Cottage Food Laws by State
Michigan Cottage Food Laws
Michigan lets you make certain shelf-stable foods at home and sell them without a license, registration, or kitchen inspection. Since the 2025 amendment, the yearly gross sales ceiling is $50,000, rising to $75,000 if what you sell goes for $250 or more per item. Your home is treated as uninspected, and your labels have to say so.
Annual sales cap
$50,000
Permit
None
Training
Not 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 Michigan
You can sell face to face at home, farmers markets, and roadside stands. Online orders, mail order, and third-party delivery apps now work too, as long as the customer is in Michigan and can talk with you before buying. Stores, restaurants, wholesalers, and consignment are off the table, and you cannot hand your sales to anyone else.
| Channel | Status |
|---|---|
| From home | Allowed |
| Farmers markets |
Conditions apply
Some markets or other direct-sale venues may still require a food establishment license or their own rules; sampling must follow MDARD's farmers market sample guidelines. |
| Roadside stands | Allowed |
| Online orders |
Conditions apply
Internet, mail-order, and third-party delivery platform sales are allowed only within Michigan, and the buyer must be able to interact directly with you (in person, phone, or video) before the sale. |
| Retail stores | Not allowed |
| Wholesale | Not allowed |
| Restaurants | Not allowed |
What You Can Sell in Michigan
Think dry and stable: breads, cookies, cakes, candy, fruit jams, granola, dry mixes, and roasted coffee beans. Anything that needs the fridge is out, including cheesecake, dairy, and meat. Beverages are not allowed at all, and neither are pickled, fermented, or canned vegetable products. Fruit jam is fine, but vegetable or low-sugar versions are not.
Only non-potentially-hazardous, shelf-stable foods that need no refrigeration or temperature control for safety.
Bread
Candy
Dry goods
Preserves
Allowed with conditions
- Frosted or glazed cakes — Frosting or glaze must be shelf-stable or from a tested recipe; cream cheese frosting and anything needing refrigeration is not allowed.
- Alcohol-flavored candy — MDARD's pages conflict on liqueur-filled or alcohol truffles; confirm with MDARD before selling.
Not allowed
Limits and Requirements
Annual sales cap
$50,000
The cap rises to $75,000 if your products sell for $250 or more per unit (2025 PA 51). Michigan may adjust the cap for inflation starting Oct 1, 2026.
- Gross sales capped at $50,000 per year, or $75,000 if your products sell for $250 or more per unit; the cap may be adjusted for inflation from Oct 1, 2026
- Must be made in your primary residence; rentals, second homes, and motor homes do not qualify
- Sales only within Michigan
- No wholesale, consignment, or sales through other people (including employees reselling) or to stores and restaurants
- No donating products to fundraisers, auctions, or soup kitchens
- Keep sales records and give them to an MDARD inspector on request
Local rules: The state exemption does not remove local zoning, ordinance, or HOA rules. Some farmers markets require their own vendor licensing or conditions.
How to Start Selling in Michigan
-
1
Check your food against MDARD's list
Read MDARD's 'What Can I Make?' page and stick to shelf-stable foods; call MDARD at 800-292-3939 if you are unsure about a recipe.
-
2
Confirm your home qualifies
Production and storage must happen in your primary residence. Check local zoning, HOA, and lease rules, since the state exemption does not override them.
-
3
Optional: take the MSU food safety course
MSU Extension offers an online course with a quiz and certificate. It is not required but can be shown to customers.
-
4
Optional: register with the MSU Product Center
A $50 online registration issues a number (format C-000000000) you can print with your phone number instead of your home address on labels.
-
5
Label every product
Include the home-kitchen not-inspected statement, ingredients, net weight, allergens, and your name and address (or registration number).
-
6
Track sales and pick your venues
Record gross sales against the cap, and ask each farmers market whether it has extra vendor requirements.
What a Compliant Michigan Label Looks Like
Quickly Cottage builds your ingredient list, detects allergens, and adds the required disclosure automatically.
Product
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake Pops
Net Wt: 8 oz (227g)
Sunflower Home Bakery
412 Maple Ave, Springfield, MI
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:
Made in a home kitchen not inspected by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Label Requirements
Every cottage food product sold in Michigan 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 |
| Net weight |
| "Not inspected" disclosure statement |
Michigan Labeling Notes
- Each product must be individually labeled before sale.
- For items that cannot be labeled directly, such as wedding cakes, MDARD says the label information may go on an invoice delivered with the cake.
- Exact statement wording differs slightly between MDARD pages; copy the wording from the current MDARD labeling page.
Required Label Disclosure
This exact text must appear on every label you sell in Michigan.
Made in a home kitchen not inspected by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Quickly Cottage adds this to your label automatically.
Generate your Michigan label in minutes
Ingredient lists, allergens, and the required disclosure — built in automatically.
Michigan Cottage Food — Common Questions
No license, permit, or inspection is needed; an optional $50 voluntary registration through the MSU Product Center lets you print a registration number and phone number on labels instead of your home address.
The limit is $50,000 in gross sales.
No training is required; MSU Extension offers an optional online food safety course with a certificate.
Online sales are allowed. Shipping is allowed. Internet, mail-order, and third-party delivery platform sales are allowed only within Michigan, and the buyer must be able to interact directly with you (in person, phone, or video) before the sale.
Not allowed: Meat and meat products, including jerky; Milk and dairy products such as cheese and yogurt; Foods needing refrigeration, such as cheesecake and ice cream; All beverages, including juice, kombucha, and apple cider; Canned fruits or vegetables, salsa, pickles, relish, and sauerkraut; Vegetable jams, low-sugar jams, and freezer jams; Fermented foods such as kombucha or sourdough starter; Raw seed sprouts; Cut melon, cut tomato, and chopped leafy greens.
Resources and Law History
Who to contact
Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD)
800-292-3939
Agency website2021
Earlier amendments (HB 5671 and 5704) updated cottage food requirements and proposed voluntary registration.
2025
HB 4122 (2025 PA 51), signed Dec 23, 2025, raised the cap from $25,000 to $50,000 ($75,000 at $250+ per unit), allowed in-state online, mail-order, and third-party delivery sales, and created optional MSU Product Center registration.
2026
MDARD published an updated cottage food guide (03/2026) and MSU launched voluntary registration on May 21, 2026.
Sources
- MCL 289.4102
- House Fiscal Agency analysis of HB 4122 (2025)
- MDARD Cottage Food
- MDARD Cottage Food: What Can I Make?
- MDARD Selling and Samples
- MDARD Cottage Food Labeling
- MDARD Cottage Food Business Rules one-pager (03/2026)
- MSU Product Center voluntary registration
- MSU Extension: Michigan cottage food law food safety training now online
Law reference: Michigan Cottage Food Law (MCL 289.4102 (Food Law of 2000, cottage food operations)) · Last updated 2026 · Always verify requirements with your state's department of agriculture before selling.
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