Cottage Food Laws by State
Alabama Cottage Food Laws
Alabama lets you make certain shelf-stable foods in your own home and sell them without a food service permit or kitchen inspection. Since the 2021 amendment there is no cap on sales. Instead, you take an approved food safety course, label your products, and have the county health department review your paperwork.
Annual sales cap
No cap
Permit
None
Training
Required
Home inspection
No
Online sales
Allowed
Shipping
Allowed
Across state lines
Not allowed
Wholesale
Not allowed
Verified against official sources on 2026-10-21.
Where You Can Sell in Alabama
Sell straight to shoppers in Alabama, whether in person, by phone, or online. You may hand over orders yourself, send an agent, or mail them within the state. Restaurants, permitted food establishments, and consignment arrangements are off limits, since every sale has to go directly to the end consumer.
| Channel | Status |
|---|---|
| From home | Allowed |
| Online orders |
Conditions apply
Sales may be made in person, by phone, or online, to consumers in Alabama. |
| Retail stores |
Conditions apply
Sales must go directly to consumers; consignment sales and sales through permitted food establishments are not allowed. |
| Wholesale | Not allowed |
| Restaurants | Not allowed |
What You Can Sell in Alabama
The list covers baked goods like cakes, breads, donuts, and pies, plus jams, candy, dried herbs and produce, roasted coffee, and dry baking mixes. Fermented or preserved produce is allowed once its acidity is verified. Anything with meat, poultry, or fish, or that needs refrigeration for safety, stays out.
Home-prepared, non-potentially-hazardous food that needs no time or temperature control for safety and contains no meat, poultry, or fish.
Bread
Candy
Dry goods
Preserves
Other
Allowed with conditions
- Fermented or preserved vegetables and fruit (pickles, salsa) — pH verification from a processing authority or Alabama Extension is required.
- Freeze-dried foods — Water activity verification is required.
Not allowed
Limits and Requirements
Annual sales cap
No cap
- Prepare the food in your primary residence, which has a kitchen and appliances designed for ordinary home use
- Sell only directly to consumers within Alabama
- No sales to restaurants or through permitted food establishments, and no consignment
- Complete and keep current an approved food safety course
- The Department of Public Health may issue a stop sale, seizure, or hold order for food suspected of causing foodborne illness
Local rules: ADPH advises contacting the Farmers Market Authority at the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries about farmers market sales, and the Alabama Beverage Control Board about products with more than 3% alcohol. Check local business license and zoning requirements.
How to Start Selling in Alabama
-
1
Take an approved food safety course
Alabama Extension offers a course for cottage food operations; any ANSI-accredited food safety course is also accepted. Keep your certification current.
-
2
Design your label
Include every required label item in at least 10-point type (see the labeling section). A QR code cannot replace the address or ingredient list.
-
3
Complete the Cottage Food Review Form
Fill out the ADPH form.
-
4
Visit your county health department
Bring the form, course certificate, and a sample label. The department reviews only those documents and does not inspect your kitchen. Review fees vary by county.
-
5
Ask for written confirmation
Request written confirmation of the review if you need it for a business license.
-
6
Verify acidity or water activity if needed
Pickled or fermented items need pH verification and freeze-dried foods need water activity verification before sale.
What a Compliant Alabama Label Looks Like
Quickly Cottage builds your ingredient list, detects allergens, and adds the required disclosure automatically.
Product
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake Pops
Sunflower Home Bakery
412 Maple Ave, Springfield, AL
Ingredients:
Enriched Bleached Flour (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Iron, Thiamin Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Sugar, Cocoa (Processed with Alkali), Leavening (Baking Soda, Sodium Aluminum Phosphate, Monocalcium Phosphate), Corn Starch, Salt, Soybean Oil; Sugar, Unsweetened Chocolate, Cocoa Butter, Milkfat, Soy Lecithin, Vanilla; Sugar, Corn Starch, Vegetable Oil (Palm), Confectioner's Glaze, Carnauba Wax, FD&C Colors; Water, Propylene Glycol, FD&C Red 40.
Contains:
This food is not inspected by the Alabama Department of Health or a local health department. This product may contain allergens.
Label Requirements
Every cottage food product sold in Alabama must have a label that includes the following.
| Required field |
|---|
| All 9 FDA major allergens present |
| Complete ingredient list, in descending order by weight |
| Business name |
| Business address |
| Product name |
| "Not inspected" disclosure statement |
Alabama Labeling Notes
- All label text must be at least 10-point font.
- A QR code cannot substitute for the address or the ingredient list.
Required Label Disclosure
This exact text must appear on every label you sell in Alabama.
This food is not inspected by the Alabama Department of Health or a local health department. This product may contain allergens.
Quickly Cottage adds this to your label automatically.
Generate your Alabama label in minutes
Ingredient lists, allergens, and the required disclosure — built in automatically.
Alabama Cottage Food — Common Questions
A cottage food operation is not a food service establishment and needs no food service permit, but you submit a Cottage Food Review Form, your course certificate, and a sample label to your county health department.
Alabama does not set a dollar cap on cottage food sales.
Complete and keep current a food safety course approved by the Alabama Department of Public Health; Alabama Extension's cottage food course and ANSI-accredited courses are accepted.
Online sales are allowed. Shipping is allowed. Sales may be made in person, by phone, or online, to consumers in Alabama.
Not allowed: Meat, poultry, and fish (including jerky); Foods requiring time or temperature control for safety.
Resources and Law History
Who to contact
Alabama Department of Public Health, Food, Milk and Lodging (county health departments)
Agency website2021
Act 2021-461 (SB160) removed the $20,000 gross income limit, allowed sales online, by phone, or in person, allowed delivery by mail or through an agent, expanded the list of cottage foods, and revised label requirements.
Law reference: Alabama Cottage Food Law (Code of Alabama section 22-20-5.1 (Cottage food production operations)) · Last updated 2026 · Always verify requirements with your state's department of agriculture before selling.
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