Cottage food law
North Carolina cottage food law for home bakers
North Carolina cottage food law works differently from most states: there is no sales cap and no permit, but you must pass a free home kitchen inspection by the NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (NCDA&CS) Food and Drug Protection Division before you sell anything. The program is called home processing, and it covers low-risk, shelf-stable foods such as cookies, breads, cakes without cream fillings, jams and candies. You cannot have any pet in the home, refrigerated items are off limits, and you need a label for anything sold self-service, shipped, or sold wholesale.
| Topic | Rule |
|---|---|
| Sales cap | None stated by NCDA&CS |
| Allowed foods | Low-risk, shelf-stable foods: non-refrigerated baked goods, jams, jellies, candies, dry mixes; some sauces and acidified foods after evaluation |
| Not allowed | Refrigerated or frozen foods, cream or cream cheese fillings, cheesecakes, dairy, seafood, low-acid canned foods |
| Where you can sell | Directly to consumers, and wholesale to retail stores and restaurants |
| Online and out-of-state sales | Not addressed on the NCDA&CS page; check with NCDA&CS |
| Permit and fee | No permit; you receive a Notice of Inspection. NC State Extension reports NCDA&CS does not charge for the inspection |
| Pets | No pets in the home at any time |
| Labeling | Required for self-service, wholesale and shipped products: name, maker and address, net weight, ingredients, allergens |
| Training | None required in general; an Acidified Food Course may be required for acidified foods |
| Sales tax | Sales and Use Tax number from the NC Department of Revenue if you make sales |
Last verified October 11, 2026
This page is general information, not legal advice. Rules change: check them with your state or local authority before you sell.
How the North Carolina cottage food law works
North Carolina does not use the phrase cottage food in its rules. Home bakers are regulated as home processors by the NCDA&CS Food and Drug Protection Division. Instead of registering and paying a fee, you send an application, the department reviews it, and an inspector visits your home kitchen. If you pass, you receive a copy of the inspection report and a Notice of Inspection. No permit is issued.
The inspection must happen in your home kitchen. If you plan to bake in a separate building on your property, NCDA&CS says you will not qualify as a home processor and will be treated as a commercial food business instead.
What you can and cannot sell
Only low-risk, shelf-stable foods can be made in a home kitchen under the program. Some products, such as sauces, acidified foods and freeze-dried items, are allowed only after the department evaluates them, and an inspector may ask for pH or water activity testing before the visit.
- Allowed: baked goods that do not need refrigeration, such as cookies, breads, muffins, brownies and cakes with shelf-stable frosting
- Allowed: jams, jellies and preserves
- Allowed: candies, dry mixes and spices
- Allowed after evaluation: some sauces, acid and acidified foods such as pickles and BBQ sauce, freeze-dried candies, and some drinks like iced tea or lemonade
- Not allowed: any refrigerated or frozen product
- Not allowed: bakery items with cream or cream cheese fillings, and cheesecakes
- Not allowed: dairy products, seafood, low-acid canned foods, and bottled water or juice
Kitchen, water and the no-pets rule
The rule that surprises most bakers is pets. If any pet comes into your home at any time, even only at night, you cannot make food for sale in that home kitchen. There is no workaround such as keeping the pet out of the kitchen.
Your water source must be documented. On municipal water, attach a recent water bill or a letter from your leasing office or HOA. On a private well, have the water tested for coliform bacteria and E. coli by a certified lab within one year of your application; a store-bought test kit is not accepted.
Steps to get inspected
NCDA&CS says a specialist will contact you to schedule the inspection within about 8 to 12 weeks of receiving your application, and notes that the timeframe can change. Plan your launch around that wait.
- Check with your city or county planning or zoning department that a home food business is allowed, and with your HOA or landlord if you have one
- Download the home processor application from the NCDA&CS website
- Write the business plan the application asks for: products by name, every ingredient and its supplier, how you store supplies and finished goods, your production steps and equipment, how you transport products, and where you will sell
- Attach your water bill or well test results
- Send the application to homeprocessing@ncagr.gov or by mail, and watch your spam folder for the email scheduling the inspection
- Pass the inspection and keep the Notice of Inspection with your records
Labels for home-baked goods in North Carolina
You need a label on products sold self-service, sold wholesale to stores or restaurants, or shipped with services such as USPS or FedEx. Products made on demand and sold directly to the customer, at pickup, home delivery or an event, may be exempt from individual labels.
A nutrition facts panel is not required under the home processor program unless you make a claim such as low fat.
- Product name
- Your name and address as the manufacturer
- Net weight with the gram equivalent, or volume or count
- Complete ingredient list in descending order by weight
- Allergens in the ingredient list or a Contains statement, naming the specific tree nut
Online sales, shipping and sales tax
The NCDA&CS home processor page mentions shipping by postal services and requires labels on shipped products, but it does not spell out rules for online orders or for selling to customers in other states. Before you ship across state lines or set up an online store, check with NCDA&CS at homeprocessing@ncagr.gov.
If you plan to make sales, NCDA&CS says you need a Sales and Use Tax number from the NC Department of Revenue.
Price your bakes before your first sale
No sales cap means a North Carolina home bakery can grow into a real business, which is exactly why each product needs a price that covers ingredients, packaging, your time and a margin. Here is an example for one dozen chocolate chip cookies, with illustrative numbers.
Ingredients cost 5.80 dollars, a box and label 1.20 dollars, and 45 minutes of your time at 18 dollars an hour adds 13.50 dollars, for a total cost of 20.50 dollars. With a 30 percent target margin, the price is 20.50 divided by 0.70, which comes to 29.29 dollars, so you might round to 29.50 dollars for retail and set a lower wholesale price for a coffee shop after checking that it still covers your costs.
Farinu does this math for every recipe: it costs ingredients, packaging, sub-recipes, labour, machines and overhead, and suggests a price from your target markup: for a 30 percent margin, enter a markup of about 43 percent. The free plan costs up to 10 recipes and takes up to 50 custom orders a month with deposits, with separate retail and wholesale price lists and alerts when an ingredient price rise pushes a product below the price your markup sets; Team adds unlimited recipes and orders, sales and the monthly profit and loss report.
Read next: Bakery price list software, one list per place you sell, An ingredient price tracker for bakers that tells you what to charge
Sources
- NCDA&CS Food and Drug Protection Division: Home Processor
- NC State Extension: NCDA&CS Food Program, Home Processing Focus
Questions
- Does North Carolina have a cottage food law?
- Not under that name. Home bakers are regulated as home processors by NCDA&CS, which inspects your home kitchen before you sell. There is no permit and no sales cap stated.
- How much does the North Carolina home processor inspection cost?
- NC State Extension reports that NCDA&CS does not charge for the inspection. The official NCDA&CS page does not list a fee; confirm with NCDA&CS when you apply.
- Can I sell home-baked goods in North Carolina if I have a dog or cat?
- No. If any pet enters your home at any time, even only at night, NCDA&CS does not allow you to make food for sale in that home kitchen.
- Can I sell cheesecake or cream-filled cupcakes from home in North Carolina?
- No. Cheesecakes and bakery items with cream or cream cheese fillings need refrigeration and are on the not-permitted list. Shelf-stable frostings are the usual alternative.
Related pages
Know your cost before you sell
Create a free Farinu account to cost up to 10 recipes. Retail and wholesale price lists, margin alerts and up to 50 orders a month are included; Team adds unlimited recipes and orders, and sales. This page is general information, not legal advice.