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North Dakota Cottage Food Label Requirements

North Dakota cottage food label requirements are some of the lightest in the country. The Cottage Foods Act bans the state and local governments from requiring a license, inspection, packaging or labeling. You only have to share one statement, on the label or on a sign where you sell: "This product is made in a home kitchen that is not inspected by the state or local health department." Foods that need refrigeration get safe handling instructions and a frozen disclosure too.

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North Dakota cottage food label requirements: map of the United States with North Dakota highlighted
Cottage food label

What a North Dakota cottage food label must show

The law itself is short. These are the only labeling duties it gives a cottage food operator.

Example North Dakota cottage food label for kuchen with the home kitchen statement, safe handling instructions and a note that the product was transported and kept frozen
  1. 1
    The home kitchen statementN.D.C.C. 23-09.5-02(8)
    On a label or on a consumer advisory sign at the point of sale: "This product is made in a home kitchen that is not inspected by the state or local health department."
  2. 2
    Safe handling instructionsN.D.C.C. 23-09.5-02(7)
    Only for foods that need refrigeration, like baked goods with cream, custard, meringue or cream cheese, cheesecake and pumpkin pie.
  3. 3
    Frozen disclosureN.D.C.C. 23-09.5-02(7)
    Those same refrigerated foods also carry a product disclosure statement saying the product was transported and maintained frozen.
  4. Tell every buyer, label or notInformed buyerYou must also inform the end consumer that the food is not certified, labeled, licensed, packaged, regulated or inspected. Your buyer is an informed end consumer only once they know that.
North Dakota at a glance

License, sales limits and where you sell

License or permitNoneNo state agency or local government may require licensure, permitting, certification or inspection for cottage food sales.N.D.C.C. 23-09.5-02(1)
Sales capNone setThe Cottage Foods Act has no dollar limit. The rules are about who buys and how.
Where you sellAnywhere directFarm, ranch, farmers market, farm stand, your home kitchen or any venue the law doesn't prohibit, plus delivery.N.D.C.C. 23-09.5-02(2)
Who can buyEnd consumersSales go straight to the informed end consumer, for home consumption only. No restaurants, food plants or food stores.
Meat and poultry are limitedWatch outUninspected meat products are not allowed. Poultry only works if you slaughter no more than 1,000 birds you raised yourself in a calendar year, sell only your own birds, and keep the sale inside North Dakota.N.D.C.C. 23-09.5-02(3)
Why print a full label anywayThe law asks for very little, but buyers with allergies look for ingredients and a Contains line, and a clear product name and net weight help you sell. Many cottage bakers print the full label and add the statement at the bottom.Allergen Labeling Requirements (FALCPA) →
Selling to stores or out of state?Cottage food can't be sold or used in a food establishment, food processing plant or food store, so wholesale means a licensed operation. Food sold across state lines also falls under the federal label rules: ingredients, net quantity in two units and often a Nutrition Facts panel.FDA Food Labeling Requirements →
Sources

Where this comes from

Questions

North Dakota label questions

No. Under the Cottage Foods Act, no state agency or political subdivision may require a license, permit, certification or inspection for cottage food sold directly to an informed end consumer. Cottage Food Law →

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