Kristen E Baker-Walker

Mariana, Miami Dade is the only county I’ve heard that disallows cottage food operations, but there may be other counties that disallow them as well. Once you go over the $15K limit, you need to get a commercial license: http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

Requirements vary based on where you live, but here’s some general info on getting the…[Read more]

I’m not sure about VA, but here’s some general info: http://forrager.com/faq/#pet-food

You would not be able to use the cottage food law (as I think you already know), but oftentimes the regulations for selling coffee are much simpler than getting a standard commercial license. Check with your ag dept, as the requirements usually vary between counties.

Neither of those would be allowed because both require refrigeration. You need to use a commercial kitchen to produce these items: http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

Holly, I don’t think you’ll make much progress until you contact the health dept directly. It doesn’t appear that this will get added to the approved food list anytime soon.

From what I have heard about OK, sales may only be made at your home. That makes the law very restrictive and it’s an unfortunate interpretation, as that info isn’t actually built into the law itself. However, I would say that it wouldn’t exclude you from making a sale at home (like a cake), and then delivering it on event day. But I don’t think…[Read more]

You need a commercial license: http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

The law says that you cannot “sell” online, and that’s all it says. I’d say that if you’re not collecting money online, then you’re not making a sale. If you do a preorder over your website with no money changing hands, and then exchange the money face-to-face, that should be legal.

Often an EIN isn’t required for a company that doesn’t hire employees, but you might as well get one if your county is asking for it — it’s very easy and free. You can register as a sole proprietor when you apply for your business license, though some businesses opt for a corporation: http://forrager.com/faq/#llc

You can see the CDPH’s clarification in question 9 of their FAQs. The last sentence in that question, about selling outside your county, is no longer true for direct sales, which can now be made anywhere within the state.

Sorry, I’m really only familiar with the laws for items produced from home… food trucks have a completely different set of laws. I’d recommend you talk with the health dept to determine the easiest path for you to take (which probably wouldn’t involve the cottage food law, since you already have a food truck).

Angel, have you read the info on this page: http://forrager.com/law/florida/
I think that will answer most of your questions, and here’s some more info about getting started: http://forrager.com/faq/#starting

You will need to make sure that the goods you make do not require refrigeration, and all of your sales will have to be in-person. Let me…[Read more]

Generally speaking, any type of food that needs to be refrigerated is not allowed. Homemade mayo and garlic/oil mixtures are not allowed, and you would need to use a commercial kitchen to produce them. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

Although cottage food operations cannot sell items that require refrigeration, I believe that almost any gluten item that would be allowed under the law would also be allowed if produced gluten-free. Gluten-free items may not have as long of a shelf life and refrigerating them may help preserve them, but they probably wouldn’t become potentially…[Read more]

I don’t believe food swaps fall under any regulation, since there is no money trading hands and people aren’t engaging in commerce. California has some extremely strict rules, but I know that food swaps happen in the Bay Area all the time and I haven’t heard of one getting shut down. I assume it would be less strict in MD.

However, the food swaps…[Read more]

You would not be able to use the cottage food law. You would have to get a commercial license and rent a commercial kitchen.

You should be able to, but there are strict standards to abide by. What I’ve heard from the ag dept is overviewed in the limitations section: http://forrager.com/law/pennsylvania/#limitations