Cottage food rules
What Are the Cottage Food Laws in Georgia? What to Confirm Before You Sell
You will know exactly where to check Georgia's cottage food rules and what to ask, so you can sell without guessing.
On this page
You already know how to bake. The hard part is the paperwork side, and the worst thing you can do is take a deposit from a neighbor based on something you read in a Facebook group. Here is the calm version of how to get this sorted.
Why you should not trust a blog post for this, including ours
Cottage food rules get updated. A post written three years ago can be out of date, and a comment from someone in another county can be flat wrong. We looked at the state’s cottage food page and it did not give us the details we would need to tell you what you can bake or what a license costs. Rather than fill that gap with guesses, we are going to point you at the source and give you the questions to bring with you.
The four questions to get answered
- What am I allowed to bake and sell from my home kitchen?
- What has to be printed on my label, word for word?
- Where can I sell it, from home, at a market, and online?
- Is there a fee, a permit, or an inspection, and what does it involve?
Those four answers cover almost everything a home baker needs before the first sale.
How to check, step by step
Start with the state agency
The Georgia Department of Agriculture handles food rules for home sellers. That is the office to contact, not a general city hotline.
Ask for it in writing
Call or email and ask for the cottage food requirements for baked goods made in a home kitchen. Ask them to send it in writing or point you to the current page. A written answer protects you later if a customer ever questions you.
Ask about your specific bakes
Do not ask “can I sell baked goods.” Ask about the exact things you make. A frosted cake, a loaf of bread, and a jar of jam can each be treated differently, so name them.
Ask about online orders
If you plan to take orders through your own shop, ask whether that counts as selling from home or as something else. Get a clear answer before you list a single item.
Write it down and keep it
Save the email or letter, note the date and the name of the person you spoke with, and put it in a folder. When you add a new product or a new market, ask again.
What to do while you wait for answers
You can get your business ready without breaking any rules. Practice your recipes, work out what each pan actually costs you in ingredients and time, and figure out a price that pays you for the work. That part is yours to control.
When the state answers, you will already know your numbers, and you can start taking orders the same week.
A warning about shortcuts
The bottom line
You do not need to be a paperwork person to do this right. You need one phone call, four questions, and a folder to keep the answers in. Do that before you take money, and the rest of it, the baking, the pricing, and the customers, is the fun part.
Sources
This is general information for home bakers, not legal advice. Cottage food rules change and are decided by the State of Georgia. Confirm your own situation with the Georgia Department of Agriculture before you sell.