Cottage Food Label Requirements in District of Columbia (2026)

Cottage food rules in District of Columbia — the whole program

Who can sell homemade food in District of Columbia

The District of Columbia runs a registration program, not an exemption. The governing statute is Subchapter III of Chapter 7A of Title 7 of the D.C. Official Code, 'Cottage Foods', which runs from § 7-742.01 to § 7-742.03 and nothing further — there is no § 7-742.04 (that URL returns HTTP 404 on the official code site). It was created by the Cottage Food Amendment Act of 2013 (D.C. Law 20-63, effective January 25, 2014), rewritten by the Cottage Food Expansion Amendment Act of 2019 (D.C. Law 23-61, effective March 10, 2020), and last touched by D.C. Law 26-7, § 3(b), effective June 10, 2025. Eligibility is defined by § 7-742.01(2): a 'cottage food business' is a business that '(A) Produces or packages cottage food products in a residential kitchen; (B) Sells the cottage food products in accordance with § 7-742.02 and regulations adopted by the Department of Health; and ... (D) Has obtained a home occupancy permit from the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs pursuant to section 203 of Title 11 of the District of Columbia Municipal Regulations (11 DCMR Section 203).' Subparagraph (C) of that definition now reads simply 'Repealed.' — that is where the old annual revenue ceiling used to sit, and its removal is the single most important thing to know about DC eligibility (see sales_cap). Three consequences follow from the definition. First, the kitchen must be residential and it must be yours: the DC Health FAQ answers 'Can I sell food prepared in a rented kitchen?' with 'No. Not as a cottage food business owner. By definition you can only prepare food in the residential kitchen that is located at the address listed on the Cottage Food Business Registry Application', and it forbids production or storage in a shed or garage — 'Cottage food products can only be prepared and packaged in a kitchen that is located within the primary residence of the cottage food business owner'. Second, the residence must be in the District: the FAQ says the primary residence 'needs to be in Washington, DC'. Third, a home occupancy permit is a precondition of being a cottage food business at all, not a side formality — the statute writes it into the definition. Note the agency drift on that permit: § 7-742.01(2)(D) still names the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, an agency since split, while DC Health's own program page now links the Home Occupancy Permit to the DC Department of Buildings (DOB) and the parallel microenterprise home kitchen definition at § 7-742.11(3)(C) names the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection. The permit requirement is real; go to DOB and expect the statutory name to be stale. One more boundary worth naming: cottage food is not the only home-kitchen route in DC. Subchapter III-A, 'Microenterprise Home Kitchens' (§ 7-742.11 et seq., added by D.C. Law 25-21, effective July 1, 2023, with its own regulations at 25-L DCMR), permits a home operator to sell ready-to-eat and time/temperature-control food under a microenterprise home kitchen permit — and § 7-742.11(3)(F) expressly provides that a microenterprise home kitchen business 'Is not a catering business, cottage food business, bed and breakfast, residence-based group home facility, or food truck'. The two programs are mutually exclusive by definition. If your product is hot, refrigerated, or otherwise temperature-controlled, cottage food is the wrong door and the microenterprise home kitchen permit is the one to ask about; this fiche does not cover its terms.

What you may and may not sell

Allowed:

