Rajesh Anandakrishnan

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]

Anything with meat, including seafood, is not allowed under the Florida cottage food law. You need to use a commercial kitchen, and you should contact your health dept. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

You need a commercial kitchen to do this, and it wouldn’t fall under the cottage food law. It’s only possible to do at home if you build a commercial kitchen on your property. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

No — you will need to use a commercial kitchen to start your business. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

First of all, keep in mind that Kentucky currently only allows farmers to sell items they make at home. If you are a farmer, I’m not sure if apple cider vinegar would be allowed, but you should call your ag dept to check.

If you’re not a farmer, you will need to use a commercial kitchen to produce your vinegar. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

Over the past few years, I’ve seen many entrepreneurs try to establish an online marketplace for local foods — virtually all of them with limited or no success, myself included. So just by that fact alone, it’s clear that there are some serious barriers to entry in this space. I’m still trying to figure out exactly what those barriers are.

I…[Read more]

If you add the butter and then thoroughly bake the croutons, that would definitely be allowed. If you are adding the butter after baking, it would still likely be allowed, but you should check with the ag dept.

CO has said that anything that’s not in the list is not allowed. Therefore, I assume that you would need to use a commercial kitchen to produce popcorn. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

It would probably be allowed under the cottage food law, but really, if your health inspector is okay with it with fewer requirements, then I’d say you’re good to go. They are the ones that regulate the laws, and their word about what’s allowed is final.

Jenn, usually the only way to find info about this is to call the govt dept directly.

Jay, I’m pretty sure that your equipment doesn’t need to follow commercial standards. You should call the ag dept to make sure.

I don’t think it’s different for CFOs. If you also use your kitchen for personal use, it can’t be deducted. I’m pretty sure about that, but not 100% sure. To learn more, you need to contact whatever tax authority there is in your area — the depts that govern this are different for each state, so I don’t know what yours is called.

Yes, you just report it on your quarterly estimated and yearly taxes.

How do they know if you go over? They probably won’t. But, once you go over, you’re no longer operating legally, so if you got sued, you wouldn’t have any legal ground to stand on. The laws are there to protect you — once you leave their umbrella, you’re no longer…[Read more]

Thanks so much for the info about that phone number now being invalid! I’ll remove it.

The list of requirements you’d need to go through sounds about right. For a tiny business, it’s not really worth it. The statement that most home food businesses don’t operate under the law also sounds right. And considering that you’re not willing to operate…[Read more]