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