Wendy Reinoehl

Yes, this should be allowed for a home food processing operation, which I was not well-informed about back in February.

I don’t think any drink would be allowed under the cottage food law, and I’m not really familiar enough with starters to comment on them. My guess is that those wouldn’t be allowed either, but you should talk with the ag dept to…[Read more]

Usually there is some kind of exemption for charitable or nonprofit sales, but I’m not sure about sales to benefit an individual. If you are in business for yourself, that is more or less sales to benefit an individual (you), right? I don’t really know… I’d suggest you call the ag dept for more info.

I’m not sure either. I’d recommend you call the ABC dept.

Your mother would need to become a home food processing operation: http://forrager.com/law/virginia-home-food-processing-operation/

You should contact one of the contacts on that page for more specific details.

You probably do need to get a business license, but you need to call your county to confirm. There are a few things you may need to check before starting your business: http://forrager.com/faq/#starting

Have you spoken with the ag or health dept about your business plans? They might be able to point you in the direction of kitchens you could use.

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]

Hi! New here, but I’ve been also researching Virginia’s cottage food laws. Regarding buttercream – unlike the hard stance Virginia takes on cream cheese, the law doesn’t specifically address buttercream so it is a gray area. The key is whether you need to refrigerate it, which mostly depends on the exact ingredients you use and the proportions.…[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]

By definition, a business intends to make a profit. That’s why the IRS will classify you as a hobby if you take a loss for too many years in a row. It is for that reason that I don’t think your gifts or donations could be deducted as a “loss” for your business. If you take the sales you’ve made and deduct the variable expenses for…[Read more]

Setting aside the sales tax question temporarily, I just want to make sure that you’ve gone through the steps to make sure you’re running your business legally. Are you sure that your county doesn’t require you to get a business license for your chocolate business? More general info: http://forrager.com/faq/#starting

From what I understand, a…[Read more]

Although kombucha isn’t allowed under VA’s cottage food law, you should still talk to your health dept to see if there’s a way you can bottle it at home and sell it. Otherwise, you’ll need to use a commercial kitchen.

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

Miasha, I’ve listed the basic info, along with external resources here: http://forrager.com/law/virginia/
I am not familiar with any significant websites for Virginia.

Most people make labels themselves and print them at home. Some also use online print shops to produce their labels.

You should call Heath at the ag dept at 804-786-1164, and he should be able to clear up most of your questions. You can probably make buttercream frosting, but I’m not sure about that, since sometimes depts disallow it. I don’t think you need any licensing from the ag dept, but you still need to call your local authorities to determine if you need…[Read more]