{"id":381949,"date":"2026-01-01T18:31:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-01T18:31:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/381949\/"},"modified":"2026-01-01T18:31:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-01T18:31:10","slug":"people-running-unlicensed-kitchens-in-b-c-often-do-so-because-business-start-up-costs-too-high-experts-say","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/381949\/","title":{"rendered":"People running unlicensed kitchens in B.C often do so because business start-up costs too high, experts say"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Text<\/p>\n

Listen to this article<\/p>\n

Estimated 4 minutes<\/p>\n

The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.<\/p>\n

While health officials in B.C.\u2019s Lower Mainland are sounding the alarm over an apparent increase in illegal unlicensed kitchens, people in the food service and business community say there\u2019s a reason people run them \u2014 and buy from them.<\/p>\n

Last year, Fraser Health issued a public service announcement<\/a> reminding people about the hazards of buying food from unlicensed vendors, generally found in private dwellings like residential homes and garages.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The health authority said it had received more than 30 complaints about illegal food businesses this year alone, which often sell their food through catering services or as takeout, and warned the public about buying from them.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cConsuming food from illegal food business increases your risk of food safety concerns and foodborne illnesses from improper food preparation, storage and handling of foods,\u201d the statement reads.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Fraser Health also said it\u2019s issued 25 tickets to these kinds of businesses.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But for many people, running a business like this out of their home is the only way to make ends meet, or at least make sure they don\u2019t sink their life savings into a restaurant that isn’t guaranteed to be successful.\u00a0<\/p>\n

LISTEN | Why do people operate food businesses without a license?:<\/p>\n

The Early Edition9:59Fraser Health raising alarm about increase in illegal home cooked meals<\/p>\n

CBC story producer Sia Foryoh looks into the people behind these unlicensed home businesses, and why they’re operating the way they are.<\/p>\n

According to Nerissa Allen, co-founder and president of Black Business Association of B.C., these cooks are often women from immigrant communities who are trying to build a business for themselves, but she said the current licensing system doesn\u2019t support them.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Filipino-Canadian chef TJ Conwi said the cost is the biggest reason people don\u2019t start up legitimate food businesses.<\/p>\n

For example, he said the cost of renting or building a commercial kitchen starts at $1,500 for just a few hours, up to $5,000 or more per month. When you\u2019re living paycheque to paycheque to begin with, those costs might be too much, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ekaose Nwadiani, owner of Surrey-based Nigerian restaurant VanSuya, got started cooking traditional food for their community in their basement suite.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s hard to go into these commercial kitchens because they’re super expensive and without a proven concept of customers, how do you make that money to keep on paying rent?\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"AEkaose Nwadiani, owner of Vansuya restaurant in Surrey, British Columbia, on Thursday, Nov., 20, 2025. (Ben Nelms\/CBC)<\/p>\n

So, he tried the illegal route to begin with, operating out of his home kitchen. Fortunately for Nwadiani, his food was in high demand, so he was able to put money into getting a licensed commercial space set up in Vancouver to sell his product on delivery apps. Eventually he opened his restaurant in Surrey, and he’s currently in the process of opening another in Vancouver. <\/p>\n

Cultural importance<\/p>\n

Conwi said he\u2019s ordered home-cooked food from unlicensed kitchens before, because he couldn\u2019t find it otherwise.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThat’s where I will go to get my meals I crave from home,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

If support doesn\u2019t come through to help people set up licensed operations, Allen worries the consequences could be dire for communities that rely on those kitchens for culturally appropriate food.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cYou’re looking at the erosion of cultural identity,\u201d she said. \u201cCooking in many of these communities is part of their cultural identity. It’s how they connect with community.\u201d<\/p>\n

She also points out the mental health impacts on the individuals who lose that income and the connection with their community and heritage.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"AEkaose Nwadiani, owner of Vansuya restaurant in Surrey, B.C., on Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025. (Ben Nelms\/CBC)<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why people like Nwadiani are offering their services to mentor people running illegal kitchens to work toward something licensed, that won\u2019t be shut down and won\u2019t result in fines.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to see more people go into business and be able to help the economy and provide jobs for people,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Listen to this article Estimated 4 minutes The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":381950,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[43,44,41,39,42,40],"class_list":["post-381949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381949","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=381949"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381949\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/381950"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=381949"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=381949"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=381949"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}