses my truck for food safety?
The Bear River Health Department, which covers Cache, Box Elder, and Rich counties. That permit is honored statewide under reciprocity.
Do I need a commissary?
Yes. A BRHD-permitted commissary is required, with the agreement renewed annually, and a home cannot serve as your base.
Ready to build a Logan food truck?
We build custom trucks and trailers for Logan and Cache Valley operators, sourced and built to pass Bear River and the Logan fire inspection the first time and to handle a USU game-day crowd and a Cache Valley winter. Tell us what you are planning on our contact page, or start with our guide to starting a food truck business.
Ready to build your truck?
We design and build custom food trucks and trailers compliant with the regulations on this page. From a single phone call to keys-in-hand in 6 to 8 weeks for most builds.
Built in Woodland Park, Colorado. Delivered to operators in CO, AZ, NE, MT, and WY.