Cottage food rules
Arizona Cottage Food Laws: What Home Bakers Can Sell
A plain answer on Arizona cottage food rules, so you know what to do before your first sale.
On this page
What to remember
- Arizona runs a Cottage Food Program through the Department of Health Services.
- You register with the state and finish an accredited food handler course before selling.
- Arizona sets no dollar limit on cottage food sales.
- House Bill 2042 in 2024 expanded the law to allow certain foods that require temperature control.
- Dairy products, and foods that contain meat or poultry, must be sold by you in person or remotely, including over the internet.
If you bake at home in Arizona and sell to people nearby, there is a path for you, and it starts with the state rather than a county office. Before you plan a menu or take your first order, it helps to understand what cottage food laws are and how they work, because every state draws its own line.
What the Arizona Cottage Food Program covers
The program is administered by the Arizona Department of Health Services through its Food Safety and Environmental Services section. It allows individuals to make homemade products that are neither potentially hazardous nor Time or Temperature Control for Safety foods. In plain terms, that means the baked goods that do not need to be kept cold to be safe.
The law behind it is Arizona statute 36-136, which directs the establishment of an online registry of food preparers authorized to prepare cottage food products for commercial purposes. That registry is how the state keeps track of who is selling under the program.
What you do before your first sale
Register with the state
Arizona requires cottage food sellers to register with the Department of Health Services before selling homemade cottage food.
Complete a food handler course
Finish an accredited food handler course. The state requires it before you sell homemade cottage food.
Check each product against the rules
Your items must be neither potentially hazardous nor Time or Temperature Control for Safety foods, apart from what the 2024 expansion allows.
Plan your dairy, meat, and poultry handover
If a product is a dairy product or contains meat or poultry, you must sell it yourself, in person or remotely, including over the internet.
Set up how you take orders
Decide how people will order and pay before you announce anything, so your first week is not a scramble.
What changed in 2024
House Bill 2042 (2024) expanded Arizona’s cottage food law. The bill allows certain foods that require temperature control, meaning perishable foods, which were not part of the original program. If you want to sell something that needs to stay cold, confirm with the Department of Health Services that your specific item is covered before you make a batch to sell.
No dollar cap, so plan for growth
Arizona sets no dollar limit on cottage food sales, so growth is limited by your own kitchen and your own time rather than a statutory cap. That is good news, and it also means the ceiling you hit first is usually scheduling. Keep an eye on what each bake actually costs, and if you are comparing what a paid tool would take out of your sales, this look at what you pay each month for Bakesy is a fair starting point.
If you ever outgrow a home kitchen and start looking at a separate license, this walkthrough of a department of agriculture home bakery license explains how those licenses generally work. Until then, the cottage food program is the one that applies to you.
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Common questions
Does Arizona have cottage food laws?
Yes. Arizona has a Cottage Food Program run by the Arizona Department of Health Services through its Food Safety and Environmental Services section. It covers homemade products that are neither potentially hazardous nor Time or Temperature Control for Safety foods, with a 2024 expansion for certain foods that require temperature control.
Do I need a license to sell baked goods from my home in Arizona?
Arizona requires cottage food sellers to register with the Department of Health Services and complete an accredited food handler course before selling homemade cottage food. The law directs the state to keep an online registry of food preparers authorized to prepare cottage food products for commercial purposes.
Is there a sales limit on Arizona cottage food sales?
No. Arizona sets no dollar limit on cottage food sales, so growth is limited by the seller's own kitchen and time rather than a statutory cap.
What did the 2024 law change?
House Bill 2042 (2024) expanded Arizona's cottage food law to allow certain foods that require temperature control, meaning perishable foods. Check with the Department of Health Services on whether your specific item qualifies before you sell it.
Can I sell cottage food with dairy, meat, or poultry in Arizona?
Arizona cottage food products that are dairy products or that contain meat or poultry must be sold by the food preparer in person or remotely, including over the internet. The preparer has to make those sales.
Sources
This is general information about Arizona cottage food rules, not legal or tax advice. Rules can change, so confirm the details with the Arizona Department of Health Services before you sell.