Cottage food rules
Ohio Home Bakery License: How to Get Registered
A clear path from home kitchen to licensed Ohio home bakery, with the email and phone number you actually need.
What to remember
- A home bakery is licensed and inspected by the Ohio Department of Agriculture, Division of Food Safety.
- The license costs $10 a year and is renewed every September.
- You start by sending the Request for Inspection form to [email protected], or by calling (614) 728-6250.
- A cottage food production operation is exempt from inspection and licensing by the Ohio Department of Agriculture.
- Ohio Revised Code Chapter 911 covers a home bakery with only one oven, in a stove of ordinary home kitchen design, in a home, used for baking baked goods to be sold.
The word online sends a lot of bakers looking for a payment page and a submit button. That is not how Ohio does it. What you actually need is an inspection, and the state tells you exactly how to ask for one. Before you do that, work out which kind of seller you are, because the cheaper and simpler path may already be open to you.
Cottage food or home bakery
A cottage food production operation is exempt from inspection and licensing by the Ohio Department of Agriculture. Approved cottage food products include non-potentially hazardous bakery products, jams, jellies, and candy not including fresh fruit dipped items. If you go this way, you still have to follow Chapter 901:3-20 of the Administrative Code, which the Revised Code points cottage food operations to. A home bakery is the other path, and Chapter 911 describes it as a home bakery with only one oven, in a stove of ordinary home kitchen design, located in a home, used for baking baked goods to be sold. Read what the license costs in Ohio before you decide, since the two paths carry different costs and different rules.
How to get your home bakery registration
Work out which operation you are
If everything you sell is a non-potentially hazardous bakery product, jam, jelly, or candy, the cottage food exemption may cover you. If you are baking goods to sell from a single oven in an ordinary home kitchen, Chapter 911 is the rule that describes your setup.
Fill in the Request for Inspection form
The state asks for this form when you want an inspection to obtain a home bakery registration. Fill it in completely so nobody has to come back to you with questions.
Email the form
Send it to [email protected]. This is the step most people miss while they are searching for an online application.
Or call instead
If email is not your thing, call (614) 728-6250 and ask about a home bakery registration inspection. You can also use the Request for Inspection form route if you prefer to have it in writing.
Get inspected and keep the license current
A home bakery must be licensed and inspected. The license is $10 a year, and it is renewed every September, so put a reminder in your phone for late August.
After the inspection
Once you are registered, the day to day work is orders, money, and repeat customers. A shop that is yours to customize helps here, with your photos, your colors, and your own web address. If you are weighing up what to use, what a home bakery app can do walks through the options without hype, and how to take payments from home bakery customers covers what to confirm before you accept your first card.
Try the free bake pricing calculator
Free, no signup.
One last thing worth knowing before you fill in any form. The state’s rules for a home bakery describe a single oven in a stove of ordinary home kitchen design. If your setup is bigger than that, get clear on where you stand before you sell, because the answer changes which rules apply to you.
Common questions
Can I apply for an Ohio home bakery license online?
The state's instructions point to a Request for Inspection form that you email to [email protected], or a phone call to (614) 728-6250. That is how a home bakery registration starts. There is no online license application described in those steps.
How much does an Ohio home bakery license cost?
It is $10 per year, and it is renewed every September.
Do I need a license if I only sell cottage foods?
A cottage food production operation is exempt from inspection and licensing by the Ohio Department of Agriculture. Approved cottage food products include non-potentially hazardous bakery products, jams, jellies, and candy not including fresh fruit dipped items. Cottage food operations still have to follow Chapter 901:3-20 of the Administrative Code.
What counts as a home bakery under Ohio law?
Ohio Revised Code Chapter 911 covers a home bakery with only one oven, in a stove of ordinary home kitchen design and located in a home, used for baking baked goods to be sold.
Who do I contact to book the inspection?
Email [email protected] with the Request for Inspection form, or call (614) 728-6250.
Sources
- Ohio Department of Agriculture: Home Bakery
- Ohio Department of Agriculture: Food Safety questions
- Ohio Department of Agriculture: Home Bakery Registration
- Ohio Department of Agriculture: Cottage Food
- Ohio Administrative Code rule 901:3-20-04
- Ohio Administrative Code chapter 901:3-20
- Ohio Revised Code Chapter 911
This is general information, not legal advice. Rules and fees can change, so confirm the current requirements with the Ohio Department of Agriculture before you sell.