• The DC list is a closed, enumerated list adopted by rule, not a general category of 'non-hazardous food'. § 7-742.01(3) defines a cottage food product as 'a non-potentially hazardous food, as specified in regulations adopted by the Department of Health', and 25-K DCMR 103.5 is that specification. 25-K DCMR 105.1(j) makes the closure explicit by prohibiting the production of 'food products not expressly listed in Subsection 103.5'. The eighteen approved categories, quoted from 103.5, are:
• Baked goods, without cream, custard, cheese, or meat fillings, such as breads, biscuits, churros, muffins, rolls, scones, and sweet breads (25-K DCMR 103.5(a))
• Unfilled, baked donuts (103.5(b))
• Waffle cones (103.5(c))
• Pizzelles (103.5(d))
• Roasted coffee, whole beans or ground (103.5(e))
• Cakes, including celebration cakes (birthday, anniversary, and wedding) (103.5(f))
• Cereals, trail mixes, and granola (103.5(g))
• Candies, such as brittles, toffee, chocolates, cotton candy, fudge, truffles, and confections (103.5(h))
• Pastries, pies, brownies, cookies, and tortillas (103.5(i))
• Snacks such as caramel corn, chocolate-covered nonperishable foods, nuts and dried fruits, crackers, pretzels, seeds, popcorn, or popcorn balls (103.5(j))
• Fruit pies, fruit empanadas, and fruit tamales (103.5(k))
• Jams, jellies, syrups, marmalades and other preserves (103.5(l)) — but see prohibited_foods: the sugar-free versions of exactly these products are banned by 106.1(p), and canning as a process is banned by 105.1(g)
• Honey and honeycomb (103.5(m)) — with an extra condition written into the rule itself: applicants 'shall comply with "Sustainable Urban Agriculture Apiculture Act of 2012", and provide proof they are registered with the District's Department of Energy and Environment in accordance with Subtitle B of the Act, "Promoting Urban Agriculture through Beekeeping"'
• Dried pasta (103.5(n))
• Dry herbs, herb blends, and seasonings blends (103.5(o))
• Dry tea blends (103.5(p))
• Dry baking mixes (103.5(q))
• Vinegar and flavored vinegars (103.5(r))
• A product not on the list can be added one recipe at a time, by laboratory proof rather than by argument. 25-K DCMR 103.3: 'If an owner of a cottage food business requests to produce, package, or sell a recipe or food product that is not on the approved list of foods in Subsection 103.5, the owner of a cottage food business shall submit confirmation of the food product's pH value and water activity from any state accredited laboratory to the Department for review.' Under 103.4 the Department then decides whether the product is safe to sell as a cottage food. Separately, 103.2 provides that the Department will maintain and update the 103.5 list 'each quarter, if necessary, through the rulemaking process' — in practice it has not: every section of 25-K DCMR still carries an effective date of 12/29/2017.
• Homegrown produce may be used as an ingredient but not as decoration. DC Health FAQ: 'Yes. You should take care to thoroughly wash the homegrown product and the fruits and vegetables must be incorporated into the batter and properly baked, labeled and packaged. The baked goods may not be decorated or garnished with fresh fruits or vegetables.'

Not allowed under the program:

• Anything requiring temperature control. 25-K DCMR 105.1 opens: 'A cottage food business shall not produce, package, or sell food products which require temperature control for safety.' Note the tension with the statute discussed in the internal verification note: § 7-742.02(b)(3), as rewritten in 2020, authorises a registered business to sell 'the temperature control for safety food products on the approved food products list issued by the Department, set forth in section 103.5' — but 103.5 contains no such products, and the rule prohibits them, so in practice the prohibition governs.
• Prohibited PROCESSES, each of which kills a whole product family regardless of the 103.5 list — 25-K DCMR 105.1: processing potentially hazardous foods (a); processing acidified and low acid canned food (b); reduced oxygen packaging (c); smoking or curing food (d); pressing juices or vegetables (e); pasteurizing (f); canning 'any food products, including but not limited to fruits, vegetables, vegetable butters, salsas, and similar foods' (g); hermetically sealing food in jars (h); offering adulterated or misbranded food (i); producing food not listed in 103.5 (j); and selling 103.5 products outside the District (k)
• Fish or shellfish products (25-K DCMR 106.1(a))
• Fresh, dried, or dehydrated meat or meat products, including jerkies (106.1(b))
• Fresh, dried, or dehydrated poultry or poultry products (106.1(c))
• Baked goods that require any type of refrigeration such as cream, custard, or meringue pies and cakes or pastries with cream cheese icings or filings (106.1(d))
• Cheese made with unpasteurized milk (106.1(e))
• Focaccia-style breads with vegetables and/or cheeses (106.1(f))
• Raw-seed sprouts, including but not limited to alfalfa sprouts or bean sprouts (106.1(g))
• Raw cookie dough (106.1(h))
• Canned pickled products such as corn relish, pickles, or sauerkraut (106.1(i))
• Milk and dairy products including hard, soft and cottage cheeses, and yogurt (106.1(j))
• Mushrooms (106.1(k)) — flatly, not merely wild-harvested ones
• Cut fresh fruits and/or vegetables (106.1(l)), food products made from cut fresh fruits or vegetables (106.1(m)), and food products made with cooked vegetable products (106.1(n))
• Garlic and/or vegetable in oil mixtures (106.1(o))
• Sugar-free products, such as jams, jellies, syrups, marmalades and other preserves (106.1(p)) — the sugar is load-bearing; the sweetened versions are allowed by 103.5(l)
• Pumpkin or fruit butters (106.1(q)). The Department explained why in its 2017 response to comments: 'Fruit butters have significantly less sugar than traditional jam or jelly. In fruit butters, the combination of sugar and pectin is not large enough to assure that the butter is safe.'
• Ice or ice products (106.1(r))
• Barbeque sauces, ketchups and/or mustards (106.1(s))
• Foods not intended for human consumption such as pet foods and/or treats (106.1(t)); the FAQ repeats the answer as a flat 'No'
• Alcohol. Not in 106.1, but the DC Health FAQ answers 'Can I sell beer or other alcohol products?' with 'No.'
• Styrofoam (polystyrene) containers — a packaging rather than a food prohibition, drawn from the District's general disposable food service ware ban and restated in the DC Health FAQ alongside the bans on hermetically sealed jars, reduced oxygen packaging, and acidified/low-acid canned food packaging

