Cottage Food Label Requirements in Oregon (2026)

Cottage food rules in Oregon — the whole program

Who can sell homemade food in Oregon

Oregon runs a true exemption, not a permit program. ORS 616.723 provides that ORS 616.695 to 616.755 (the food establishment licensing and inspection statutes administered by the Oregon Department of Agriculture, ODA) simply do not apply to a food establishment that meets every condition of ORS 616.723(2). The implementing rules, OAR 603-025-0311 to 603-025-0330, name the resulting operation a 'Cottage Food Establishment' and were adopted in their current form by DOA 4-2024 (filed and effective 18 April 2024) to carry out the 2023 rewrite of the statute (2023 c.211 s.1, Senate Bill 643, 2023 regular session). To qualify, all of the following must hold at once: (1) the establishment is located in a residential dwelling and operates from the domestic kitchen, defined by ODA as the primary kitchen used for personal food preparation in the home; (2) the foods prepared for public distribution are packaged and are not potentially hazardous / not time-temperature controlled for safety, and contain no marijuana or marijuana items; (3) each product falls inside the closed list of thirteen categories in OAR 603-025-0320(1)(c); (4) the food is labeled with the prescribed homemade statement and the product information of ORS 616.723(6) and OAR 603-025-0325; (5) annual gross sales of cottage foods do not exceed the inflation-adjusted cap, currently $52,700 (OAR 603-025-0320(1)(e), confirmed by ODA's Cottage Food Exemption FAQ dated March 2026); and (6) every individual involved in preparing the food holds a current food handler certificate issued under ORS 624.570. Sanitation is a condition of the exemption, not an optional extra: OAR 603-025-0320(1)(d) requires separate closed storage for cottage food ingredients, finished containers and labels; separate refrigerated storage for perishable ingredients; a separate storage area for household cleaners, chemicals and toxic substances; no medical supplies or equipment in the domestic kitchen; and a prohibition on any cottage food work while pets are present or while family meal preparation, dishwashing, eating, clothes washing or ironing, cleaning of floors, walls, cabinets or appliances, or entertaining guests is going on in that kitchen. No application, registration or ODA form is required to claim the exemption (ODA FAQ Q17). Oregon also keeps two other, separate routes that are frequently confused with the cottage food exemption. The first is the Farm Direct Marketing exemption, ORS 616.680 to 616.686 and OAR 603-025-0215 and following, for producers selling their own farm products; its processed-product tier (fruit-based syrups, preserves, jams and juices, plus dried products, grains, honey, olive oil and similar) carries its own separate $50,000 prior-year sales limit under ORS 616.683 and requires the shorter statement 'This product is homemade and is not prepared in an inspected food establishment.' ODA FAQ Q32 states that the two dollar limits are independent: in 2026 an operator may sell up to $52,700 of cottage foods AND up to $50,000 of processed farm direct foods in the same calendar year. The second is the licensed Domestic Kitchen route (domestic kitchen bakery under ORS 625 and OAR 603-021, or domestic kitchen food processor under ORS 616.695-616.755 and OAR 603-025-0200), which is what an operator must take when the product is outside the cottage food menu or when sales exceed the cap.

What you may and may not sell

Allowed:

• Baked goods, meaning bakery products as defined in ORS 625.010(2) that are not time/temperature controlled for safety (OAR 603-025-0315(2))
• Confectionary items, meaning candy or sweets that are not time/temperature controlled for safety, including freeze-dried confectionary items
• Coffee beans
• Dried tea, spice or seasoning blends made from commercial food (brewed and bottled tea is not allowed; ODA FAQ Q6)
• Popcorn
• Jams and jellies made only with fruit that has a natural pH of less than 4.60 (purchased fruit is allowed; ODA FAQ Q12)
• Honey or honey products using commercial food, including flavored honey where the flavoring is a commercial food (ODA FAQ Q9)
• Syrups
• Fruit butters made only with fruit that has a natural pH of less than 4.60
• Nut mixes
• Repackaged freeze-dried foods from commercial food, including freeze-dried ice cream, freeze-dried fruit and freeze-dried backpacking meals bought from a commercial source (ODA FAQ Q5)
• Repackaged dried and dehydrated foods from commercial food
• Powdered drink mixes from commercial food
• Gluten-free baked goods, provided the product is not a time/temperature controlled for safety food and FDA gluten-free labeling rules are followed (ODA FAQ Q2)

