Cottage Food Laws

A Comprehensive Guide to Homemade Food Business in Texas

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Learn about Cottage Food Business

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Legal Background >>

Pickled, canned, or fermented foods in Texas after September 1, 2019 are regulated separetly*.

We've got you covered!

Check out our F.A.Q.

section.

Who needs to be certified and why? What is the Food Handler certification about? How and where to get it? All these questions are easily answered by our comprehensive pre-certification Food Handler’s 101 Training.

Pickling and Canning

Cream Cheese Frosting

Yes or No to Cream Cheese Frosting on Your Cake? In short, it's a YES.

But there's always a "but" to be aware of: as long as your frosting doesn’t require time or temperature control for safety (TTCS)

you can use it on your baked goods. However, in practice it's next to impossible to know whether your frosting is TTCS without expensive laboratory testing. Check out our store with tested recipes for cream cheese frosting, lemon curd, buttercreams, chocolate cake filling, and more.

You can bake and sell with confidence knowing your products are allowed under the Texas Cottage Food Law.

To the Store

A 2013 study by the Harvard Food Law and Policy Clinic found that:

increasing the number of locally made products available for purchase at farmers markets and similar locations has the direct economic benefit of increasing the amount of money that stays in the local economy;

home food production can serve as a business incubator by reducing some of the start-up barriers for fledgling entrepreneurs;

communities benefit from cottage food production because it provides residents greater access to locally produced foods, and;

cottage food laws encourage more people to grow food because the growers know they have an outlet to create value-added products from any excess fresh fruits and vegetables they produce.

Need To Know Before Your First Sale:

What Science Says About Homemade Food Business For The Economy >>

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For Cottage Food Business Regulation in Texas and its latest 2019 reform S.B. 572 please see here.

The Basics

Get Certified

FAQ

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*Terms and conditions may apply. Check the official DSHS web-site for more information.

Become a Member

As a community we strive to assist our members with setting up their homemade food businesses in Texas, providing tons of tailored information, special services, training, and resources.

As a community member, you are eligible to attend our educational events and activities, organized online and offline in cities of Texas*

Let your customers know you are compliant with all the requirements of the Health and Safety Code of Texas and have a Food Handler's Certification.

*Terms and conditions may apply.

What is Cottage Food Business >>

The Cottage Food Business allows to sell certain foods made in home kitchens, without any food manufacturers’ permits or licenses, use of a commercial kitchen or inspections by the state or local health departments. Homemade foods manufacturing is regulated by the Cottage Food Law.

The Texas Cottage Food Law governs how to sell foods made in home kitchens, without a food manufacturers’ license. The legislature made easy in our training.