A county health department has put an end to a 15-year tradition of offering free donuts and coffee at a local mom-and-pop hardware store.  Following an anonymous customer complaint to the county, health inspectors notified the store that the coffee pot must be put away and the doughnut boxes closed, absent applicable permits.
 
The owners of the Ventura County, California, B & B Do it Center, were taken aback by the complaint and citation.  "We've been doing this since we bought the place 15 years ago and the previous owner was doing it, too," said Randy Collins, co-owner with his parents of B & B.  "We simply weren't aware we were causing a problem."
 
According to news reports, health department inspectors told Collins that he was violating the law unless he installed stainless-steel sinks with hot and cold water, installed a prep kitchen to handle the food, and obtained necessary permits, with varying costs.
 
"The state health and safety code talks about food regulations," said Elizabeth Huff, manager of community services for the Ventura County Environmental Health Division.  "Anybody who handles food is subject to the regulations."
 
"It's the money, not the sanitation," customer Thomas Frye of Camarillo said of the county's motivation.  "We've abandoned common sense where the need for licenses and fees are more important than tradition."
 
—Source:  Ventura County Star (California)