Who the Illinois cottage food law covers
A cottage food operation is run by a person who makes or packages food or drink in the kitchen of their primary home, or in an appropriately designed and equipped kitchen on a farm. The owner, a family member or a paid employee may sell it.
Baking for a religious, charitable or nonprofit group's fundraiser? Baked goods that need no refrigeration, made for that purpose, are exempt from the cottage food rules.
Which foods are allowed, and which are banned
Illinois works from a banned list: everything not on it is allowed, including some foods that need refrigeration. The law prohibits these foods, and processed foods containing them, except as noted:
- Meat, poultry, fish, seafood and shellfish
- Dairy, except in a shelf-stable baked good or candy like caramel, or in a frosting such as buttercream
- Eggs, except in a shelf-stable food like dry noodles, or cooked in a frosting
- Pumpkin pies, sweet potato pies, cheesecakes, custard pies, creme pies, and pastries with refrigerated fillings or toppings
- Garlic in oil, unless acidified
- Low-acid canned foods
- Sprouts, and cut leafy greens unless dehydrated, acidified, or blanched and frozen
- Cut or pureed fresh tomato or melon, dehydrated tomato or melon, and frozen cut melon
- Wild-harvested mushrooms
- Alcoholic beverages and kombucha
Some foods come with homework. Fermented and acidified foods, such as pickles, kimchi or hot sauce, need either a tested recipe from the USDA or a cooperative extension, or a written food safety plan per product category with a pH test every 3 years. Canned tomato products follow a tested recipe exactly or get a yearly lab test. Your health department may ask for a lab test on baked goods with cheese.
Alcohol may go into extracts like vanilla, or into baked goods that aren't meant as a drink.
Where and how you can sell
Cottage food is sold directly to consumers for their own use, never for resale. You register in your own area, but you may sell outside it.
| Way of selling | Allowed? |
|---|---|
| Farmers markets and mobile farmers markets | Yes |
| Fairs, festivals and public events | Yes |
| Online | Yes, with the home kitchen notice at checkout |
| Pickup at your home or farm | Yes, unless a local law that applies to all cottage food bans it |
| Delivery to the customer | Yes |
| Pickup at someone else's property, with their consent | Yes |
| Shipping inside Illinois | Shelf-stable food only, tamper-evident seal |
| Shipping out of state | No |
| Stores, restaurants or resellers | No |
Registration, training and inspections
Register with the local health department where your operation is. It issues a certificate with a registration number, which goes on your labels. Keep a copy, because any local health department can ask to see it. Registration is renewed every year, for a fee of no more than $50.
- Everyone preparing or packaging the food is a Department-approved certified food protection manager.
- On a private well, the health department may ask for a water test for E. coli and coliform, at your cost.
- Inspections follow a complaint, an illness outbreak or a suspected hazard, and may carry a reasonable fee.
- A health department can stop your sales, and revoke your registration if a problem can't be fixed.
- Home rule cities can't regulate cottage food in a way that conflicts with the state law.
When you outgrow the Illinois cottage food law
The Illinois Department of Public Health says cottage food may not be sold for resale or in retail food establishments. Supplying a grocery store, cafe or distributor, shipping to other states, or making a banned food takes a licensed food business, and then the full federal label applies, usually with a Nutrition Facts panel.
Nutrition Facts Label Requirements →