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Suzy Zimmermann

  • Megan posted an update in the group Texas 4 years ago

    Hello everyone. I’m very very new to this. I have several questions. I may not even be in the right place but I really don’t know where to begin.
    So I am an at home barista pretty much. I love making lattes and different flavored drinks and such for my guests. I’m wondering if I can start selling coffee from home? I live in an apartment complex…[Read more]

  • Megan joined the group Texas 4 years ago

  • Sari Kimbell joined the group Texas 5 years ago

  • David Crabill replied to the topic Texas Cottage Food Law in the forum Texas 8 years ago

    Lisa, the law says that you can sell at “a municipal, county, or nonprofit fair, festival, or event”. You can also sell at farmers markets. All other types of events are not allowed. So if it is not run by the local govt, or if it is not run by a non-profit, or if it is not a farmers market, then you can’t sell at it.

  • David Crabill replied to the topic Texas Cottage Food Law in the forum Texas 8 years ago

    It’s true that lobbying plays a big part in the strictness of Texas. However, when it comes to canned goods, botulism is a major concern.

  • You would need to use a commercial kitchen and go through a much different, and much more complicated, process of getting a license. Instead of searching for how to sell tea, simply search for how to start a food business in Texas. The rules are similar for all food businesses. You should also talk to your health dept about what you need.

  • David Crabill replied to the topic savory pies in the forum Texas 8 years ago

    I don’t think any savory pies would be allowed. You cannot use meat or cheese in your items. If you make a savory pie that does not require refrigeration, it may be allowed. Otherwise, you need to prepare your pies in a commercial kitchen. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

  • David Crabill replied to the topic Rum cakes in the forum Texas 8 years ago

    I’m not sure… you will need to contact the health dept.

  • David replied to the topic Texas Cottage Food Law in the forum Texas 9 years ago

    Yes, that is considered a cottage food, and no, you can’t sell it on Etsy unless you are using a commercial kitchen. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

  • Suzanne replied to the topic Texas Cottage Food Law in the forum Texas 9 years ago

    I am trying to help my mother in law find out if it would be legal to package her dry hot chocolate mix and sell it on Etsy. Is it considered a cottage food if no cooking is involved?

  • Suzanne posted an update in the group Texas 9 years ago

    Hot Chocolate Mix as wedding favors: I am trying to help my mother in law out. She would like to make her “famous” hot chocolate available for purchase. She is interested in selling it as wedding favors online with Etsy. I see loads of those on there. Since there is no cooking involved would it even be a cottage food item? I appreciate input…its…[Read more]

    • A food item does not need to be cooked… it’s anything that is consumed that you process in your kitchen. Since Texas only allows homemade food to be sold face-to-face, you can’t use your home kitchen for Etsy sales.

      • Okay, thank you for that clarification. So, she would need to assemble her powdered mixs in a certified commercial kitchen?

      • Yes, for Texas, I believe any online business would require products to be made in a commercial kitchen.

  • Suzanne joined the group Texas 9 years ago

  • Deborah Lott joined the group Texas 9 years ago

  • David replied to the topic Chicken Salad in the forum Texas 9 years ago

    You need to use a commercial kitchen to produce salads, and I’m not sure if they’re taxable. You will need to contact the health dept. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

  • David replied to the topic Free Beverages? in the forum Texas 9 years ago

    Even when an item is given away for free at a public venue, it could potentially pose a risk to the public health. I doubt you can do coffee or tea, but it might not be too hard to acquire the permit to make those and offer them. For water, I really have no idea, but I’d like to think that that would be fine, assuming it is city water. Obviously,…[Read more]

  • The only legal way to sell homemade food online is to build a commercial kitchen in your home, have the health dept approve and inspect it, and use that to start your commercial food business. I’d highly recommend finding an already existing commercial kitchen instead. http://forrager.com/faq/#commercial

  • David replied to the topic Pasta in the forum Texas 9 years ago

    Generally speaking, for Texas, if it’s not on the allowed list (as specified in the law), then it’s probably not allowed at all. You can check with the health dept about items that aren’t on the allowed list, but they’ll probably say that you need to produce them in a commercial kitchen.

  • Jim McHaney posted an update in the group Texas 9 years ago

    We discovered this website through the article in Sept/Oct 2015 issue of GRIT.
    I would like to recruit other Texas residents who are willing to interested and willing to work together to champion significant revisions to the Texas CFL during the 2017 session of the Texas Legislature. If you are interested (and have some hot-button issues) about…[Read more]

  • Jim McHaney joined the group Texas 9 years ago

  • David replied to the topic Pasta in the forum Texas 9 years ago

    If you’ve remove it from its package, I don’t think you can even sell commercially-prepared dry pasta.

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