Not allowed under the program:

• Any potentially hazardous / time/temperature controlled for safety food, defined as food requiring temperature control due to the capacity to support the rapid and progressive growth of infectious or toxic microorganisms (ORS 616.723(1)(b); OAR 603-025-0315(11))
• Any product outside the thirteen categories listed in OAR 603-025-0320(1)(c) — the menu is a closed list, not an illustration
• Baked goods that require refrigeration after production, such as cream pies and cheesecakes
• Pastries containing cream, custard, meringue or cream cheese icings or fillings
• Focaccia-style breads made with vegetables or cheese
• Candied fresh fruit products, including caramel apples, candy apples and chocolate-covered strawberries
• Food containing fresh, frozen or dried meat, including jerky, and baked goods containing meat such as potpies; meat and meat-containing products are excluded from the exemption entirely (ODA FAQ Q4)
• Food made with fish or shellfish products
• Heat-treated foods subsequently packaged with a pH greater than 4.60, and foods with a water activity greater than 0.850
• Pickles, pepper jelly and other products made from a vegetable or fruit whose natural pH is above 4.60 — allowed under Farm Direct, not under the Cottage Food exemption (ODA FAQ Q32)
• Any food containing marijuana or marijuana items, cannabinoid products, concentrates or extracts (OAR 603-025-0320(1)(b); ODA FAQ Q3)
• Tea made with hemp leaves (ODA FAQ Q7)
• Freeze-drying performed by the operator on anything other than confectionary items
• Pet treats and animal food — the exemption covers human food only (ODA FAQ Q8); pet treats need no license unless they contain meat
• Low-acid canned foods, milk and fluid milk products, animal food processing, and catering — barred even from the licensed domestic kitchen route (ODA Domestic Kitchen licensing page)

How much you may sell

$52,700 in annual gross sales of cottage foods for 2026. The statutory base figure is $50,000, which ORS 616.723(2)(d) and (9) require ODA to adjust annually for inflation using the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, West Region (All Items), published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, rounded to the nearest $100. The current adjusted figure is carried in the rule itself: OAR 603-025-0320(1)(e) reads 'The annual gross sales of cottage foods do not exceed $52,700', and ODA's Cottage Food Exemption FAQ dated March 2026 repeats $52,700 at Q10, Q15 and Q32. Because the figure is re-set every year by rule amendment, it must be re-read from OAR 603-025-0320 each year rather than quoted from memory. 'Annual gross sales' means the annual retail sale value of food sold by the person or persons operating the cottage food establishment (OAR 603-025-0315(1)). Exceeding the cap does not create a penalty tier: it removes the exemption, and the operator must then be licensed and inspected by ODA as a Domestic Kitchen Bakery or Domestic Kitchen Food Processor to keep working from the home kitchen (ODA FAQ Q15). The Farm Direct processed-product limit of $50,000 under ORS 616.683 is a separate and additive allowance, not part of this cap.

