Lauren Cortesi

I think you’ll be fine, as long as your kitchen doesn’t open up to a bedroom or sleeping space. Assuming you’re going with a Class B permit, just move ahead with the inspection and I highly doubt they’ll say anything about it.

There probably isn’t a written rule about that. I’d say a contractor would be fine. The important point is that it’s only one person.

You need to pay annual taxes on all income you make, even if your business is operating at a loss. There is no limit — technically, your first order should have been reported. If you want to bypass income tax requirements, you would need to give away your products (not collect money). Once you start making a certain amount of money, you need to…[Read more]

It should be okay, but you still need to check with your county’s environmental health dept. If they choose to disallow it, there’s not much you can do about it.

Products must be hand-delivered, but since you can have one employee, you can hire someone to deliver for you. You can’t use a delivery service, like UPS.

I’m pretty sure kombucha isn’t allowed, but you should check with your environmental health dept to make sure. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

As a CFO, you are allowed one employee. It is possible to consider a delivery driver to be your one employee.

The intent of the direct sales limitation is to provide accountability by having the producer and consumer meet in-person. Online sales and shipping bypasses that personal interaction, and I think that’s why it isn’t allowed. However,…[Read more]

No, it does not fall under the cottage food law. You need to use a commercial kitchen to produce it. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

Sorry, I’m only familiar with the cottage food laws, which pertain to items which are intended for consumption. Have you tried contacting the market organizer?

Cut or processed fruits aren’t on the list, but unprocessed fruits are okay to sell. I don’t think there’s any way to operate a home business that sells chocolate-covered fresh fruit. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

Try calling the ag dept in your county.

1. You will likely need your DBA first, and the food handler training can come after applying, though it’s easy to do beforehand.

2. You must get approval from the property owner as the very first step. If they do not allow you to use your home for this business, you can’t use the cottage food law unless you move.

3) You need to pay yearly…[Read more]

It depends on what your county allows. Some counties will allow a variety of sweet fruit syrups, while others will only allow what is on the approved list.

Unless there is some special permit for repackaging commercially-produced foods, I think you would at least need to become a limited food establishment — I think those foods would be allowed, but I’m not completely sure. It’s best to contact the ag dept directly and ask them about your specific situation.

Certain non-perishable foods, like some cakes and baked goods, can be produced and sold from your home. You don’t need a license from the ag dept, but there may be other requirements: http://forrager.com/faq/#starting

To sell hot meals or frozen packaged foods, you need to use a commercial kitchen, and you should contact the health dept.…[Read more]