How much you may sell

No cap. The former $25,000 annual revenue ceiling was REPEALED and is no longer in force. It originated in the Cottage Food Amendment Act of 2013 at § 7-742.01(2)(C), and the version reproduced in the 2017 rulemaking read: 'Has annual revenues from the sale of cottage food products in an amount not exceeding twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000)'. In 2017 the Department told commenters who wanted the figure raised to $50,000 that it could not oblige: 'No changes were made due to D.C. Official Code § 7-742.01(2)(C). The annual revenues sale of $25,000 is set by the Cottage Food Amendment Act of 2013 ... and cannot be changed by regulation.' The Council then removed it. The Cottage Food Expansion Amendment Act of 2019 (D.C. Law 23-61, effective March 10, 2020) is titled, in its own enacting clause, an act 'To amend Part C of the Department of Health Functions Clarification Act of 2001 to remove the annual revenue cap on cottage food businesses, to revise preoperational inspection requirements, and to allow all direct sales of cottage food products', and its section 2(a)(1)(B) provides that 'Subparagraph (C) is repealed.' The current official text of § 7-742.01(2)(C) reads 'Repealed.' Since March 10, 2020 there has been no dollar limit, no volume limit and no batch limit on a DC cottage food business anywhere in § 7-742.01 to § 7-742.03 or in 25-K DCMR. Two traps follow. The repealed $25,000 figure still appears in the definitions section of the un-amended 2017 regulations (25-K DCMR 999/991 definitions, as published at 64 DCR No. 52) because that subtitle has never been updated; the former amount there is superseded by the statute and unenforceable. And any secondary guide still quoting a $25,000 DC cap is describing law repealed more than six years ago. What DC limits instead is the food (the closed 103.5 list plus the 105/106 prohibitions), the kitchen (your own primary residence), and the geography (District only).

