Florida cottage food law: what you can sell from home

Florida cottage food law at a glance

Florida cottage food law allows individuals to use their unlicensed home kitchens to produce for sale certain foods that present a low risk of foodborne illness. The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) runs the program through its Division of Food Safety, and its cottage foods page at fdacs.gov is the main source for the rules below. The law itself is section 500.80 of the Florida Statutes, with definitions in section 500.03. Law checked on 3 Oct 2026.

The table sums up what Florida requires.

Which foods Florida cottage law allows

FDACS publishes a list of approved cottage food products. It describes cottage foods as foods that present a low risk of foodborne illness, and the list has these products:

• loaf breads, rolls, biscuits
• cakes, pastries and cookies
• candies and confections
• honey
• jams, jellies and preserves
• fruit pies and dried fruits
• dry herbs, seasonings and mixtures
• homemade pasta
• cereals, trail mixes and granola
• coated or uncoated nuts
• vinegar and flavored vinegars
• popcorn and popcorn balls

The statute adds a safety test. A cottage food product is food that is not time or temperature controlled for safety or a potentially hazardous food as defined by department rule. Example: a cheesecake that must stay in the fridge needs temperature control, so it is not a cottage food product, while a fruit pie that sits on the counter is on the FDACS list.

If a product is not on the list, ask the FDACS Division of Food Safety at 1-800-HELP-FLA (435-7352) or FoodSafety@FDACS.gov before you sell it.

The Florida cottage food sales cap

The cap is the line between a cottage food operation and a food business that needs a permit. Under section 500.80, an operation is exempt from the permitting requirements of s. 500.12 if the cottage food operation complies with this section and keeps annual gross sales of cottage food products at or under $250,000.

Gross sales means the money customers pay, before your costs. The statute says annual gross sales include all sales of cottage food products at any location, regardless of the types of products sold or the number of persons involved. So market sales, online orders and sales by a partner all add up to one total. Also, FDACS can ask an operation for written documentation to verify the operation’s annual gross sales, so keep a sales log or your payment tool's order records for the whole year.

Do you need a cottage food license in Florida?

A cottage food operation in Florida does not need a food permit from the state. FDACS says cottage food operators sell these products directly to consumers without obtaining a food permit from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The exemption covers the permit only: an operation still must comply with the applicable requirements of this chapter, meaning the Florida food law that the cottage food section sits in. And the cottage food section does not apply to a person operating under a food permit issued pursuant to s. 500.12.

You may still owe taxes that have nothing to do with food safety. FDACS says a cottage food operation must comply with all state or federal tax laws, rules, regulations or certificates that apply to all cottage food operations. A home-based business is only subject to applicable business taxes under chapter 205 in the county and municipality in which the home-based business is located, so ask your county and city whether a local business tax applies to you. Ask the Florida Department of Revenue whether your products are subject to sales tax.

Selling cottage food online and by mail in Florida

Florida allows shipping. Under the statute, a cottage food operation may sell, offer for sale, and accept payment for cottage food products over the Internet or by mail order. Products may be delivered in person directly to the consumer, to a specific event venue, or by United States Postal Service or commercial mail delivery service.

Two limits still apply. First, an operation may not sell, offer for sale, or deliver cottage food products at wholesale, so you cannot sell through a store, cafe or other reseller. Second, an operation may only sell cottage food products that it stores on the premises of the cottage food operation, so you cannot keep stock at a fulfillment warehouse.

This page covers Florida law only. If you ship to a buyer in another state, ask that state's food safety agency whether its rules apply.

Florida cottage food label requirements

Every cottage food product sold in Florida must be prepackaged with a label affixed. FDACS sums it up: cottage foods must be properly packaged and labeled. The label must contain:

• the name and address of the cottage food operation
• the name of the cottage food product
• the ingredients of the cottage food product, in descending order of predominance by weight
• the net weight or net volume of the cottage food product
• allergen information as specified by federal labeling requirements
• if any nutritional claim is made, appropriate nutritional information as specified by federal labeling requirements
• The statement “Made in a cottage food operation that is not subject to Florida’s food safety regulations.”, printed in at least 10-point type in a color that provides a clear contrast to the background of the label

Samples follow the same idea: operators can serve free samples for tasting, but the samples must be prepackaged.

What Florida cities and counties can and cannot do

Under the statute, the regulation of cottage food operations is preempted to the state, and a local law, ordinance, or regulation may not prohibit a cottage food operation or regulate the preparation, processing, storage, or sale of cottage food products. In plain terms, a city or county cannot ban a cottage food operation or set its own rules on how you make, store or sell cottage food.

Local rules still reach you through the home-business law. A cottage food operation must comply with the conditions for the operation of a home-based business under s. 559.955. That section says a home-based business may operate in an area zoned for residential use and may not be prohibited, restricted, regulated, or licensed in a manner that is different from other businesses. To count as a home-based business, a business must meet conditions that include these:

• Workers: anyone who works at the home must live there, except for up to a total of two employees or independent contractors who do not reside at the residential dwelling.
• Parking: the need for parking generated by the business may not be greater in volume than would normally be expected at a similar residence.
• Street view: as viewed from the street, the use of the residential property is consistent with the uses of the residential areas that surround the property.
• Sales at the home: on the residential property, the business may not conduct retail transactions at a structure other than the residential dwelling.
• Scale: the business activities are secondary to the property’s use as a residential dwelling.

The home-business section does not supersede a declaration of condominium adopted pursuant to chapter 718, a cooperative document adopted pursuant to chapter 719, or declaration or declaration of covenant adopted pursuant to chapter 720. That last chapter is titled Homeowners' Associations, so condominium, co-op and homeowners' association rules can still limit a home kitchen business.

FDACS inspects a cottage food operation only after a complaint. Under the statute, only upon receipt of a complaint, the department’s authorized officer or employee may enter and inspect the premises. Refusing entry is grounds for disciplinary action.

This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. The cottage food section was created by ch. 2011-205 and last amended by ch. 2025-22, so it can change after any legislative session.

Where Nation fits

Questions about cottage food law in Florida