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Monique Germaine with Kneading to Bake

Monique Germaine of Nashville, TN shares how she built and rebuilt her cottage food bakery in 3 different states, plus a crazy commercial food business journey that got her products into big retailers

Growing A Movement with Lisa Kivirist

Lisa Kivirist of Browntown, WI shares an update on the past, present, and future of the cottage food and food freedom movements, and how she’s helping support them with many different resources

2021 Cottage Food Bills

2021 is a fresh start in so many ways, but as always, a new year means a new round of cottage food bills!

And what a big round it is! At least one-third of states are actively working on improving their cottage food law this year.

I actually can’t remember a year when there were this many cottage food amendments on the table. It reminds me of nearly a decade ago, when states were busy creating their initial cottage food laws.

In all likelihood, the pandemic, and the resulting surge of interest in cottage foods, is part of the push to improve the laws in many states.

2021 Recap: A Record Year for the Cottage Food Industry

WOW… what a year it has been for our growing cottage food industry!

As I wrote about last year, the pandemic really highlighted the need for people to be able to sell their homemade food.

And in 2021, states responded in a BIG way! This year, more states improved their laws for selling homemade food than in any other year in history.

2020 Cottage Food Industry Recap

2020 was not just a year full of changes for the nation and world.

It was also a year which changed the cottage food industry… sometimes for the worse, but mostly for the better.

There were a number of important storylines this year, and surprisingly, many of them were not pandemic-related.

In this year-end recap, I’ll give my take on the major events of 2020 that related to the cottage food industry.

Wyoming Sets A New Standard For Food Freedom

It’s July 1st, 2020, and for the first time in over 7 years, I’ve added a new rank to Forrager’s map. I named it “freedom”, and Wyoming has the honor of being the first state to reach this status!

As of today, Wyoming’s new amendment (HB 84) to their food freedom law takes effect, and it’s a big one. Because although their 2015 law has always been the best food freedom law in the country, truthfully, it still lagged behind some of the best cottage food laws in some ways.

North Dakota Loses Food Freedom

North Dakota’s food freedom law regresses into a good cottage food law, after the state health department created new rules and limits.

The New Cottage Food Rules

Wyoming has tested the waters of food freedom for a year. Are people using their food freedom law, and if so, is it negatively impacting the public health? Is this the future of the cottage food movement?

Why Health Departments Hate Cottage Food Laws

Cottage food operations often get frustrated by health departments, who can be slow, uncommunicative, and sometimes downright unfriendly. Do health departments really dislike the cottage food industry as much as people think they do?

Food Freedom Is No Longer A Myth

Yes, food freedom is real. The term has become increasingly popular: you may have heard it around the dinner table, at farmers markets, or even at a food freedom fest. This catchphrase of locavore culture has become so common that, until recently, you may have thought it to be a real thing. Proponents of food… [read more]