Home food business guide · Last reviewed October 2026
Cottage Food Laws in California
California caps home food sales at $88,878 (Class A) · $177,756 (Class B), 2026. Getting started: County registration (A) or permit (B). Foods that need refrigeration have to be made in a commercial kitchen. Of the 40 common products in our finder, 21 can be made in a home kitchen in California, many with conditions, and 1 more with a special license or program.
California is one of the few states with two tiers of cottage food. Class A covers direct sales to customers, while Class B adds an initial inspection and opens up sales through stores, cafés, and restaurants. The Class B sales cap is double the Class A cap, so the choice between them comes down to where you want to sell.
The approved list is where most questions come up, and the chemistry explains many of its lines. Buttercream is allowed, but cream cheese frosting is not, because cream cheese makes a frosting time/temperature-controlled. Pepper jelly is a good example of a product that looks like jam but isn't one. Peppers are a vegetable, and once vinegar is added to lower the pH, the jar becomes an acidified food, which requires a cannery license. A small change in ingredients can move a product into a completely different legal category.
Quick facts
Sales cap
$88,878 (Class A) · $177,756 (Class B), 2026
Permit or registration
County registration (A) or permit (B)
Online & shipping
Online with in-state delivery or mail
Sell through stores
Class B only: stores, cafés, restaurants
Refrigerated & TCS foods
Approved list only; meals via MEHKO where adopted
Quick facts are summarized from 50-state trackers (Ardent Seller, reviewed October 1, 2026, cross-checked with PermitDeck and Food Business Pros). Where the details below differ, follow the state sources listed at the bottom of this page and confirm with the agency.
How 40 common products are treated in California, with the condition or reason for each. Items marked "general rule" weren't specifically addressed in the state's guidance.
Allowed from a home kitchen
Sourdough bread. Baked goods without cream, custard, or meat fillings are on the approved list.
Cookies & brownies. Baked goods without cream, custard, or meat fillings are on the approved list.
Fruit pie. Fruit pies are approved. Pumpkin is specifically excluded.
Macarons. Approved, as long as fillings are buttercream or other approved fillings.
Fruit tamales. Tamales, empanadas, and samosas are approved with fruit filling only.
Strawberry jam. Fruit jams are approved if they meet the federal standard of identity (21 CFR 150), which sets the fruit-to-sugar ratio and lists allowed fruits.
Granola. Dried foods and grain mixes are approved.
Meat tamales. Meat fillings are excluded from cottage baked goods.
Low-sugar or freezer jam. Products that don't meet the 21 CFR 150 jam standard, including most reduced-sugar and refrigerated jams, aren't approved.
Fresh salsa (refrigerated). Refrigerated foods are excluded from cottage food. Made and kept cold, it doesn't need a cannery license.
Sauerkraut & kimchi. Fermented foods are excluded from cottage food. Naturally fermented products fall outside the acidified-food rules, but CDPH or a process authority will usually review the process.
Infused honey. Honey is approved only when pure. Added herbs, garlic, or fruit take it off the list.
Garlic or herb-infused oil. Not on the approved list. Low-acid ingredients in oil carry a botulism risk and need a validated process.
Kombucha. Fermented beverages are excluded from cottage food. Commercial producers also monitor pH and alcohol, since at 0.5% ABV or more it is treated as an alcoholic beverage.
Needs a canning license
Pepper jelly. Peppers are a vegetable, and vegetable jams aren't approved. With vinegar added and sold shelf-stable, it's an acidified food.
Shelf-stable salsa. Tomatoes, onions, and peppers acidified to pH 4.6 or below and sealed in jars make an acidified food.
Hot sauce. Shelf-stable pepper sauce acidified with vinegar is an acidified food under 21 CFR 114.
Canned pickles. Vinegar-pickled vegetables in sealed jars are acidified foods.
Canned tomato sauce. Tomatoes sit near pH 4.6, so shelf-stable tomato products need acidification and a reviewed process.
Regulated separately
Beef jerky. Meat products need USDA-FSIS inspection (or California's state meat program), regardless of kitchen.
Cheese & yogurt. Dairy products are regulated by CDFA's Milk and Dairy Food Safety Branch.
Cold-pressed juice. Juices are excluded from cottage food. Wholesale juice requires a Juice HACCP plan with a 5-log pathogen reduction.
How to start selling from home
Confirm the exact product and every ingredient fits the CDPH Approved Cottage Foods List.
Register as Class A (direct sales only) or get a Class B permit (adds sales through stores and restaurants) with your county Environmental Health.
Complete a food processor course within 3 months of registering.
Label every package (see the checklist below).
Legal paths
Cottage food · Class A
Where
Your home kitchen
Sell
Directly to customers anywhere in California: markets, events, online, mail, delivery
Sales cap (2026)
$88,878 gross per year
Paperwork
County registration and self-certification checklist; food processor course
Cottage food · Class B
Where
Your home kitchen, with an initial inspection
Sell
Everything Class A can, plus through stores, cafés, and restaurants
Sales cap (2026)
$177,756 gross per year
Paperwork
County permit; food processor course
MEHKO
Where
Your home kitchen, only if your city or county has opted in
Sell
Prepared meals directly to customers, within daily and weekly meal limits
Sales cap (2025)
$107,121 gross per year
Paperwork
County permit and inspection; food manager certificate
Commercial kitchen
Where
Your own, shared, or commissary commercial kitchen
Sell
Anything properly processed, including refrigerated and fermented foods, wholesale or retail
Sales cap
None
Paperwork
CDPH Processed Food Registration for wholesale, or a county retail permit; food safety plan; usually FDA facility registration
Cannery-licensed
Where
Commercial kitchen with a CDPH Cannery License
Sell
Shelf-stable acidified foods (pH ≤ 4.6 after adding acid) and low-acid canned foods
Sales cap
None
Paperwork
Cannery license, official process letter per recipe, FDA scheduled-process filing, Better Process Control School
Label requirements
Required on every prepackaged cottage food product (Health & Safety Code §114365).
“Made in a Home Kitchen” in 12-point type. Or “Repackaged in a Home Kitchen.” For online sales, show it before checkout.
Registration or permit number and issuing county. Class A shows its registration number; Class B its permit number.
Business name and address. As registered with the county.
Common name of the product. For example, “Strawberry Jam,” not just a brand name.
Ingredients in descending order by weight. Include sub-ingredients, e.g., chocolate chips (sugar, cocoa butter…).
Net quantity in US and metric units. For example, 8 oz (227 g).
Date label wording, if you use one. From July 1, 2026, use “Best if Used By” or “Use By.” “Sell By” is no longer allowed on consumer labels.
Nutrition facts only if you make a claim. Needed if you make a nutrient content or health claim, such as “low fat.”
Turning a recipe into a product?
Mendocino Food Consulting helps food entrepreneurs with food science, formulation, and process questions. We are food scientists, not attorneys, and we don't provide legal advice.