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Cottage food laws · TX
Selling homemade food in Texas
Texas has one of the most permissive cottage food laws. SB 541 (effective Sept 1, 2025) raised the cap to $150,000/year and added a required basic food-safety training course; no license or permit is needed. You can sell non-hazardous homemade foods direct, at markets, in retail stores, and online/by mail as long as you personally deliver within Texas - no out-of-state shipping. The required label disclosure wording also changed with SB 541.
Program
Texas Cottage Food Law
Registration
No license or permit required. Operator must complete an accredited basic food-safety/food-handler training course (valid 2 years). DSHS registration is required only if selling TCS foods or reselling as a cottage food vendor; otherwise registration is optional (lets you use a DSHS ID number instead of your home address on labels).
Annual sales cap
$150,000 gross/year (raised from $50,000 by SB 541, effective Sept 1, 2025; indexed to inflation going forward)
Online sales
Allowed (see notes)
You can sell
- Baked goods
- Jams, jellies, preserves
- Candy
- Dried herbs & mixes
- Pickled/fermented vegetables at pH <=4.6
- TCS / refrigerated foods (only with DSHS registration and proper labeling)
You can't sell
- Meat and poultry
- Seafood
- Ice and frozen desserts
- Low-acid canned goods
- Raw (unpasteurized) milk
- THC/CBD products
Where you can sell
- Direct to consumer
- Farmers markets and farm stands
- Retail stores and food-service establishments
- Online/mail order with personal delivery by the operator, an employee, or a household member
Selling online
Online and mail-order sales are allowed, but delivery must be made in person by the operator, an employee, or a household member. Interstate/out-of-state shipping remains prohibited. Wholesale is barred except to registered cottage food vendors.
What your labels must include
- Producer name and address (or DSHS ID number if registered)
- "THIS PRODUCT WAS PRODUCED IN A PRIVATE RESIDENCE THAT IS NOT SUBJECT TO GOVERNMENTAL LICENSING OR INSPECTION." statement (all caps, as amended by SB 541)
- Common/product name
- Ingredient list
- Allergen disclosure
- Net weight