Cottage food rules
Cottage Food Laws by State: What Home Bakers Need
A plain way to find your own state's rule before you bake for sale.
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What to remember
- Cottage food rules are set state by state, so a friend’s rules in another state mean nothing for you.
- Oklahoma’s Home Bakery Act of 2013 limits producers to certain baked goods and caps sales at $20,000 per year.
- Virginia allows certain low risk foods, acidified vegetables, and honey to be made in a private home without VDACS inspection, subject to restrictions.
- Georgia puts home kitchen food producers under its Department of Agriculture.
- Find your state’s rule first, then build your menu around it.
You already know how to bake. The part that stops home bakers is the paperwork that comes before the first paid order. The good news is that the rules are written down and public. This guide shows you where they live, what they usually cover, and how differently four states answer the same question. For the wider picture, read cottage food laws and regulations.
What a cottage food law usually covers
A cottage food law is the set of rules your state uses for food made in a home kitchen and sold to other people. The Association of Food and Drug Officials keeps a page of state specific laws and guidance covering licensing, food safety regulations, labeling requirements, and permissible homemade foods. The National Agricultural Law Center keeps a compilation of the actual statutes and regulations for every state that has a cottage food or home based food production law. Start with those two, because they point you at your own state’s wording instead of someone else’s summary of it.
Four states, four different answers
Oklahoma passed the Home Bakery Act of 2013 (HB 1094), a fairly restrictive law that took effect November 1, 2013. Under it, producers can only sell certain types of baked goods, and sales are limited to $20,000 per year. That is a hard ceiling to plan around.
Virginia takes a different route. Section 3.2-5130 of the Code of Virginia allows certain low risk foods, acidified vegetables, and honey to be made in a private home without VDACS inspection, subject to certain restrictions. At the same time, Virginia’s Food and Drink Law applies to food establishments, including private homes, that manufacture, process, pack, or hold food for sale. So the exemption is real, but it is narrow.
In Georgia, cottage food producers, also called home kitchen food producers, are regulated by the Retail Food section of the Georgia Department of Agriculture. And New Hampshire is worth knowing about for the opposite reason. Many states do not allow home food manufacturing because it can be dangerous if done improperly or in an unsanitary manner, but New Hampshire does allow homestead food operations.
How to check your state before you take an order
Find your state on the AFDO page
Open the Association of Food and Drug Officials cottage foods page and find the guidance for your state. That tells you what the rules cover and where the official wording lives.
Read the actual statute or regulation
Use the National Agricultural Law Center compilation to get to your state’s own statute or regulation. Read the wording, not a blog summary of it.
Write down what you may sell
List the foods your state allows. Oklahoma, for example, limits producers to certain types of baked goods, so the list matters more than the general permission.
Write down the money limit
Some states cap yearly sales. Oklahoma’s cap is $20,000 per year. If your state has a cap, put the number on your wall and track against it.
Write down labeling and inspection rules
Note what has to be printed on your labels and whether your kitchen needs an inspection. Virginia’s exemption, for instance, comes with restrictions attached.
Save your notes with the date
Keep your notes and the source links together so you can show them later and check again when the rules change.
Once you know what you can sell, the next questions are money and your kitchen itself. Read cottage food laws and taxes before your first sale, and if you have animals at home, cottage food laws and pets covers what to check first. If you are in Texas, cottage food law Texas walks through that state separately.
Work out your prices before you print a menu
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- Cottage food laws and regulations
- Cottage food laws and taxes
- Cottage food laws and pets
- Cottage food law Texas
Common questions
Is there one national cottage food law I can just follow?
No. Cottage food rules are written state by state, which is why the same cake can be legal in one state and not in the next. Find your own state's statute or regulation and read that.
Where do I find my state's rule in plain language?
The Association of Food and Drug Officials keeps a page of state specific laws and guidance covering licensing, food safety regulations, labeling requirements, and permissible homemade foods. The National Agricultural Law Center then links you to the actual statute or regulation for each state that has a cottage food law.
Do all states allow home food manufacturing?
No. Many states do not allow home food manufacturing because it can be dangerous if done improperly or in an unsanitary manner. New Hampshire does allow homestead food operations, but that is a state specific choice, not a national rule.
What does a sales cap look like?
Oklahoma's Home Bakery Act of 2013 limits producers to certain types of baked goods and caps sales at $20,000 per year. If your state sets a number, plan your year around it and keep track as you go.
Does an exemption mean no rules at all?
No. Virginia allows certain low risk foods, acidified vegetables, and honey to be made in a private home without VDACS inspection, but only subject to certain restrictions, and the Virginia Food and Drink Law still applies to food establishments, including private homes, that manufacture, process, pack, or hold food for sale.
Sources
- Georgia Department of Agriculture, Cottage Food
- New Hampshire DHHS, Homestead Food Operations
- Oklahoma Senate, Cottage Food Laws Overview and State Comparisons
- Virginia Department of Agriculture, Kitchen Bill FAQ
- Virginia Department of Agriculture, Food Services Businesses
- Association of Food and Drug Officials, Cottage Foods Laws and Guidance
- National Agricultural Law Center, Cottage Food State Compilations
This is general information about how cottage food laws work, not legal or tax advice. Rules differ by state and change over time. Check your own state's official guidance or talk to a local professional before you sell.