Where you may sell

• Direct to consumers, retail, and online, within the District — § 7-742.01(3) defines a cottage food product as one 'that is sold to consumers, including through direct, retail, wholesale to licensed food establishments, and online sales, within the District of Columbia'
• Wholesale to licensed food establishments — THIS IS THE 2025 CHANGE, and it is the only thing D.C. Law 26-7 did to the cottage food subchapter. Section 3(b) of that act struck the phrase 'through direct, retail, and online sales,' from § 7-742.01(3) and inserted 'through direct, retail, wholesale to licensed food establishments, and online sales,' in its place, effective June 10, 2025. 'Food establishment' takes the meaning given in § 48-102(5) (§ 7-742.01(5)). Before June 10, 2025 wholesale was flatly barred: the DC Health FAQ, dated August 2021, still answers 'Can I sell my cottage food products to restaurants or grocery stores?' with 'No. The cottage food business owner can only sell directly to the consumer.' That FAQ answer is superseded on this point and DC Health has not reissued the document.
• In-District only, with no shipping out. 25-K DCMR 105.1(k) prohibits selling 103.5 products 'outside of the District of Columbia', and the FAQ is blunt: 'You are not allowed to sell or ship any cottage food item outside of the District of Columbia.' The statutory definition carries the same 'within the District of Columbia' limitation. Online selling is permitted; online selling across the District line is not.
• Products must be stored where they were made and sold prepackaged. § 7-742.02(c): the owner 'may sell only cottage food products that are: (1) Stored on the premises of the cottage food business; and (2) Prepackaged with a label' bearing the seven required elements. There is no lawful cottage food route to selling by the slice, scoop, or unlabeled item, and the FAQ separately forbids storing finished product in a shed or garage.
• Farmers' markets and public events. This is where the paperwork lags the statute. 25-K DCMR 101.2, still in its 2017 form, states that 'Cottage food products shall only be sold at farmers' markets and public events' — a restriction that tracked the pre-2020 statutory definition. D.C. Law 23-61, § 2(a)(3) struck 'at a farmer's market or public event' from § 7-742.01(3) and replaced it with 'direct to consumers within the District of Columbia', and the definition has since been widened again to include retail, online and wholesale. Markets and events remain a permitted venue; they are no longer the only one. Where the 2017 rule and the current statute conflict, the statute controls, but expect DC Health forms to reflect the older framing. Note also 25-K DCMR 102.8: 'Each cottage food business shall have an original Cottage Food Business Registration Certificate in a conspicuous location at each event.'
• One residual contradiction to resolve with DC Health before selling into a shop. DC Health's own program page, as served in August 2026, says cottage food businesses 'may sell directly to consumers through direct, retail (excluding sales to restaurants and grocery stores), and online sales within the District of Columbia' and then adds that 'Pursuant to the 2025 amendment, Cottage Food Businesses may also sell wholesale to licensed food establishments, consistent with applicable District laws and regulations.' Read together, the page appears to mean that retail counter sales to restaurants and groceries are out but wholesale supply to a licensed food establishment is in. NOT CONFIRMED: how DC Health draws that line in practice, and whether a wholesale sale requires anything additional of the buyer or the seller. Confirm with the DC Health Division of Food Safety and Hygiene (food.safety@dc.gov, 202-535-2180) before contracting with a retailer, because no regulation implementing the 2025 wholesale amendment has been published.

Permit, registration and fees

Registration is handled by DC Health (Department of Health), Division of Food Safety and Hygiene, which maintains the Cottage Food Business Registry (CFBR) — defined at § 7-742.01(1) as 'the Cottage Food Business Registry within the Department of Health'. § 7-742.02(b)(1): 'A cottage food business shall register with the Cottage Food Business Registry within the Department before beginning operation.' 25-K DCMR 102.1 puts it as a prohibition: 'No one shall operate as a cottage food business or produce, package, store, or sell cottage food products without first obtaining a Cottage Food Business Registry Identification Number and Certificate issued by the Department.' Applications now go through the Division of Food Safety Portal linked from the DC Health program page. Contact of record on that page: food.safety@dc.gov and 202-535-2180. Registration is not a licence — the FAQ answers 'Do I need a license for my cottage food operation?' with 'No. However, the owner of a cottage food business must obtain a Cottage Food Business Registration Certificate'..

