Cottage food rules
Cottage Food Laws in Seattle: What Home Bakers Can Sell
What Washington's cottage food rules mean for a home baker in Seattle, in plain words.
On this page
What to remember
- You may make food that is not potentially hazardous, such as baked goods, candies, jams, jellies, and preserves.
- The food has to come from the home kitchen of your primary domestic residence.
- You sell directly to the consumer, not through someone who resells it.
- A Washington Cottage Food Permit is required, and people working in the business need a food worker card.
- You package and label every item, and no food processor may repackage it or use it as an ingredient.
Most of what people ask about Seattle rules is really a Washington question. The state law sets the boundaries, and the county health department handles the food worker card. If you are still working out whether you need a permit at all, start with cottage food laws and permits before you buy a single box.
What the law calls a cottage food operation
Washington law defines a cottage food operation as a person who produces cottage food products only in the home kitchen of that person’s primary domestic residence in Washington, and only for sale directly to the consumer. Chapter 69.22 RCW also exempts cottage food operations from chapter 69.07 RCW and from permitting and inspection by the local health jurisdiction.
What you can make and how you can sell it
A Washington Cottage Food Permit lets a resident of the state make food that is not potentially hazardous. The examples the state gives are baked goods, candies, jams, jellies, and preserves. That covers most of what a home baker sells, but check your specific item against that list before you print labels.
The selling side is tighter than the kitchen side. The law describes the sale as direct to the consumer. It also says cottage food may not be repackaged, sold, or used as an ingredient in other foods by a food processor. If a shop wants to buy your cookies to crumble into their own product, that is not a cottage food sale.
Your steps before the first sale
Check your kitchen
The food must be produced in the home kitchen of your primary domestic residence in Washington. A second kitchen or a rented space does not fit that definition.
Apply for the Washington Cottage Food Permit
This is the permit that allows a Washington resident to make food that is not potentially hazardous.
Get a food worker card
The Cottage Food Law requires permitted and authorized people working in the cottage food business to hold a food worker card. Your local county health department provides it.
Label and package every item
The law requires cottage food to be packaged and properly labeled for sale to the consumer. Plan the label before your first batch, not after.
Confirm how you will sell
King County Public Health provides a food permit decision support tool that directs applicants to the right information based on how they will be selling food. Use it if you are unsure which path applies to you.
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Sorting good advice from bad
Cottage food rules get repeated wrong in groups and comment threads, and a wrong answer can cost you a whole season of orders. When something sounds off, check it against the RCW text or the state agriculture department’s cottage food page rather than a screenshot. Our guide to cottage food laws on Reddit shows how to trace a claim back to the source. If you want to see how another city handles the same questions, Sacramento’s cottage food rules are a useful comparison.
Selling from home also means you set your own prices. Nothing in the cottage food rules tells you what to charge, so work out the cost of a batch, your packaging, and your time before you quote a customer. A tray sold at cost is a hobby, not income.
Common questions
Do I need a Seattle permit on top of the Washington one?
The rules described here are Washington State rules. Chapter 69.22 RCW defines a cottage food operation and exempts it from permitting and inspection by the local health jurisdiction, and the Washington Cottage Food Permit is the permit the state sets out for home food producers. Ask your county health department about anything local before you start selling.
What foods can I make?
A Washington Cottage Food Permit covers food that is not potentially hazardous. The examples the state gives are baked goods, candies, jams, jellies, and preserves.
Can I sell my bakes to a coffee shop that resells them?
The law describes cottage food as being for sale directly to the consumer, and it says cottage food may not be repackaged, sold, or used as an ingredient in other foods by a food processor. If a business wants to resell your bakes, check with your county health department before you agree.
Who needs a food worker card?
The Cottage Food Law requires permitted and authorized people working in the cottage food business to obtain a food worker card. It is available through the local county health department.
Can I use my cottage food as an ingredient in something else I make?
The law says cottage food may not be repackaged, sold, or used as an ingredient in other foods by a food processor.
Where can I check which permit applies to me?
King County Public Health provides a food permit decision support tool that directs applicants to the right information based on how they will be selling food.
Sources
This is general information about the rules, not legal advice. Confirm your own situation with the Washington State Department of Agriculture and your county health department before you sell.