HELP
Selling food you cooked at home
There is no national rule
Most states run what is usually called a cottage food program: a way to sell certain foods you made in your own kitchen without becoming a commercial food business. What that program allows, who has to sign up for it, and how much you may sell under it are decided state by state, and sometimes county by county on top of that.
So the honest answer to "what do I need" is: it depends where you are. What follows is what these programs usually have in common, and then how to find yours.
What most programs ask
| Question | Usually |
|---|---|
| Do I have to register? | In most states, yes. It is often online, and often free or a small fee. A few states require no registration at all for the simplest foods. |
| Do I need a food handler card? | Commonly yes. It is usually a short online course and a test, valid for a few years. |
| Will somebody inspect my kitchen? | In many states, no. That is the point of a cottage food program. Some states do inspect, and some inspect only if there is a complaint. |
| Is there a limit on how much I can sell? | Some states cap your annual sales, some do not. Where there is a cap it varies enormously, and crossing it usually means becoming a licensed food business. |
| What am I allowed to make? | Usually shelf stable food: baked goods, jams, dry mixes, candy. Anything needing refrigeration, and most meat and dairy, is commonly restricted or banned outright. Some states allow far more than others. |
| Who can I sell to? | Usually direct to the person who is going to eat it, inside your own state. Selling to shops and restaurants for resale is commonly not allowed. |
| Can I post it or ship it? | Often not. Some states allow shipping within the state, and a few allow more. Assume no until you have read otherwise. |
| Do I have to label it? | Almost always. Typically your name and address, the ingredients, the major allergens, and a notice saying the food was made in a home kitchen that is not inspected. |
Labels are the part people miss
Registration is a form you fill in once. Labelling is something you do on every batch, and it is the most common thing to get wrong. Wherever you are, expect to declare the major allergens and to say in plain words that the food was made in a home kitchen that is not subject to inspection.
Your menu on Little Kitchen is not a label. A description on a storefront is not a substitute for what goes on the container. The label goes on the food.
How to find your state's rules
Search for your state's name with "cottage food" and "health department", and read the current page on the state's own site rather than a summary of it. State pages are usually short, and they are the only version that counts.
Then check whether your county or your city adds anything on top. Plenty do, and a state registration does not cover a county permit.
If you cook on a truck or out of a commissary rather than at home, none of the above is your route: that is a mobile food permit and a commissary agreement, and your county health department is the place to start.
Things this page is not
This is general information written to save you a first hour of searching. It is not legal advice, it is not from a lawyer, and it is not from any health department. Rules change, and this page may be out of date by the time you read it: your state's own page is the one that counts.
Little Kitchen does not verify, check, approve or endorse anybody's registration, permits, food handler card, labels or compliance with anything. A kitchen appearing on Little Kitchen is not evidence that it has done any of the above. That is covered in the terms, and it is worth saying twice.
LAST UPDATED 24 AUGUST 2026
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