BALTIMORE—Officials in Baltimore County say public health concerns have moved its Department of Environmental Protection and Resource Management to insist churches and other non-profit operations get foodservice permits.

According to the Baltimore Sun, the new regulations do not apply to church functions or to dinners served exclusively to congregation members, only to food sold to the public.

David Carroll, the department's director, said that "the greatest outbreaks" of food-related illness in Maryland recently had occurred in noncommercial establishments selling food to the public.

Starting April 1, any church or nonprofit group that wants to charge the public for food must obtain an annual "food service facility" permit, which means complying with expanded kitchen regulations.

The bulk of the county's food-serving nonprofit groups meet most of the new requirements, Carroll said, adding that about 140 county churches already have annual food permits. But some smaller congregations are worried about how they will bring their kitchens up to code.

"I've gotten a number of complaints about it," said Councilman T. Bryan McIntire. "I think it's very unfortunate because I've gone to lots of church suppers—I like to do that. Some of the best food I've ever eaten has been at church suppers.

No serious illnesses have been linked to Baltimore County church suppers, Carroll said. But experiences in other counties show the necessity of pro-active regulations.

In one of the state's worst cases, an 81-year-old woman died after eating contaminated stuffed ham at a St. Mary's County church supper in 1997.