1. Get a Home Occupancy Permit first. It is part of the statutory definition of a cottage food business (§ 7-742.01(2)(D)) and the first document 25-K DCMR 102.2(a) demands, 'original only'. The statute names DCRA; DC Health's current page routes applicants to the DC Department of Buildings (DOB). Zoning is the substance behind it — 11 DCMR Section 203 governs home occupations.
2. Pass a Certified Food Protection Manager course and get the DC card. 25-K DCMR 102.2(c) and (d) require 'Proof of successfully passing a nationally accredited Certified Food Protection Manager Course approved by the Department' and 'A District-issued Certified Food Protection Manager Certificate, obtained by the owner(s) of the cottage food business, which shall be valid for three years from the date of exam'. DC Health's page lists both the CFPM certification and the separate 'DC-Issued Certified Protection Manager ID-Card, Issued by DC Health based on your CFPM Certification'. Two documents, two steps.
3. If you will sell by weight, obtain proof of calibrated scales (25-K DCMR 102.2(b)); DC Health directs applicants to the DLCP Office of Weights and Measures.
4. List every product you intend to make, drawn from 25-K DCMR 103.5 (102.2(e)) — 'The Department may request a copy of recipes if deemed necessary'. This list is binding: 102.4(a) has the applicant attest that they understand 'that only the cottage food products listed on their registry application are authorized', and the FAQ answers 'Can I sell foods not listed on the Cottage Food Business Registry Application?' with 'No.' Adding a product later means going back to DC Health, and adding a product not on the 103.5 list means the 103.3 laboratory route (pH and water activity from a state accredited laboratory).
5. Submit a proposed packaging label for each product, carrying the seven elements of § 7-742.02(c)(2) / 25-K DCMR 104.2 (102.2(f))
6. Pay the fee and submit the registry application through the Division of Food Safety Portal. 25-K DCMR 102.2(g): 'A registration fee in the amount of fifty dollars ($50) for one (1) Cottage Food Business Registration Certificate that is valid for a two (2) year period.'
7. Consent to entry. 25-K DCMR 102.4(b) makes the application itself an attestation that the applicant 'Expressly grants the Department of Health right of entry to the premises of the cottage food business during normal business hours or at other reasonable times', and 102.4(c) that refusing entry or ignoring a cease-and-desist order 'shall result in immediate suspension or removal of the cottage food business from the Department's Cottage Food Business Registry'. § 7-742.02(d)(3) states the same duty at statutory level.
8. Wait for the decision, then for the inspection if one is called. 25-K DCMR 102.5: the Department 'shall approve or deny a Cottage Food Registry Application within thirty (30) business days of receiving a properly completed application'. 102.6 then provides for a preoperational inspection 'within fourteen (14) business days of application approval'. Note the statutory softening: D.C. Law 23-61, § 2(b)(1) changed § 7-742.02(b)(2) from 'shall perform' to 'may perform' an inspection, and DC Health now says only that 'a pre-operational inspection may be required'. The 2017 rule still says 'shall'.
9. Receive the identification number and certificate. § 7-742.02(b)(3) requires the Department to issue 'a cottage food business identification number and certificate to each registered cottage food business'. Under 25-K DCMR 102.7 the number is 'valid for two (2) years from the passing date of the food safety inspection', the business is added to the registry, and the certificate names the identification number, the approved products, and an expiration date. Keep the original certificate visible at each event (102.8). If refused, 102.9 entitles you to written reasons and to any actions that would qualify you.

Fee: $50 for a two-year Cottage Food Business Registration Certificate, per 25-K DCMR 102.2(g) — 'A registration fee in the amount of fifty dollars ($50) for one (1) Cottage Food Business Registration Certificate that is valid for a two (2) year period' — confirmed by the DC Health FAQ: 'The fee is $50.00 for 2 years.' Additional certificates cost $5.00 each (25-K DCMR 102.3). Real costs sit outside this fee and are not set by 25-K: the Home Occupancy Permit from DOB, the CFPM course and exam, the DC-issued CFPM ID card, scale certification if selling by weight, DOEE beekeeping registration for honey, and any 103.3 laboratory analysis of pH and water activity for an off-list product. NOT CONFIRMED: the current amounts of those collateral fees, and whether the $50/$5 figures have been changed by a fee schedule outside 25-K DCMR since 2017 — the DC Health program page no longer prints a fee, and the $50 figure is confirmed only against the 2017 rule and the August 2021 FAQ.

Renewal: Two years, tied to the inspection date rather than the application date. 25-K DCMR 102.7(a): the identification number 'shall be valid for two (2) years from the passing date of the food safety inspection', and 102.7(c)(3) requires an expiration date on the certificate. The $50 fee buys that two-year term (102.2(g)). The CFPM certificate runs on its own three-year clock from the exam date (102.2(d)), so the two cycles drift apart. NOT CONFIRMED: the renewal mechanics — whether renewal is a fresh registry application or a shorter renewal filing, whether the $50 is charged again, whether a new preoperational inspection is triggered, and how far in advance to file. Neither 25-K DCMR nor the FAQ nor the DC Health page describes a renewal procedure; ask the Division of Food Safety and Hygiene at food.safety@dc.gov.

