Last verified: October 20, 2026. I’m a Texas home baker, not a lawyer — laws change, so always confirm with the California Department of Public Health and your county environmental health department before you sell.

Cottage Food Laws by State

CALIFORNIA COTTAGE FOOD AT A GLANCE

Annual sales cap: $75,000 gross for Class A / $150,000 gross for Class B — those are the amounts written in state law, and both are adjusted every year for inflation using the California Consumer Price Index, so check CDPH’s current-year adjusted limit before you rely on a number (the exact 2026 adjusted figures are UNVERIFIED in this guide — see the note under Official California Sources)

License or permit: Required — Class A registers with the county environmental health department (local enforcement agency); Class B gets a county permit. CDPH does not register or permit anyone; your county does. Registration or permit renews every year, and one county’s registration or permit is valid throughout the state

Kitchen inspection: Class A — no initial or routine inspection (you self-certify; the county can inspect the registered area only on a consumer complaint). Class B — an initial inspection before the permit is issued, then no more than one inspection per year

Food handler course: Required — a CDPH-approved food processor course (or other approved food safety training) within 3 months of becoming registered or permitted, renewed every 3 years; the course may not exceed 4 hours. This is not quite the same as a generic food handler card — ask your county which approved course it accepts

Shipping: Allowed within California — direct and indirect sales are transactions within the state, and they may be fulfilled in person, by mail delivery, or by a third-party delivery service. No shipping out of state under the cottage food rules

Wholesale: Class B only — Class B may sell indirectly through permitted third-party retailers (shops, markets, restaurants). Class A is direct-to-consumer only

WHY CALIFORNIA DOES COTTAGE FOOD DIFFERENTLY

California asks for more paperwork up front than a lot of states — you register or get a permit before your first sale, your county reviews sample labels as part of your application, and you finish an approved food safety course in your first three months. In exchange, you get things many states don’t offer at all: online, phone, and mail-order sales anywhere in California, a Class B path that lets permitted shops and restaurants carry your products, and sales caps that rise with inflation. One more thing that trips people up: California has two separate home-kitchen programs. This page is about Cottage Food Operations (CFOs), which cover shelf-stable foods like cookies and breads. The other program, a Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation (MEHKO), is a small home restaurant permit for same-day meals — different law, different permit, and only in counties that have authorized it. If you want to sell hot or refrigerated meals, that’s MEHKO territory, not cottage food.

WHAT YOU CAN (AND CAN’T) SELL

Allowed (must be on the CDPH Approved Cottage Food List, and non-potentially hazardous — no refrigeration needed): Baked goods without cream, custard, or meat fillings, such as breads, biscuits, churros, cookies, pastries, and tortillas; cakes and fruit pies; candy and confections such as brittle, toffee, fudge, and marshmallows made without eggs; chocolate-covered nonperishable foods; dried fruit and dried or dehydrated vegetables; dried pasta; dry baking mixes; fruit empanadas and fruit tamales; granola, cereals, and trail mixes; herb blends and dried mole paste; honey and sweet sorghum syrup; jams, jellies, preserves, and fruit butters that meet the federal standards; nut mixes and nut butters; popcorn; vinegar and mustard; roasted coffee and dried tea; waffle cones and pizelles; cotton candy; candied apples; and buttercream frosting, icing, fondant, and gum paste that do not contain eggs, cream, or cream cheese.

Prohibited under a CFO: Anything that needs refrigeration to stay safe — cream or custard fillings, cream cheese frosting, cheesecake, pumpkin pie. Also out: meat, poultry, and seafood; foods not on the CDPH approved list (if it’s not on the list, it’s not cottage food, even if it seems shelf-stable); and cannabis products. If it has to stay cold, it is not a CFO product — same-day meals like that belong under a MEHKO permit where your county offers one (MEHKO meals are capped at 30 meals per day and 90 meals per week, with a $100,000 base gross annual sales limit in state law, also adjusted for inflation), and everything else needs a commercial kitchen.

CALIFORNIA LABELING REQUIREMENTS

California requires these things on every cottage food label (Health & Safety Code §114365.2, plus federal labeling law). Plan on your county reviewing sample labels with your application before you sell — counties ask for sample labels (at least one per food category) as part of the packet:

  1. “Made in a Home Kitchen” in 12-point type on the front (primary display panel) — or “Repackaged in a Home Kitchen,” with a description of the purchased whole ready-to-eat product, if you repackage instead of make
  2. The name of the product — the name commonly used for it, on the front
  3. The name of your cottage food operation
  4. Your address — city and ZIP code; include your street address too if your operation is not listed in a current phone directory (check your county packet — some counties ask for the full physical address on the sample label)
  5. Your registration or permit number and the issuing county — for example, “Reg. #12345 — Los Angeles County”
  6. Ingredients in descending order of predominance by weight (for products with two or more ingredients)
  7. Net quantity in both U.S. and metric units (ounces and grams)
  8. Allergen information — the Big 9 (milk, eggs, wheat, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, sesame), per federal labeling rules

No Nutrition Facts panel required — unless you make a nutrient-content or health claim (“low,” “reduced,” “light,” and similar terms), in which case a panel is required. One more California rule bakers miss: if you advertise to the public — including a website or social media — the ad must show your county of approval, your registration or permit number, and the statement that the food is “Made in a Home Kitchen” (or “Repackaged in a Home Kitchen”).

WHERE YOU CAN SELL IN CALIFORNIA

Direct sales (Class A and Class B): from your home, at holiday bazaars and other temporary events, bake sales and food swaps, farm stands, certified farmers’ markets, and through community-supported agriculture subscriptions — plus orders by phone, internet, or any other digital method. Direct sales may be fulfilled in person, by mail delivery, or by a third-party delivery service, anywhere within California. Class B adds indirect sales: permitted third-party retailers — retail shops, markets, and restaurants — can buy your products and sell them to their customers, throughout the state. What you can’t do: ship or sell outside California under the cottage food rules, and Class A operations can’t sell through retailers at all.

YOUR 3 STEPS TO START

  1. Confirm your foods are on the CDPH Approved Cottage Food List, and pick your class. Class A for direct sales only; Class B if you want shops or restaurants to carry your products (or as you approach the Class A cap). If it needs refrigeration, it’s not CFO food.
  2. Register or get permitted by your county environmental health department. Class A: submit the county’s self-certification checklist and sample labels for review. Class B: apply, submit sample labels, and pass the initial home kitchen inspection before your permit number is issued. Then complete a CDPH-approved food processor course within 3 months, and renew your registration or permit every year.
  3. Get your labels right and track every dollar. All eight label elements, “Made in a Home Kitchen” in 12-point type on the front. Keep a simple spreadsheet of gross sales from day one so you stay under your class cap — remembering the cap in state law is adjusted for inflation each year, so confirm the current-year figure with CDPH or your county.

OFFICIAL CALIFORNIA SOURCES

Note on the sales caps: CDPH publishes a yearly “Adjusted Gross Annual Sales Limit” figure for CFOs based on the California Consumer Price Index. The exact adjusted figures for 2026 are UNVERIFIED in this guide — I could not open CDPH’s 2026 adjusted-limit document during research, so this page uses the amounts written in state law ($75,000 / $150,000). Confirm the current-year adjusted limit with CDPH or your county before you plan around a number.

This guide is for informational purposes only and isn’t legal advice. Cottage food laws change — I last verified this page on October 20, 2026. When in doubt, ask your county environmental health department.

See cottage food laws for all 50 states

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