Home › State guides › Iowa

Cottage Food Label Requirements in Iowa (2026)

Selling homemade food in Iowa means your label has to follow the Cottage Food exemption — Iowa Code §137F.20 (enacted 2022 Acts, ch 1129, §10), administered by the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing (DIAL). A parallel licensed track exists for higher-risk/higher-volume sellers: Home Food Processing Establishment, Iowa Code ch. 137D. 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.

In brief — Iowa

Required disclaimer: “This product was produced at a residential property that is exempt from state licensing and inspection.”
Minimum font size: Not specified by the state
Permit number on label: No
Program: Cottage Food exemption — Iowa Code §137F.20 (enacted 2022 Acts, ch 1129, §10), administered by the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing (DIAL). A parallel licensed track exists for higher-risk/higher-volume sellers: Home Food Processing Establishment, Iowa Code ch. 137D.
Last verified: 2026-08-10

What must be on an Iowa cottage food label

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 (see below)
The date the food was made
A telephone number for the operation

The disclaimer Iowa requires

Print this statement on the label, word for word:

“This product was produced at a residential property that is exempt from state licensing and inspection.”

Iowa Code §137F.20(2)(d) prescribes this EXACT wording — quote it verbatim (confirmed character-for-character against the official Iowa Code 2026 section text). The statute sets NO minimum font size and no typeface, placement, color, or contrast rule. Cottage food is exempt from all state licensing and permitting (§137F.20(1)), so NO license or permit number appears on the label. IMPORTANT: do not confuse this with the LICENSED Home Food Processing Establishment track (Iowa Code ch. 137D), whose mandated statement is reportedly different — “This product was produced at a home food processing establishment.” — and which additionally requires net quantity of contents and (for refrigerated TCS foods) an expiration date. (The 137D specifics were not re-verified against the chapter text this pass; the 137F.20 cottage-food wording above IS verified verbatim.) Use the 137F.20 wording only for the unlicensed direct-to-consumer cottage food exemption.

What's specific about selling cottage food in Iowa

Iowa runs TWO parallel homemade-food tracks with TWO different legally mandated sentences, and putting the wrong one on the jar misbrands the product. The unlicensed 'cottage food' exemption (§137F.20) requires exactly — verified verbatim against the official Iowa Code — 'This product was produced at a residential property that is exempt from state licensing and inspection.' The licensed 'Home Food Processing Establishment' track (ch. 137D) reportedly requires the different sentence 'This product was produced at a home food processing establishment.' Same kitchen, different words depending on which path you're on — most generators get this wrong.

Common mistakes cottage food sellers make in Iowa

Direct-to-consumer only — the exemption evaporates through a store

§137F.20(1) exempts cottage food from all state licensing, permitting, inspection, packaging, and labeling laws ONLY when the food is sold and delivered by the producer directly to the consumer (in person, remotely, phone, internet, mail, or the producer's own agent/employee). Sell through a retail store, consignment, or any third-party reseller and you lose the exemption — full state packaging and labeling law then applies.

Ingredient list is mandatory; net weight is not

Unlike many states, the cottage food label needs NO net-weight/quantity statement — but it DOES require the full ingredient list in descending order of predominance (§137F.20(2)(c)). Don't copy a net-weight field onto a cottage food label or omit the ingredients. (The licensed 137D track is reportedly the opposite: it adds net quantity.)

Allergen line is conditional, and canned goods need a date

If the food contains one or more major food allergens, an additional allergen statement naming each major allergen by its common name must appear on the label (§137F.20(2)(d)) — required only when an allergen is present. Separately, home-processed/home-canned pickles, vegetables, or fruits must carry the date they were processed and canned (§137F.20(2)(e)).

Exemption is state-only — not federal, and not for TCS foods

§137F.20(3) states plainly that complying with the cottage food exemption does NOT represent compliance with federal law. Per the ch. 137F definitions, the exemption also covers only non-time/temperature-control-for-safety foods (plus the narrow home-canned pickles/vegetables/fruits); anything needing refrigeration for safety pushes you to the licensed 137D or 137F establishment track.

How long it takes and what it costs in Iowa

Timeline: Immediate — no application, waiting period, or inspection. As a pure exemption you may sell as soon as your label carries the six required elements. (The optional licensed 137D Home Food Processing Establishment path involves a DIAL application and inspection before selling TCS/wholesale.)

Cost: $0 — no permit required. The cottage food exemption charges no fee and issues no license or number. (Only the separate, optional Home Food Processing Establishment license under ch. 137D carries a state fee.)

Iowa changes its rules — we'll tell you

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 Iowa's cottage food label rules change. Nothing else, ever — and you can unsubscribe from any message.

Build a compliant Iowa label — free

Enter your recipe and get a print-ready label with the exact Iowa wording, ingredients ordered by weight and allergens auto-declared. Free watermarked preview; clean PDF for $12.

Make my Iowa label →

Iowa cottage food labels — FAQ

Does Iowa require a “made in a home kitchen” disclaimer?

Iowa requires this exact statement on a cottage food label: “This product was produced at a residential property that is exempt from state licensing and inspection.” The state sets no minimum point size for it.

Do I have to print my permit number on the label in Iowa?

No. Iowa does not require a permit or registration number printed on the label.

What has to be on an Iowa cottage food label?

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 (see below); the date the food was made; a telephone number for the operation.

Is this legal advice?

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: Iowa Code §137F.20 (Cottage food — requirements), verbatim text confirmed from official single-section PDF https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/137F.20.pdf (Iowa Code 2026); chapter PDF https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/137F.pdf ; Iowa Code ch. 137D (Home Food Processing Establishments) https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/137D.pdf ; Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing (DIAL) food program, https://dial.iowa.gov Verified 2026-08-10. General information, not legal advice — confirm with your state or local agency before selling.