Cottage food rules
Massachusetts Cottage Food Law: What Home Bakers Need
A plain walk through the Massachusetts cottage food definition and the local rules that sit on top of it.
On this page
What to remember
- Your kitchen has to be the one in your main home, not a second kitchen or a relative’s house.
- The state definition covers sales directly to the consumer.
- Your city or town can add requirements on top of the state rules.
- Selling into another state means checking federal law and that state’s law as well.
- The state FAQ is the plain language place to start reading.
If you bake at home and want to sell what you make, the paperwork question comes up fast. Massachusetts answers it through its Retail Food Code rather than a short standalone page, so it helps to know which document says what. This guide walks through the definition, the local layer, and the food safety standards sitting behind it. If you are comparing states, our guide to local cottage food laws shows how much these rules move from place to place.
Who counts as a cottage food operation
105 CMR 590 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, and only for sale directly to the consumer. Two limits sit inside that sentence. The first is where you cook, which has to be the kitchen in your main home. The second is who you sell to, which has to be the person buying the food.
Your city or town still has a say
Under 105 CMR 590, cottage food operations and non-exempted bed and breakfast operations, described in the guidance as permitted retail residential kitchens, must comply with all applicable municipal law. That means the state definition is the starting point and not the whole story. What your city or town asks of a home kitchen can go further, so a quick call to your local board of health early saves a lot of rework later. The same idea runs through our guide to home bakery license requirements if you want the wider picture.
The wider food safety standards
105 CMR 500.000 establishes minimum standards for people engaged in the business of preparing, processing, or distributing food for sale in Massachusetts. Think of it as the background standard that sits behind the cottage food definition. Reading it is not the fun part of starting a home bakery, but it tells you what the state expects of anyone selling food they made.
Sales that sit outside the permit question
The state guidance for farms lists sales that do not need a Retail Food Code permit: whole, uncut fresh fruits and vegetables, unprocessed honey, pure maple products, and farm fresh eggs. If what you sell looks like one of those, read that farm guidance closely before you assume the cottage food rules apply to you.
Selling across state lines is its own check. The state says anyone who makes food in a Massachusetts residential kitchen and wants to sell it in another state should confirm they are in compliance with both federal law and the laws of the state where they are selling. That is two checks, and both belong before you accept the order.
Read the state FAQ first
Massachusetts provides a Residential Kitchen Questions and Answers page written to help people comply with the rules for food made in a home kitchen.
Confirm your kitchen qualifies
The kitchen has to be the home kitchen of your primary domestic residence.
Confirm your sales are direct
The state definition covers sale directly to the consumer.
Check your city or town
Cottage food operations must comply with all applicable municipal law, so ask your local board of health what it wants from you.
Check any out of state selling
Confirm compliance with federal law and with the law of the state where you are selling.
- Home Bakery License Online: What You Need to Know
- Local Cottage Food Laws: What Home Bakers Need to Know
Common questions
Do I need a permit to sell baked goods from my home in Massachusetts?
The state cottage food definition in 105 CMR 590 covers production in the home kitchen of your primary domestic residence for direct sale to the consumer, and it requires compliance with all applicable municipal law. Because the answer depends on your city or town and on what you sell, confirm the permit question with your local board of health and with the state Residential Kitchen Questions and Answers page before you take orders.
Can I sell my bakes to a coffee shop or a restaurant?
The state definition is limited to sale directly to the consumer. Selling through a shop or a restaurant does not match that description, so check with the state before you agree to it.
Does this apply if I want to sell in another state?
Massachusetts says anyone making food in a residential kitchen here and selling it in another state should confirm compliance with both federal law and the laws of the state where they are selling.
What about honey, maple syrup, or eggs?
State guidance for farms lists whole, uncut fresh fruits and vegetables, unprocessed honey, pure maple products, and farm fresh eggs as sales that do not need a Retail Food Code permit. Read that guidance closely before you rely on it.
Where do I read the official wording?
Start with 105 CMR 590, the Retail Food Code, then the state Residential Kitchen Questions and Answers page. Both are linked in the sources below.
Sources
- 105 CMR 590 State Sanitary Code Chapter X, Minimum Sanitation Standards for Food Establishments
- Retail Food Code Standards for Permitted Residential Kitchens
- Guidance for Farms and Agricultural Businesses on Cottage Food and Other Food Sales
- Residential Kitchen Questions and Answers
- 105 CMR 500.000 Good Manufacturing Practices for Food
This is general information about a state regulation, not legal advice. Rules change and your city or town can add requirements, so confirm with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health or your local board of health before you sell.