Where you may sell

• Direct to the end user in any manner, including from the home, online, through the mail and at events (ORS 616.723(4))
• Farmers markets, farm stands, roadside stands and similar venues (ODA FAQ Q19)
• Internet and mail order sales, expressly allowed (ODA FAQ Q19-Q20)
• Wholesale to a retailer, but only under conditions: the food must be packaged and labeled per OAR 603-025-0325, the retailer must agree to store and display the cottage foods separately from other foods and to post signage in the display area stating the foods are homemade and not prepared in an inspected food establishment (signage in addition to the label statement), and the producer must keep a record of that retailer agreement (ORS 616.723(5); OAR 603-025-0320(4))
• Coffee shops count as retailers and are therefore an available wholesale outlet; restaurants are excluded from the definition of retailer (ORS 616.723(1)(c))
• PROHIBITED: sales to any institution, including a restaurant, caterer, school, day care center, hospital, nursing home or correctional facility (ORS 616.723(3); OAR 603-025-0320(3))
• PROHIBITED: supplying cottage food as an ingredient to another processor, including a licensed domestic kitchen (ODA FAQ Q21)
• PROHIBITED: selling unpackaged cottage food to a retail store for further distribution. Unpackaged sale direct to the end user is possible: for items not easily packaged, such as a wedding cake, all required label information must be delivered in writing on a receipt or similar document; for single items such as one cookie or muffin at a market stand, a placard reading 'This product is homemade and is not prepared in an inspected food establishment' must be at the location and full label information available on request (ODA FAQ Q24)
• Out-of-state sales: ODA states it has no jurisdictional authority to determine whether Oregon cottage food may be sold across state lines and directs operators to the destination state. Note also that a Unique Identification Number used in place of an address does NOT satisfy federal labeling requirements for interstate commerce (ODA FAQ Q28-Q29)

Permit, registration and fees

Oregon requires no state permit or registration for a cottage food operation.

1. Confirm each intended product falls inside the thirteen categories of OAR 603-025-0320(1)(c) and is not time/temperature controlled for safety. This is the gate that disqualifies most home operators, not the paperwork.
2. Have every person involved in preparing the food complete an approved food handler training program and obtain a certificate under ORS 624.570. This is a condition of the exemption itself (ORS 616.723(2)(e)) and applies before any sale.
3. Bring the domestic kitchen into compliance with the sanitation conditions of OAR 603-025-0320(1)(d): separate closed storage for cottage food ingredients, containers and labels; separate refrigerated storage for perishable ingredients; separate storage for household chemicals; no medical supplies or equipment in the kitchen; no cottage food work while pets are present or while other domestic activity is under way.
4. Build a compliant label per OAR 603-025-0325 and ORS 616.723(6) before selling, including the prescribed homemade statement on the principal display panel.
5. Optional, only if the home address is not to appear on the label: apply to ODA for a Unique Identification Number using ODA's designated form and pay the $25 fee (OAR 603-025-0335). The number expires on the June 30 following issuance and is renewed for $25; using an expired or unauthorized number constitutes misbranding, and the number is personal to the applicant and may not be transferred.
6. Set up the sales records required by OAR 603-025-0328 from the first sale: location of sale (grouped event sales may use a single address plus event organizer contact details; food establishment outlets need the outlet address and point of contact; online sales need the individual sale address and contact), date sold or shipped, food sold, price and quantity, plus a written calculation of annual gross sales against the cap.
7. Contact the local unit of government about zoning and any local regulation. The exemption removes only ODA licensing and routine inspection, nothing local (ODA FAQ Q31).
8. Do NOT file any application or registration with ODA to claim the exemption itself; ODA states no form and no registration is required (ODA FAQ Q17).
9. If a product or the sales volume falls outside the exemption: apply instead for a domestic kitchen license. A domestic kitchen bakery pays $179 a year at $0-$50,000 of gross sales, $253 at $50,001-$500,000 (OAR 603-021-0650(3)); a domestic kitchen establishment / food processor pays a flat $223 (OAR 603-025-0500(5)). Both figures match ODA's published Food Safety License Fee Schedule for the 2026-2027 fiscal year. A home on a well or septic system carries additional requirements per ODA.