Food safety training

Yes — and this is where DC is stricter than most cottage food jurisdictions. The requirement is not a food handler card but a manager-level credential: 25-K DCMR 102.2(c) requires 'Proof of successfully passing a nationally accredited Certified Food Protection Manager Course approved by the Department', and 102.2(d) requires 'A District-issued Certified Food Protection Manager Certificate, obtained by the owner(s) of the cottage food business, which shall be valid for three years from the date of exam'. DC Health's program page confirms both pieces as things to 'Review and Obtain Before You Apply': the CFPM certification, and the 'DC-Issued Certified Protection Manager ID-Card, Issued by DC Health based on your CFPM Certification'. Read 102.2(d) carefully on scope — it says 'the owner(s)', plural, so in a co-owned business the natural reading is that each owner holds the certificate. The three-year validity runs from the exam date, not from registration, which means the credential can expire in the middle of a two-year registration term. NOT CONFIRMED: which specific CFPM examinations DC Health accepts as 'nationally accredited ... approved by the Department' (the ANSI/CFP-accredited exams are the usual field, but no official DC list was located for this fiche), the cost and process of the DC-issued ID card, and whether every co-owner or only one owner must be certified. Confirm all three with the Division of Food Safety and Hygiene before paying for a course. Nothing in § 7-742.01 to § 7-742.03 imposes training; the entire requirement lives in the regulation, which means it is also the requirement most exposed if 25-K DCMR is ever rewritten.

Inspection

Pre-operational inspection is discretionary since 2020; complaint inspection is a standing power you consent to in advance. The 2019 Act deliberately loosened the front end: D.C. Law 23-61, § 2(b)(1) amended § 7-742.02(b)(2) 'by striking the phrase "shall perform" and inserting the phrase "may perform"', so the statute now reads 'The Department may perform an inspection of the cottage food business before that business may sell its cottage food products.' DC Health states it that way — 'a pre-operational inspection may be required prior to commencing operations' — and the FAQ answers 'Am I required to have my home kitchen inspected before being approved?' with 'Maybe, if DC Health determines a preoperational inspection is necessary based on your registry application.' The 2017 regulation was never conformed: 25-K DCMR 102.6 still says the Department 'shall conduct a preoperational inspection of the applicant's premises within fourteen (14) business days of application approval'. Treat the inspection as likely, scheduled, and in-hours: 25-K DCMR 108.1 provides that preoperational inspections happen 'on an agreed upon scheduled date and time during normal business hours from Monday through Friday'. The back end has no discretion in it. § 7-742.02(b)(4) gives the Department authority 'to enter the premises of a cottage food business registered with the CFBR to conduct a pre-operational inspection and to investigate complaints'; § 7-742.02(d)(1) and (2) let it investigate any complaint and 'at a reasonable time' enter and inspect; § 7-742.02(d)(3) forbids the owner to refuse access or interfere; and § 7-742.02(d)(4) allows sampling of product 'to determine if the cottage food product is misbranded or adulterated'. 25-K DCMR 107.1 adds that all products are subject to collection and testing and that 'The Department shall collect cottage food products without cost' — the samples are free to the government. 25-K DCMR 108 carries the enforcement tail: a Department representative presents credentials and requests entry (108.4), the owner must grant it (108.5), failure to contact the Department within a stated seventy-two (72) hour window after a missed inspection has consequences (108.7), and 108.10 authorises summary suspension of the Cottage Food Business Registry Identification Number, which stays suspended until the cited conditions are corrected (108.11). The FAQ's answer to 'Must I allow a DC Health inspector into my home?' is 'Yes.' NOT CONFIRMED: whether DC Health conducts any routine periodic re-inspection of a registered cottage food business outside of renewal and complaints — 25-K DCMR 108.2 provides for inspection of registered premises but this fiche found no published inspection frequency.

