Permission for selling ice cream

If the intended business activity of the entrepreneur consists only of selling ice cream with alcohol (online), this activity can be classified under the free trade license titled “Purchase of goods for the purpose of resale to the final consumer (retail) or to other business operators (wholesale),” which allows for retail and wholesale trade in food products. (source: minv.sk)

However, this trade license does not include the production of ice cream, only its purchase from another person and subsequent resale to the consumer.

If production is involved, it will be important to determine what type of ice cream it is (e.g., made with chicken eggs, using hot or cold processes) and the state of the alcohol (bottled, draft, or poured). These issues will need to be assessed.

“If the raw material base for making ice cream consists of semi-finished products, i.e., industrially produced ice cream mix + water or milk that has already undergone a technological process to become a dairy product and the milk producer is responsible for its health safety, it does not matter whether the ice cream is produced by a cold or hot process. This is considered a free trade license activity called ‘preparation and sale of ice cream for direct consumption, if industrially produced concentrates and frozen creams are used for its preparation.”

If the base for making ice cream consists of raw materials such as fresh unpasteurized milk, eggs, various fruits, nuts, etc., whose technological preparation takes place on-site by cooking and subsequent cooling, this is considered a craft trade license ‘production of dairy products’ or ‘production of confectionery products,’ for which it is necessary to prove professional competence to the relevant trade licensing department according to §§ 21 and 22 of Act No. 455/1991 Coll. on trade licensing, as amended.

We assume that the sale of alcohol will be in packaged form, so the free trade license ‘Purchase of goods…’ is sufficient.” (source: minv.sk)

Another question we addressed was whether a permit from the customs office is required if someone wants to sell ice cream with alcohol (since the customs office issues permits for the sale of consumer packaging of spirits). Here, it is important to pay attention to where the ice cream is imported from.

“If the ice cream is to be transported into the tax territory from another EU member state and contains 3.1% alcohol, the entity must comply with Section 26 of Act No. 530/2011 Coll. (be registered at the customs office as a recipient of alcoholic beverages and fulfill all obligations under Section 26). According to paragraph 1 of the mentioned provision, if an alcoholic beverage placed into free tax circulation in another member state is transported to the tax territory for business purposes, tax liability arises in the tax territory on the day the alcoholic beverage is received, and the taxpayer is the person receiving the alcoholic beverage.”

According to Section 4 paragraph 1 of Act No. 530/2011, the subject of tax is alcoholic beverages produced on the tax territory, delivered to the tax territory from another member state, or imported into the tax territory from a third country.

According to Section 4 paragraph 2 letter c) of Act No. 530/2011 Coll., this alcoholic beverage means spirits, other than those listed in chapter 22, with an actual alcohol content of more than 1.2%.

A permit for the sale of consumer packaging of spirits in free tax circulation is not required in this case. If the ice cream is produced by the seller himself, there are no obligations related to the customs office.” (source: customs office)

“Food storage can be carried out in accordance with the requirements set out in Regulation (EC) No. 852/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council on food hygiene, as well as in Act No. 152/1995 Coll. on food, as amended (hereinafter referred to as ‘Act No. 152/1995 Coll.’). Requirements for the construction, arrangement, and equipment of food establishments, including food storage facilities, are established in the decree of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Health of the Slovak Republic No. 28167/2007-OL, which issues the chapter of the Food Code of the Slovak Republic regulating general requirements for the construction, arrangement, and equipment of food establishments and some special requirements for the production and sale of traditional foods and for the direct delivery of small quantities of food. Before putting storage premises, production facilities, etc., into operation, including proposals for changes in their operation, it is necessary to request approval from the relevant regional public health authority pursuant to § 13 paragraph 4 letter a) of Act No. 355/2007 Coll. on the protection, promotion, and development of public health and on the amendment and supplementation of certain laws.

For further information, it is necessary to contact the locally competent regional public health authority according to the address of the establishment. Also, according to § 6 paragraph 1 of Act No. 152/1995 Coll., every operator, including distance sellers, except operators listed in a special regulation, shall notify the competent official food control authority (pursuant to § 21 paragraph 1 letters b) and d)) of every establishment subject to its control that performs activities at any stage of food production, processing, and distribution for the purpose of registration. The operator, including distance sellers, except operators listed in a special regulation, shall notify the competent official food control authority of any significant change in the operation of the establishment or its closure.” (source: Public Health Authority)