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Selling homemade food in California means your label has to follow the California Homemade Food Act (AB 1616) — Cottage Food Operation (CFO). Here is exactly what that label must show in 2026 — the required fields, the allergen rule, and the verbatim disclaimer and its font size — sourced to the statute and dated.
Print this statement on the label, word for word:
Must appear in at least 12-point type. The label must also carry the CFO's permit/registration number and the name of the local (county) agency that issued it.
California uniquely runs a TWO-TIER, locally-administered system under the California Homemade Food Act (AB 1616). You register or permit with your COUNTY environmental health department (the "local enforcement agency"), not the state. A "Class A" operation self-certifies with a checklist, is capped at $75,000 in verifiable gross annual sales, and may only make DIRECT sales (to the end customer). A "Class B" operation must obtain a permit and pass an initial home-kitchen inspection, is capped at $150,000, and may make both direct AND indirect sales (through third-party retail food facilities, restaurants, and offsite events). Both caps are adjusted yearly for inflation by the California CPI. You may sell only non-potentially-hazardous foods on CDPH's approved list, you're limited to one full-time-equivalent non-household employee, and the operator must complete an approved food processor course shortly after registering.
A Class A registration only authorizes direct sales you make yourself (home, farm stand, farmers' market, your own online-to-local pickup). The moment your product is resold through a grocery, cafe, or consignment shelf, that is an INDIRECT sale and legally requires a Class B permit plus a passed home-kitchen inspection. Decide up front: if any retailer will carry your product, apply for Class B.
Only non-potentially-hazardous foods qualify. Cheesecake, cream or custard pies, meat-filled items, fresh salsa, hot sauce, canned/pickled vegetables, and anything needing refrigeration are excluded. Allowed items are on CDPH's list (breads and cookies without cream/custard/meat, candy, jams/jellies meeting 21 CFR Part 150, dried fruit, granola, nut butters, roasted coffee, etc.). Verify your exact product against the current CDPH approved list before selling.
California requires the cottage food operator to complete an approved food processor course within roughly three months of registering. Sellers often submit the county checklist, start selling, and forget the course deadline, leaving them out of compliance. Complete the CDPH-approved course as part of onboarding, not later.
A California Cottage Food Operation is authorized to sell within California only. Shipping across state lines pulls you under FDA and the destination state's rules and is outside your CFO registration. Keep sales in-state, and confirm any online orders are fulfilled to California customers.
Timeline: Class A: often 1-3 weeks. Complete the approved food processor course, fill out the county's self-certification checklist confirming your home-kitchen practices, submit it to your county environmental health department, and receive a registration number (no routine inspection). Class B: typically several weeks because the county must schedule and pass an initial home-kitchen inspection before issuing the permit number.
Cost: Varies by county — registration/permit fees are set locally by each county environmental health department, not by a single statewide schedule, so confirm the exact amount with your county (Class B permits cost more than Class A because of the inspection). The required food processor course is a small one-time cost through a CDPH-approved provider (confirm the provider's fee).
Cottage food laws get revised, and a new disclaimer or font size can quietly make your label non-compliant. Leave your email and we'll write to you only when California's cottage food label rules change. Nothing else, ever — and you can unsubscribe from any message.
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Make my California label →California requires this exact statement on a cottage food label: “Made in a Home Kitchen.” It must be set at a minimum of 12-point type.
Yes. In California the permit / registration number must appear on the label (together with the issuing county agency).
At minimum: product name — the common name of the food; your business / producer name; the address of the cottage food operation; a complete ingredient list, in descending order by weight (sub-ingredients included); an allergen declaration — the 9 major FDA allergens, in the ingredient list or a “Contains:” line; net weight, in US customary and metric units; the state's required disclaimer at a minimum of 12-point type (see below); your permit / registration number and the issuing local (county) agency.
No. CottageCompliance gives general information based on each state's published rules, dated to when we last verified them. Always confirm with your state or local agency before selling.
Source: Cal. Health & Safety Code §114365 / §114365.1; CCDEH AB 1616 FAQ. Reconfirm on cdph.ca.gov and your county environmental health department. Verified 2026-06-15. General information, not legal advice — confirm with your state or local agency before selling.