Cottage food rules
Indiana Cottage Food Laws in July: What Home Bakers Need
A plain answer on Indiana rules for a July of markets, porch pickups and online orders.
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What to remember
- Cottage food operations in Indiana do not require a license or permit.
- Indiana has no sales limits for home food businesses and permits online sales.
- House Enrolled Act 1149, passed in 2022, defined the requirements for home-based vendors.
- HB 1562 sets homemade food product labeling requirements and requires food safety training from a list of approved providers.
- Registration, training and labeling requirements still apply even though there is no license.
If you are new to this, start with the basics of what you are allowed to make. Indiana cottage food laws: what home bakers can sell walks through the products that fit. Then come back here for the July question, which turns out to be less about a summer exception and more about staying on top of the training and labeling that Indiana now asks of home-based vendors.
Do you need a license to sell bakes from home in Indiana?
No. Cottage food operations in Indiana do not require a license or permit. That is the headline, and it is the reason so many home bakers in the state start selling without a pile of paperwork. The catch is that Indiana still applies registration, training and labeling requirements to home food businesses, so no license does not mean no rules.
The framework goes back a way. House Enrolled Act 1309, passed by the Indiana Legislature in 2009, made statutory changes allowing certain food products to be made in private residences with limited regulatory oversight. Then House Enrolled Act 1149, passed in 2022, defined the requirements for home-based vendors in the preparation and sale of food products.
Training and labeling rules that trip people up
The 2022 law did two big things. It changed how and where home-based vendor products can be sold, and it added food handler training requirements. If you have been selling for a few years and never updated your routine, this is the part to reread before your next market.
Labeling is the other moving piece. HB 1562 establishes homemade food product and meat product labeling requirements, and under HB 1562 a small farm or home-based vendor must complete and pass food safety training from a list of approved providers. Our guide to Indiana cottage food label requirements covers what goes on the sticker.
Selling in July without a summer slip up
Indiana has no sales limits for home food businesses and permits online sales, with registration, training and labeling requirements applying. That means a July made of Saturday markets, weekday porch pickups and online orders is allowed, as long as the training and labeling side is handled.
Indiana’s home food rules keep coming back to three words: registration, training and labeling. Training means completing and passing food safety training from a list of approved providers. Labeling means meeting the homemade food product requirements in HB 1562. Registration is part of the requirements that apply to home food businesses in the state. None of it is hard, but it takes days rather than minutes, so start before the July rush instead of in the middle of it.
Summer also changes what people order from you. If your July menu leans on cream cheese fillings or anything that has to stay cold on the drive over, read Indiana cottage food laws and cream cheese before you build the list, and plan your handoff around the heat rather than around what is easiest to bake.
Price your July menu before you bake it
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The short version for July: no license, no sales cap, online sales allowed, and the training and labeling work still belongs to you. Get those in order once, keep your labels current, and summer selling gets a lot simpler.
Common questions
Do Indiana cottage food rules change in July?
Nothing in the state rules sets a different rule for summer. The requirements that apply to a home-based vendor in July are the ones set out in House Enrolled Act 1149 and in HB 1562, which cover how and where products can be sold, food handler training, food safety training from approved providers, and labeling.
Do I need a license or permit to sell baked goods from home in Indiana?
No. Cottage food operations in Indiana do not require a license or permit. Registration, training and labeling requirements still apply to home food businesses.
Is there a limit on how much I can sell?
Indiana has no sales limits for home food businesses. Online sales are permitted, with registration, training and labeling requirements applying.
Can I take orders online in Indiana?
Yes. Indiana permits online sales for home food businesses, and no sales limit applies. The registration, training and labeling requirements still apply to those orders.
What training do I need?
In 2022, House Enrolled Act 1149 added food handler training requirements for home-based vendors. Under HB 1562, a small farm or home-based vendor must complete and pass food safety training from a list of approved providers.
What has to be on my label?
HB 1562 establishes homemade food product and meat product labeling requirements. Check your current labels against those requirements, especially if your stickers were printed a while ago.
Sources
This is general information, not legal advice. Rules can change, so confirm the current requirements with the state before you sell.