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Selling homemade food in Kansas means your label has to follow the Kansas Food Law / Kansas Food Code — direct-to-consumer licensing exemption administered by the KDA Food Safety and Lodging Program. Kansas has NO separate 'cottage food' statute; homemade/home-based sales are folded into the Kansas Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (K.S.A. 65-655 et seq.) and its regulations, with sanitation/hygiene for exempt food establishments in K.A.R. 4-28-33. The official guidance (MF3138) states these categories 'are included in the Kansas Food Law, even though the terms [cottage food / home-based business] are not officially used.'. Here is exactly what that label must show in 2026 — the required fields, the allergen rule, and why no “home kitchen” disclaimer applies — sourced to the statute and dated.
No. NO home-kitchen disclaimer is required. The KDA/K-State guidance (MF3138) states verbatim, repeated in four chapters: 'Uninspected food products made in Kansas do NOT need to be labeled as "homemade" or other indication that they are not inspected. However, homemade food products can be labeled as such.' Kansas is a genuine outlier — unlike most states it prescribes no 'Made in a Home Kitchen'-style statement. Producers MAY voluntarily label a product as homemade, but it is not mandatory and no wording is fixed.
Kansas is a pure-exemption, no-license, no-disclaimer state — a genuine outlier confirmed in the official KDA/K-State guidance. Exempt (non-temperature-controlled) foods sold direct-to-consumer need NO license, NO registration number, and NO 'made in a home kitchen' warning. The label is just the standard four elements (common name; name + physical address; ingredients by weight with allergens in plain language; net quantity). The single biggest mistake a Kansas seller makes is copying another state's mandatory home-kitchen disclaimer onto their label — the guidance says in plain words that uninspected Kansas products do NOT need any 'homemade' or 'not inspected' statement.
MF3138 states verbatim that uninspected Kansas products 'do NOT need to be labeled as "homemade" or other indication that they are not inspected.' Pasting a mandated line like 'This product was made in a home kitchen not inspected by the state' is unnecessary; do not present a borrowed disclaimer as a Kansas legal requirement.
Only non-potentially-hazardous, shelf-stable items (breads/cookies/cakes with fruit or veg fully incorporated, jams, dry mixes, candies, chocolate-dipped items, etc.) qualify for no-license sale. Anything needing temperature control (cheesecake, cream/custard pies, quiche, cream-cheese frostings under 65% sugar, low-acid canned vegetables) requires a KDA Food Establishment license and can NOT be made in a home kitchen — no label wording fixes that (MF3138 Tables 8-10).
All nine major allergens must be spelled out plainly within the descending-weight ingredient list (e.g. 'casein (milk)', 'lecithin (soy)'). The 2026 guidance specifically clarifies this. Listing a technical ingredient name without the plain allergen term is the most common labeling defect.
The label must carry the name and 'physical address' of the maker/seller (MF3138 Ch.4, item 2). The word 'physical' reasonably implies a P.O. box alone is not enough; the guidance does not spell out the P.O.-box exclusion verbatim, so confirm the exact form with KDA (KDA.FSL@ks.gov, 785-564-6767) if in doubt.
Timeline: Immediate — no application, permit, or waiting period for exempt foods. You can label and sell the same day you're ready.
Cost: $0 — no permit or registration required for exempt (non-temperature-controlled) cottage foods sold direct-to-consumer in Kansas.
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Make my Kansas label →Kansas does not require a “made in a home kitchen” disclaimer. Your label still has to meet the standard federal FDA labeling rules (product name, ingredients by weight, allergens, net weight, and your name and address).
No. Kansas does not require a permit or registration number printed on the 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.
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: K-State Research & Extension (with KDA Food Safety and Lodging), 'Foods Sold Directly to Consumers in Kansas: Regulations and Food Safety Best Practices,' MF3138, Rev. January 2026, Ch. 4 Product Labeling (p.5) and Ch. 10/13/17/19 (disclaimer language): https://bookstore.ksre.ksu.edu/pubs/MF3138.pdf ; companion 'Food Labeling for Kansas Food Producers and Processors,' MF3385: https://bookstore.ksre.ksu.edu/pubs/MF3385.pdf ; sanitation for exempt establishments K.A.R. 4-28-33: https://sos.ks.gov/publications/pubs_kar_Regs.aspx?KAR=4-28-33 ; Kansas Dept. of Agriculture, Food Safety and Lodging program: https://www.agriculture.ks.gov/divisions-programs/food-safety-and-lodging Verified 2026-08-10. General information, not legal advice — confirm with your state or local agency before selling.