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Minnesota cottage food label requirements and registration checklist
Answer a few plain-English questions about what you make and how you want to sell it. We check it against Minnesota's current cottage food exemption — Tier 1/Tier 2 registration, the $78,000 sales cap, required training, and the in-person-delivery rule for online/phone orders — flag the choices that push you toward a full food license, and build you a personalized checklist plus a printable label draft.
Free customized label/checklist after walk-through completion
Built from current Minnesota Department of Agriculture guidance and Minn. Stat. § 28A.152. Not legal advice and not state approval — verify final requirements with the Minnesota Department of Agriculture before you sell.
Free registration walk-throughSee fast whether you fit Minnesota's Tier 1 or Tier 2 cottage food rules.
Free checklistKeep the training requirement, sales cap, and delivery rules tied to your own answers.
Free label generationDraft Minnesota's exact disclosure statement plus your registration and ingredient lines in one place.
Do you need a permit to sell cottage food in Minnesota?
You need to register (not get a license) as a Minnesota cottage food producer with the state. Tier 1 (up to $7,665/yr gross receipts) has no fee but requires free online training and an exam every year; Tier 2 ($7,666–$78,000/yr) costs $50/yr and requires an approved safe food handling course every 3 years. Above $78,000/yr you need a full food license instead. Minnesota allows non-potentially-hazardous foods plus home-canned goods tested at pH ≤ 4.6 or water activity ≤ 0.85 — but home-canned products can never be sold outside Minnesota. Phone/internet orders are fine only if you personally deliver within Minnesota; shipping by mail or common carrier, and hand-delivery outside Minnesota, aren't allowed yet (a 2027 law change will add in-state shipping). No wholesale or retail resale.
Selling or delivering to a customer or location outside Minnesota (home-canned products can never be sold outside Minnesota at all)
Shipping or mailing cottage food via USPS, UPS, FedEx, or another common carrier
Gross receipts over $78,000/yr without moving to a full food license
Not completing the training required for your tier
Wholesaling to a retail store, restaurant, or any third party for resale
Minnesota rule review
What this Minnesota checker reviews before you print a label
The page is built from Minnesota Department of Agriculture — Cottage Food Law Guidance and the cited official sources below, then turns those rules into a practical pre-sale review.
Sales path
$7,665 or less per year (Tier 1 — no registration fee)
$7,666 to $78,000 per year (Tier 2 — $50/yr registration fee)
Product fit
Baked goods without cream/custard filling, jams/jellies, dry mixes, hard candy, dried herbs, or roasted coffee
Home-canned pickles, vegetables, or fruits tested at pH ≤ 4.6 or water activity ≤ 0.85
Label draft fields
Product name
Ingredients
Net weight or volume
Business / producer name
Registration number
Date prepared or canned
City
Required home-kitchen disclosure
Major allergen statement
Final wording should be checked against Minn. Stat. § 28A.152 — Cottage food exemption before printing.
Needs extra review
Home-canned pickles, vegetables, or fruits tested at pH ≤ 4.6 or water activity ≤ 0.85
Allowed, but only if you've tested and confirmed equilibrium pH of 4.6 or lower, or water activity of 0.85 or lower, for your specific recipe — and these products can't be sold outside Minnesota under any circumstance, even with in-person delivery.
Potentially hazardous/TCS food, meat, dairy, poultry, or low-acid canned goods that haven't been tested
Minnesota's cottage food exemption only covers non-potentially-hazardous foods and tested home-canned goods — this needs a licensed commercial kitchen.
Selling or delivering to a customer or location outside Minnesota
The MDA Cottage Food Law Guidance requires that personal delivery happen at the customer's home or another agreed location within Minnesota — delivering to a location outside Minnesota isn't covered by this exemption, regardless of delivery method. (Home-canned/pH-tested products have an even stricter rule: they can never be sold outside Minnesota at all.)
Shipping or mailing to buyers via USPS, UPS, FedEx, or another common carrier
Until Minnesota's 2027 amendment takes effect, shipping human cottage food by mail or common carrier isn't allowed — phone/internet orders must be hand-delivered by you in person within Minnesota.
Use this order when you prepare the permit packet, label, and direct-sales plan.
Step 1
Check whether your product fits the Minnesota cottage food path
Start with the product category and shelf-stability questions. The wizard flags foods that usually need refrigeration, separate licensing, or extra official review in Minnesota.
Step 2
Confirm where and how you plan to sell
Choose every sales channel you expect to use. The result calls out direct-sale limits, shipping issues, wholesale/resale limits, and other channel rules that matter before you take orders.
Step 3
Draft the label from your actual product details
Enter the product name, ingredients, allergens, net weight, producer information, and any Minnesota-specific disclosure or permit field requested by the form.
Step 4
Print the checklist and verify against official sources
A plain-English helper for Minnesota cottage food sellers. Not legal advice and not state approval.
Minnesota FAQ
Minnesota cottage food questions
Short answers to the questions people usually ask before they start the wizard.
Can I sell homemade food in Minnesota?
You need to register (not get a license) as a Minnesota cottage food producer with the state. Tier 1 (up to $7,665/yr gross receipts) has no fee but requires free online training and an exam every year; Tier 2 ($7,666–$78,000/yr) costs $50/yr and requires an approved safe food handling course every 3 years. Above $78,000/yr you need a full food license instead. Minnesota allows non-potentially-hazardous foods plus home-canned goods tested at pH ≤ 4.6 or water activity ≤ 0.85 — but home-canned products can never be sold outside Minnesota. Phone/internet orders are fine only if you personally deliver within Minnesota; shipping by mail or common carrier, and hand-delivery outside Minnesota, aren't allowed yet (a 2027 law change will add in-state shipping). No wholesale or retail resale.
What does the Minnesota checker do?
It walks through the state-specific blockers, then produces a printable checklist and a label draft using the answers you entered.
What should I verify before selling in Minnesota?
Verify your product category, sales channel, annual limit or registration requirement, and label wording against Minnesota Department of Agriculture — Cottage Food Law Guidance before relying on the checklist.
Is the label draft official approval?
No. It is an informational draft based on the page sources. Check final wording with Minn. Stat. § 28A.152 — Cottage food exemption or the responsible local agency before printing labels.