Small-batch frozen meals from a shared kitchen

Busy households, new parents, older people, and office workers. Customers buy at farmers' markets, through pre-orders, or from a local pickup or delivery list.

You charge a price per meal or per bundle. Weekly or monthly pre-order boxes help you plan batches and cut waste. Margin depends on ingredient costs, kitchen rental hours and packaging.

• Cooking in batches with consistent results
• Food safety and hygiene habits
• Costing and pricing recipes
• Selling at markets and online

• Food premises permit from your local public health unit; Quebec has its own rules, so check with MAPAQ there
• Selling from a home kitchen is restricted in many places, so check before you assume you can cook at home
• Selling across provincial borders may need a federal licence from the CFIA, so check before shipping out of province
• Labelling rules for allergens, ingredients and nutrition, plus bilingual labelling for some retail sales
• Commercial general liability and product liability insurance
• Freezer space, cold-chain handling and delivery in winter and summer heat

Startup costs are typically estimated at around $3,000 to $12,000, depending on your kitchen rental, equipment, packaging and freezer space. Monthly revenue is typically estimated at around $1,500 to $7,500, depending on your range, pricing and how many customers you reach.

Selling from a home kitchen is restricted in many places, so check before you assume you can cook at home. Also check whether you need a food premises permit from your local public health unit. Quebec has its own rules, so check with MAPAQ there.

Check whether selling across provincial borders needs a federal licence from the CFIA before you ship out of province. Also check labelling rules for allergens, ingredients and nutrition, bilingual labelling for some retail sales, and commercial general liability and product liability insurance.