Cottage food rules
Cottage Food Laws in Moseley, Virginia: What You Can Sell
What you can bake and sell from your Moseley kitchen, and what to confirm before you take money.
On this page
What to remember
- Virginia’s home kitchen exemption covers low-risk, non-perishable foods, acidified vegetables, and honey.
- Foods outside the exemption fall under the Virginia Food and Drink Law.
- You still clear local zoning and health rules in your county.
- VDACS food safety specialists check food made, packed, held, or offered for sale.
- Confirm your address and your menu before you take your first paid order.
If you bake in Moseley and sell from home, you are working under two layers of rules at once. The state layer is the same for every Virginia baker. The local layer depends on your county, and it is the one people skip. Here is how the pieces fit, and what to confirm before you post a menu. If you want the wider picture first, start with how to check your state’s cottage food laws.
What Virginia’s home kitchen exemption covers
Section 3.2-5130 of the Code of Virginia allows certain low-risk foods, acidified vegetables, and honey to be made from a private home without a VDACS inspection, with restrictions attached. In plain terms, Virginia’s home kitchen food processing exemption lets producers make and sell low-risk, non-perishable foods without a permit or a VDACS inspection. The word non-perishable is doing a lot of work in that sentence. If your bake has to stay cold to be safe, it does not fit the exemption.
The local layer where you live
Under Virginia’s cottage food law, home bakers must still clear local zoning and health rules in their county. That is a separate conversation from the state exemption, and it happens closer to home. Powhatan County is a Virginia county with a population of 30,503, and the same local step applies to bakers there. Make the call before you bake for paying customers, not after a full weekend of orders.
Foods that fall outside the exemption
Food establishments, including private homes, that manufacture, process, pack, or hold food for sale are subject to the Virginia Food and Drink Law and the related regulations. VDACS food safety specialists, also called inspectors, make sure any food or drink manufactured, produced, processed, packed, exposed, offered, possessed, or held for sale is safe for human consumption. If what you want to sell is not on the state’s low-risk list, plan for that process instead of around it. The state by state map is a handy way to see how Virginia’s approach compares.
Check your own address before your first order
Read the state section
Start with section 3.2-5130 of the Code of Virginia and the VDACS kitchen bill FAQ so you know exactly which foods the exemption covers.
Match your menu to that list
Low-risk, non-perishable foods, acidified vegetables, and honey sit inside the exemption. Bakes that need refrigeration do not.
Call your county
Ask about zoning and health rules for a home food business at your address before you take orders, not after.
Confirm inspection status
If your food falls outside the exemption, it is subject to the Virginia Food and Drink Law and the usual process for food establishments.
Write it down
Keep a note of who you spoke to and what they told you, so a busy week does not turn into a guess.
If you sell in more than one place, or you are comparing how other states handle home baking, our guide to cottage food law requirements by state walks through the questions to ask. The answers change at state lines, and they can change at county lines too.
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- How to check your state’s cottage food laws
- Cottage food laws by state map
- Cottage food law requirements by state
Common questions
Can I sell baked goods from my home in Moseley?
Only if what you make fits Virginia's home kitchen exemption, which covers certain low-risk foods, acidified vegetables, and honey, with restrictions. Anything that needs refrigeration falls under the Virginia Food and Drink Law instead. Your county's zoning and health rules still apply on top of that.
Do I need a VDACS inspection?
For foods inside the home kitchen exemption, Virginia allows production in a private home without a VDACS inspection, with restrictions attached. For foods outside it, the Virginia Food and Drink Law and related regulations apply.
Who inspects food businesses in Virginia?
VDACS food safety specialists, also called inspectors, make sure any food or drink manufactured, produced, processed, packed, exposed, offered, possessed, or held for sale is safe for human consumption.
Do county rules really apply to me?
Yes. Under Virginia's cottage food law, home bakers must still clear local zoning and health rules in their county. That is a separate step from the state exemption.
Where can I read the state rule myself?
The VDACS kitchen bill FAQ covers section 3.2-5130 of the Code of Virginia and the restrictions that come with the exemption. It is the document to read before you plan a menu.
Sources
This is general information about Virginia's cottage food rules, not legal or tax advice. Rules change, so confirm the current requirements with VDACS and your county before you sell.