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Montana cottage food label requirements and Local Food Choice Act checklist
Answer a few plain-English questions about what you make and how you want to sell it. We check it against Montana's Local Food Choice Act, flag anything that isn't allowed, and build you a personalized checklist and a printable food label. One place, no legal jargon.
Free customized label/checklist after walk-through completion
Built from the public Montana Local Food Choice Act statute, DPHHS guidance, and Montana Dept. of Livestock guidance. Not legal advice and not state approval — rules can change, so verify final requirements with Montana DPHHS before selling.
Free permit walk-throughSee right away if a choice would block you from selling under Montana's Local Food Choice Act.
Free checklistYour answers folded into the Act's requirements, ready to print or save as PDF.
Free label generationThe DPHHS-recommended disclosure statement plus good-practice label fields, assembled into a printable draft.
Can I sell homemade food in Montana?
Usually yes — Montana's Local Food Choice Act is one of the more permissive homemade-food laws in the country. It covers far more than shelf-stable baked goods: refrigerated and potentially-hazardous foods are allowed direct-to-consumer, with no license, permit, registration, or inspection. Meat processed at a licensed establishment is not allowed; poultry is allowed only under the federal 1,000-Bird Exemption for birds you raised yourself. The wizard below checks the choices that commonly change the answer.
Verbal or written disclosure at time of sale: not licensed, permitted, certified, packaged, labeled, or inspected per any official regulations
DPHHS-suggested wording: home-produced under the Local Food Choice Act, exempt from state food safety regulations, intended for home or community-event consumption
Product name, ingredients, allergens, and net weight (best practice, not mandated)
Producer name and contact (recommended)
No state-issued permit or registration number — none is required under the Act
Common Local Food Choice Act blockers
Customers outside Montana (interstate sales)
Selling through a retail store, restaurant, or wholesale/resale arrangement
Roadside stands or sales away from home not tied to a traditional community event
Meat processed at a licensed establishment, or poultry outside the 1,000-Bird Exemption
Wild game, alcohol-infused, or THC-infused products
Montana rule review
What this Montana checker reviews before you print a label
The page is built from DPHHS — Cottage Food and Farmers Markets and the cited official sources below, then turns those rules into a practical pre-sale review.
Sales path
Direct from my home, farm, or ranch
Farmers markets (a traditional community event under the Act)
Weddings, funerals, potlucks, school events, or similar community gatherings
Online orders shipped by mail
Product fit
Baked goods (breads, cookies, muffins, pies)
Candy / confections
Jams, jellies, pickled or canned goods
Dry mixes / granola
Dairy, cream, or raw milk
Poultry you raised and slaughtered yourself
Label draft fields
Product name
Ingredients
Net weight or volume
Business / operation name
Producer contact
City
Required home-kitchen disclosure
Major allergen statement
Final wording should be checked against MCA Title 50, ch. 49, part 2 — Montana Local Food Choice Act (official) before printing.
Usually blocks the cottage food path
A roadside stand or vehicle away from home
Selling outside your home or a traditional community event isn't covered by the Local Food Choice Act.
A retail store, restaurant, or other business that sells to the public
Homemade food can't be sold in or through a retail food establishment under the Act, except raw unprocessed fruits, vegetables, and aquaculture products.
The Act is built around direct, in-person transactions tied to your home or a traditional community event. Mail-order fulfillment isn't addressed the way in-person sales are.
Potentially-hazardous (refrigerated/TCS) foods are allowed under the Local Food Choice Act, but you take on more food-safety responsibility and must still give buyers the required disclosure.
Use this order when you prepare the permit packet, label, and direct-sales plan.
Step 1
Check whether your product fits the Montana 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 Montana.
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 Montana-specific disclosure or permit field requested by the form.
Step 4
Print the checklist and verify against official sources
A plain-English helper for Montana home producers selling under the Local Food Choice Act. Not legal advice and not state approval.
Montana FAQ
Montana cottage food questions
Short answers to the questions people usually ask before they start the wizard.
Can I sell homemade food in Montana?
Usually yes — Montana's Local Food Choice Act is one of the more permissive homemade-food laws in the country. It covers far more than shelf-stable baked goods: refrigerated and potentially-hazardous foods are allowed direct-to-consumer, with no license, permit, registration, or inspection. Meat processed at a licensed establishment is not allowed; poultry is allowed only under the federal 1,000-Bird Exemption for birds you raised yourself. The wizard below checks the choices that commonly change the answer.
What does the Montana 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 Montana?
Verify your product category, sales channel, annual limit or registration requirement, and label wording against DPHHS — Cottage Food and Farmers Markets 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 MCA Title 50, ch. 49, part 2 — Montana Local Food Choice Act (official) or the responsible local agency before printing labels.