Cottage laws by US State: Link to resources

My state has finally joined the rest of the US is creating cottage law to allow some home made food items to be sold to the permies. Laws and regulations vary wildly from state to state and this information can be vital to those wanting to create a home or farm based food business. I am creating this post with several links to helpful resources, including state's current laws.

First, what are cottage laws? According to Pickyourown.org they are: "The production and sales of processed foods is governed by state and federal regulations. Each state is different, so proper advice is needed from a specialist in each state. Some states allow sales at farmer's markets of select foods; others prohibit sales altogether; these are called cottage food laws. These rules might also be called Home-Food Processing Rules or Baker's Bills.  Typically, the department of health (or the department of agriculture) approves and oversees cottage food businesses. Most states now have these cottage food laws now that don't require a licensed kitchen. In those states, you can sell at a farmers market or roadside stand jams and jellies as well as baked goods that don't require refrigeration. For this you don't need a licensed kitchen or any inspections. Typically, in those states, you just need to label them with the weight or volume, our name, our address, the words "this item is home produced" and all the ingredients in order by weight. Usually, you can not do anything 'acidified' (like pickles), anything pressure canned, or anything needing refrigeration. While Cottage Food laws allow a person to legally bake and prepare certain foods in their home kitchens and sell them on a small scale, (typically at farmers markets and direct to other consumers),  very few states  allow them to sell to restaurants and grocery stores."  These allow for home producers to see with fewer regulations than would be required of a commercial food producer.

How do you know what is legal to sell in your state?
1. Cottage Food Laws by State: How to sell Your Homemade Foodvia Pickyourown.org
2. Cottage Food Laws by State via CottageFoodLaws.com
3. Homemade Food Laws via IJ.org (this site has a specific political point of view as a non-profit law firm , I am linking to a page including an interactive map and some specifics on laws on this topic, link does not imply endorsement - happy to edit if that is contrary to permies guidelines.)
4. The Ultimate Guide to Cottage Food Laws via Castiron.me (This includes the text of state by state laws rather than links, so it's a good quick reference guide but info would need to be confirmed for accuracy.)

I just wanted to thank you for this post. It is very helpful having the information for every state in one place.  

I just looked up Washington state but it told me what I already knew, we are the WORST. Sadly, we are the worst in a lot of things.

Fortunately, a couple I know are looking at starting a PMA as part of their freedom movement and I will be able to sell cheese and raw goat milk without being choked to death by the regulations here. My friend raises Freedom Rangers and pastured pork and she will be able to sell it through this also. Currently she can only sell directly off the farm.

Adding another information resource for those looking to start a cottage food business:
Forrager.com
According to their About page
"Forrager is a space where home cooks, bakers, and decorators can learn and share with each other.

This website is solely focused on the cottage food industry, which is a term used to describe home food businesses. Since the cottage food industry was created via a collection of state laws, there is no official government organization to help organize or improve it. Forrager seeks to organize and improve the resources available for this growing group of small, independent cooks.

Forrager (formerly cottagefoods.org) started as a way to help educate home cooks about how they can legally start a food business from home. It has now grown into an online community, where people can ask questions and find answers about their businesses and laws. Cottage food operations can also add their CFO to a growing online directory so that everyone can find these great businesses more easily!"

They include an interactive map, current laws tab, a list of CFOs (cottage food operations), state by state forums, a podcast, and more.
It looks like it would be very useful for those looking to take the next step in a home based food business, with forums for support, and detailed information, how-to, and a marketplace of current businesses.