Cottage food rules
Cottage Food Law Texas: What Home Bakers Can Sell
A plain look at what Texas asks of home bakers before they sell.
On this page
What to remember
- Sell directly to customers located in Texas.
- Food that needs time or temperature control to be safe is outside Chapter 437.
- Finish an accredited basic food safety training program for food handlers.
- Your local health department cannot regulate production at your home operation.
- You can register with DSHS to put an ID number on labels instead of your home address.
If you bake in your own Texas kitchen and hand your bakes to the person who ordered them, you are in cottage food territory. The statute sits mostly in Chapter 437 of the Texas Health and Safety Code, and 25 Texas Administrative Code section 229.661 is the piece that puts that chapter into practice. Start with cottage food law requirements so you know what to gather before you take your first paid order.
What you can sell, and to whom
Under Chapter 437, a cottage food production operation may sell directly to consumers located in Texas food other than a time and temperature control for safety food. That means your buyers are the people you hand the bake to, not a shop that resells it. It also means your menu has to stay on the shelf stable side of the line. The restrictions guide walks through how to read your own recipes against that rule.
Training, permits, and the label question
Texas does not require a permit or license to sell most homemade foods from your own kitchen, but you register with the Department of State Health Services. That is the part that trips people up, so read it slowly and do not buy a permit you do not need.
The training piece is separate. A person who operates a cottage food production operation must have successfully completed a basic food safety education or training program for food handlers accredited under the applicable subchapter. Our training guide explains what to look for in a course before you pay for one.
Labels are where the DSHS registration helps most. You can register with DSHS to get a unique identifier number to put on your labels instead of your home address, and if you do not want to register you can keep using your home address. The registration guide covers what you file and where it goes.
Where to check before you bake for sale
One thing that surprises home bakers: a local government authority, including a local health department, may not regulate the production of food at a cottage food production operation. Your county or city cannot add production rules on top of the state statute. The Texas DSHS also publishes information on licensing, training materials, and food labeling for cottage food production, which is the place to confirm details for your own kitchen.
Check your recipes
Confirm each bake is not a food that needs time or temperature control to stay safe.
Finish your training
Complete a basic food safety education or training program for food handlers accredited under the applicable subchapter.
Decide on your label address
Use your home address, or register with DSHS for a unique identifier number to print instead.
Confirm the label wording
Check the DSHS food labeling information for cottage food production before you print a batch of stickers.
Rules and forms do change, and the details that matter are the ones for your kitchen, your recipes, and your labels. If you are still at the very beginning, the overview of cottage food law is a good next read after this page.
Common questions
Do I need a permit to sell bakes from my Texas kitchen?
Texas does not require a permit or license to sell most homemade foods from your own kitchen, but you register with the Department of State Health Services. Confirm your own situation with DSHS before you sell.
Can I sell food that has to stay cold?
Under Chapter 437, a cottage food production operation may sell food other than a time and temperature control for safety food. If a bake only stays safe when it is kept cold or hot, it falls outside that.
Who can I sell to?
The statute covers selling directly to consumers located in Texas. Your buyers are the people you hand the food to.
Do I have to put my home address on labels?
Not necessarily. You can register with DSHS to get a unique identifier number for your labels instead of your home address, and if you do not register you can keep using your home address.
Can my city health department add its own rules?
A local government authority, including a local health department, may not regulate the production of food at a cottage food production operation.
Sources
- Texas Cottage Food Law: Legal Sources
- Texas Health and Safety Code Section 437.0195
- Texas Health and Safety Code Section 437.0192
- Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 437
- 25 Texas Administrative Code section 229.661
- DSHS Registration for Cottage Food Producers
- Cottage Food Law Library: Texas
- Texas DSHS: Texas Cottage Food Production
General information only, not legal advice. Cottage food rules change, so confirm the current requirements with the Texas Department of State Health Services and Chapter 437 of the Texas Health and Safety Code before you sell.