What your city or county may add

The District is a single jurisdiction, so there is no county or municipal layer to check — which is the one simplification DC offers. What replaces it is a stack of other District requirements that the cottage food registration does not cover. Zoning and land use come first and are not optional: the Home Occupancy Permit under 11 DCMR Section 203 is written into the statutory definition of a cottage food business at § 7-742.01(2)(D), so a home occupation that cannot be permitted cannot be a cottage food business. Tax and business registration are untouched: § 7-742.02(a)(2) provides that the subchapter shall not 'Exempt a cottage food business from any applicable District or federal tax laws'. The licensed-establishment world stays separate: § 7-742.02(a)(1) says the section does not apply 'to a food establishment that is required to have a license under Department regulations', and § 7-742.03(b) confirms that 'A food establishment shall not include a cottage food business'. § 7-742.03(a) closes the loop from the restaurant side — 'Food prepared or stored in a private home shall not be used or offered for human consumption in a food establishment', except under 25-A DCMR 3806 or when prepared by a cottage food business. Product-specific District rules ride along: honey requires DOEE beekeeping registration under the Sustainable Urban Agriculture Apiculture Act of 2012 (25-K DCMR 103.5(m)), scales sold-by-weight require DLCP Weights and Measures certification (102.2(b)), and polystyrene food service ware is banned District-wide. Finally, rulemaking authority for the whole subchapter sits with the Mayor under § 7-742.02(e), subject to a 60-day Council review in which proposed rules are 'deemed approved' if the Council neither approves nor disapproves them — which is the procedural channel any future update to the closed food list or the fee would come through, and worth watching in the DC Register.

