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In San Diego, anything that the product may come into contact with should be food-safe (i.e. bags, but not the boxes containing them or external labels).

In San Diego, most markets welcome CFOs. We’ve recently encountered a manager who will not allow CFOs into any of her 3 markets. The reason given was that it would increase their insurance costs. We are currently exploring whether or not that’s true. Any info you have would be appreciated. We’ve been told that CERTIFIED farmer’s markets do not…[Read more]

Aimee, I’m not entirely sure. This seems to fall into a gray area, because it’s neither an indirect sale nor a direct sale, really. My guess, which could be wrong, is that this would not be allowed because you are not selling to the end consumer. I’d recommend you call the state ag dept for official clarification.

Hello! I’am starting my new cottage food business in Seminole County, Florida. I will be baking Bundt Cakes, cupcakes and muffins… Recently a lawyer office ask me if I can sell them a certain amount of muffins weekly so they can give them away as a gift for their clients. Can I do that?

From what I’ve heard, Miami doesn’t allow any types of homemade food to be sold. Miami-Dade County has banned the cottage food law. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

If you’re just using a teaspoon or two of vanilla extract in a cookie recipe, then you don’t need to worry about it. But if it’s a significant amount of alcohol, then you need to talk to your health dept to learn about what permits are necessary.

You won’t be able to use the cottage food law and make your ice pops at home. You should probably double check to make sure that that Berkeley business is actually legal. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

The limit isn’t actively regulated, but a health or ag dept could shut down an operation if it was clear that they were making too much. I’d say it’s more self-regulated, in that people know if they make more than $15K then they’re doing something illegal. That limitation is baked right into Florida’s law, so an amendment to the law would need to…[Read more]

It should be true, but there are some counties with weird ordinances. You can check with your local ag dept, but usually you don’t need a license from them to sell produce. You may need a business license or something else from other depts in your county, though.

Bake sales like this may be possible, but it’s up to your health dept to draw the lines for what’s allowed.

One thing that complicates things is that CFOs do not need a permit from the ag dept, so most probably don’t check with the ag dept before starting their business. But from what I’ve heard, in Miami-Dade a CFO would get stopped if an inspector walked through the market.

It is actually what the law doesn’t state that matters. It doesn’t say that…[Read more]