Fee: $0 to operate under the cottage food exemption. There is no application, registration or permit fee, because there is no permit. The only fee attached to the exemption is optional: $25 for a Unique Identification Number, renewable annually for $25, expiring each June 30 (OAR 603-025-0335). Food handler certification is a separate third-party cost not set by ODA rule and is not quantified here. If the operator instead needs a license, ODA's Food Safety License Fee Schedule for fiscal year 2026-2027 sets a Domestic Kitchen Bakery at $179 for gross annual sales of $0-$5,000 and $5,001-$50,000, $253 for $50,001-$500,000, $381 for $500,001-$1,000,000, $571 for $1,000,001-$5,000,000, $759 for $5,000,001-$10,000,000 and $950 above $10,000,000; and a Domestic Kitchen Processor at a flat $223. The rule text at OAR 603-021-0650(3) and OAR 603-025-0500(5) carries the same amounts.

Renewal: No renewal, because there is no permit to renew. Two recurring obligations replace it. First, the sales cap is re-set by rule every year, so the operator must re-check the current figure in OAR 603-025-0320(1)(e); the figure in force is $52,700. Second, if a Unique Identification Number is used on labels, it expires on the June 30 following issuance and must be renewed for $25 before expiry, and use of an expired number is misbranding (OAR 603-025-0335(2)-(3)). Food handler certificates must be current for every person preparing the food. Records must be retained three years and produced to ODA within five business days (OAR 603-025-0328(4)); ORS 616.723(11) states the same three-year retention duty.

Food safety training

Required, and it is a condition of the exemption rather than a recommendation. ORS 616.723(2)(e) requires that each individual involved in the preparation of food at the establishment for public distribution has successfully completed a food handler training program and holds a certificate issued under ORS 624.570; OAR 603-025-0320(1)(f) repeats this for each employee of the cottage food establishment and cross-references OAR chapter 333 division 175. OAR 603-025-0315(7) defines an acceptable program as one offered by the Oregon Health Authority or its designated agent, or by a local public health authority or its designated agent where the program has been approved by OHA. ODA's FAQ answers the point directly at Q18. No separate ODA-run course, no hour count and no exam score is prescribed by these provisions, and no ODA fee attaches to the training itself. Operating without a current certificate is not a technical lapse: it removes the condition on which the licensing exemption rests.

Inspection

No routine inspection, but a standing right of inspection. OAR 603-025-0311 describes the model as exempting qualifying cottage food establishments from licensure and routine inspection, and ODA states in its FAQ that inspections will be in response to a need to protect public health, for example a consumer complaint. ODA retains three distinct powers. First, product testing: under OAR 603-025-0320(2) the Department may require that a cottage food item be assessed or tested to confirm it is not a time/temperature controlled for safety food; the assessment must be performed by a recognized Process Authority with written documentation supplied to the Department on request, or the testing must be done at a certified food testing laboratory, and pH and water activity results are required for each recipe, demonstrating pH of 4.60 or less or water activity of 0.850 or less. Second, records: sales and compliance records must be produced for Department review within five business days (OAR 603-025-0328(4)) and, per ORS 616.723(11), made available for inspection on request. Third, revocation of the exemption: under ORS 616.723(8) and OAR 603-025-0330 the Department may order the establishment to become licensed under ORS 616.695 to 616.755 and OAR 603-025-0500 or OAR 603-021-0650 if it fails to comply with OAR 603-025-0311 to 603-025-0330, fails to test products reasonably suspected of being time/temperature controlled for safety, fails to maintain or refuses to provide records, or fails to provide reasonable access or interferes with inspections needed to protect public health. Reasonable access is defined as weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and ODA may inspect on weekends, holidays or any other time cottage foods are being processed, prepared, packaged or handled if it deems that necessary. ODA's FAQ Q30 adds that a direct link to a foodborne illness outbreak, or operating outside the exemption's parameters, can likewise trigger forced licensing. By contrast, the licensed domestic kitchen route is inspected: OAR 603-025-0200(2)(g) requires all domestic kitchens to be available for ODA inspection on weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and at other times when commercial food is being handled if the Department deems it advisable.