Program sources: D.C. Official Code § 7-742.01, Definitions (Subchapter III, Cottage Foods) — definitions of CFBR, cottage food business with subparagraph (C) reading 'Repealed.', cottage food business identification number and certificate, cottage food product including the 2025 'wholesale to licensed food establishments' language, and food establishment; legislative history through 'June 10, 2025, D.C. Law 26-7, § 3(b), 72 DCR 4878'. Fetched by direct curl, HTTP 200, text extracted locally — https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/code/sections/7-742.01 · D.C. Official Code § 7-742.02, Cottage food businesses — registration duty, discretionary preoperational inspection ('may perform'), issuance of identification number and certificate with the 'temperature control for safety food products' phrasing, the seven mandatory label elements and the 10-point disclaimer, complaint investigation and right of entry, sampling, and the Mayor's rulemaking authority with 60-day Council review. Fetched by direct curl, HTTP 200 — https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/code/sections/7-742.02 · D.C. Official Code § 7-742.03, Cottage food prepared or stored in a private home — bar on home-prepared food in a food establishment, and exclusion of cottage food businesses from the definition of food establishment; added by D.C. Law 23-61. Fetched by direct curl, HTTP 200. This is the LAST section of the subchapter: /sections/7-742.04, /7-742.05 and /7-742.06 each returned HTTP 404 — https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/code/sections/7-742.03 · D.C. Law 23-61, Cottage Food Expansion Amendment Act of 2019, effective March 10, 2020 (67 DCR 572; D.C. Act 23-193) — full enacting text read verbatim: an act 'to remove the annual revenue cap on cottage food businesses, to revise preoperational inspection requirements, and to allow all direct sales'; § 2(a)(1)(B) 'Subparagraph (C) is repealed.'; § 2(a)(3) striking 'at a farmer's market or public event'; § 2(b)(1) 'shall perform' to 'may perform'; § 2(b)(2) rewriting § 7-742.02(b)(3); § 2(c) adding § 7-742.03. Fetched by direct curl, HTTP 200 — https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/laws/23-61 · D.C. Law 26-7, Certificate of Need Improvement Amendment Act of 2025, effective June 10, 2025 — verified that its only cottage food provision is § 3(b), amending § 7-742.01(3) by striking 'through direct, retail, and online sales,' and inserting 'through direct, retail, wholesale to licensed food establishments, and online sales,'. Retrieved via WebFetch, which returned the section-by-section including the struck and inserted language; the rest of the act concerns Certificate of Need. Cross-checked against the amendment note printed in the codified § 7-742.01 — https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/laws/26-7 · D.C. Law 20-63, Cottage Food Amendment Act of 2013, effective January 25, 2014 (60 DCR 16530) — the originating act. Its section 2 is marked '[HTML Unavailable (PDF)]' on the law library page, so the original $25,000 cap language was NOT read from the act itself; it was read from the Department's 2017 rulemaking, which reproduces the then-current statutory definition, and its repeal is established from D.C. Law 23-61 — https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/laws/20-63 · Cottage Food Regulations, Title 25-K DCMR, as published in the District of Columbia Register, Vol. 64 No. 52, December 29, 2017, pp. 013554 et seq. — sections 100 through 109 plus the definitions section and the full Department response to public comments (including the refusal to raise the then-statutory $25,000 cap by regulation). Downloaded by direct curl from dchealth.dc.gov (HTTP 200, 217,148 bytes), converted with pdftotext -layout and read in full — https://dchealth.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/doh/publication/attachments/Cottage%20Food%20Regs%20-%20as%20published%2012-29-17_0.pdf · DC Office of Documents and Administrative Issuances, DCRegs chapter listing for 25-K1 (Subtitle 25-K, COTTAGE FOOD REGULATIONS) — fetched by direct curl, HTTP 200; shows sections 25-K100 through 25-K109 each with Latest Version effective date 12/29/2017, which is the evidence that the regulations have never been conformed to the 2020 or 2025 statutory amendments. The Title 25 subtitle list from the same site confirms the existence of Subtitle 25-L, MICROENTERPRISE HOME KITCHEN REGULATIONS — https://dcregs.dc.gov/Common/DCMR/RuleList.aspx?ChapterNum=25-K1 · DC Health, Cottage Food Regulations Frequently Asked Questions, dated August 2021, 25 questions — source for the rented-kitchen, shed/garage, second-home, primary-residence-in-DC, $50-for-2-years, 'maybe' preoperational inspection, no-license, mandatory-entry, alcohol, pet treats, canning, dehydrated meat, fruit butters, pressed juice, homegrown produce, packaging and tree-nut answers. Downloaded by direct curl (HTTP 200, 228,252 bytes), converted with pdftotext and read in full. CAUTION, stated in the fiche: its answer to Q2 ('Can I sell my cottage food products to restaurants or grocery stores? No.') and its Q19 recital of 'direct, retail, and online sales' are SUPERSEDED by D.C. Law 26-7 as of June 10, 2025; the document has not been reissued — https://dchealth.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/doh/publication/attachments/Cottage%20Food%20FAQ.pdf · DC Health, 'Cottage Food Businesses' program page — fetched by direct curl (HTTP 200) and body text extracted locally; source for the agency's own description of the 2025 amendment, the 'retail (excluding sales to restaurants and grocery stores)' phrasing, the Division of Food Safety Portal application route, the pre-application document list (Home Occupancy Permit from DOB, calibrated scale proof from DLCP Weights and Measures, CFPM certification, DC-issued CFPM ID card), the discretionary pre-operational inspection, and the contact details food.safety@dc.gov / 202-535-2180. Note the page is JavaScript-gated for some fetchers; the content was recovered from the served HTML — https://dchealth.dc.gov/publication/cottage-food-businesses · D.C. Official Code § 7-742.11, Definitions (Subchapter III-A, Microenterprise Home Kitchens; added by D.C. Law 25-21, effective July 1, 2023) — read for the boundary only: § 7-742.11(3)(F) provides that a microenterprise home kitchen business 'Is not a catering business, cottage food business, bed and breakfast, residence-based group home facility, or food truck', and the subchapter's 'ready-to-eat food' and 'time or temperature control food' definitions mark the alternative route for temperature-controlled home food. Fetched by direct curl, HTTP 200. The permit terms, fees and training of that program were not researched — https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/code/sections/7-742.11 · SECONDARY, used only to locate the 2025 amendment and to check for pending rulemaking, and not relied on for any figure: DC Food Policy Council, 'ACTION ALERT: Cottage Food Law Updates' (March 2, 2026) — describes the enacted wholesale change and mentions no pending proposed regulations or comment period. Every fact it asserts that appears in this fiche was re-verified against the D.C. Code or 25-K DCMR — https://dcfoodpolicy.org/2026/03/02/cottage-food-act-regulations/