What your city or county may add

The state exemption is not a local clearance. ODA states in its Cottage Food Exemption FAQ, Q31, that the Cottage Food Exemption only exempts the operator from the requirements of ODA licensing and routine inspection, and instructs the operator to contact the local unit of government to determine whether local regulations affect the business. Nothing in ORS 616.723 or OAR 603-025-0311 to 603-025-0330 preempts city or county zoning, home occupation permits, land use conditions, business registration, or building and sewage requirements, and none of those provisions is addressed by the rules read here. Homes on a well or septic system face additional requirements on the licensed domestic kitchen route, per ODA's Domestic Kitchen licensing page and its 'Domestic Home Kitchens: Laws and Regulations' sheet dated 10-2025; the specific well water testing parameters were not located in the primary text read for this file, so treat them as unconfirmed and ask ODA. Interstate sales are a further layer outside state authority: ODA declines jurisdiction over what another state will accept (FAQ Q29), and a Unique Identification Number does not satisfy federal address labeling for interstate commerce (FAQ Q28).

Program sources: Oregon Secretary of State, Oregon Administrative Rules Database, OAR 603-025-0320 'Cottage Food Establishment Exemption' (full official text incl. thirteen-item food list, sanitation conditions, $52,700 cap, pH 4.60 / Aw 0.850 testing, institution ban, retailer conditions) — https://secure.sos.state.or.us/oard/view.action?ruleNumber=603-025-0320 · Oregon Secretary of State, OAR 603-025-0325 'Labeling' (prescribed statement, required label elements, address options, 1/16 inch lower-case 'o' minimum type height; History: DOA 4-2024 filed and effective 04/18/2024) — https://secure.sos.state.or.us/oard/view.action?ruleNumber=603-025-0325 · Oregon Secretary of State, OAR 603-025-0335 'Unique Identification Number' ($25 fee, June 30 expiry, $25 renewal, expired number = misbranding, non-transferable) — https://secure.sos.state.or.us/oard/view.action?ruleNumber=603-025-0335 · Oregon Secretary of State, OAR 603-025-0328 'Record Requirements' (sales record fields, gross sales calculation, three-year retention, five business day production) — https://secure.sos.state.or.us/oard/view.action?ruleNumber=603-025-0328 · Oregon Secretary of State, OAR 603-025-0315 'Definitions for Cottage Food Exempt Activities' (annual gross sales, baked goods, confectionary, package, repackage, food handler training program, PHF/TCS list) — https://secure.sos.state.or.us/oard/view.action?ruleNumber=603-025-0315 · Oregon Secretary of State, OAR 603-025-0311 'Cottage Food Exemption Purpose' (exemption from licensure and routine inspection; History: DOA 4-2024 adopt 04/18/2024, DOA 5-2024 minor correction 04/22/2024) — https://secure.sos.state.or.us/oard/view.action?ruleNumber=603-025-0311 · Oregon Secretary of State, OAR 603-025-0330 'Revocation of Exemption' (four grounds for forced licensing; reasonable access 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays) — https://secure.sos.state.or.us/oard/view.action?ruleNumber=603-025-0330 · Oregon Secretary of State, OAR 603-025-0200 'Establishments Utilizing Domestic Kitchen Facilities' (licensed domestic kitchen physical facility and inspection-access requirements) — https://secure.sos.state.or.us/oard/view.action?ruleNumber=603-025-0200 · Oregon Secretary of State, OAR 603-025-0500 'License Fees and Categories for Food Establishments' (domestic kitchen establishment $223; cites ORS 616.706 as fee authority) — https://secure.sos.state.or.us/oard/view.action?ruleNumber=603-025-0500 · Oregon Secretary of State, OAR 603-021-0650 'Bakery License Fees and Categories' (domestic kitchen bakery $179 / $253 / $381 / $571 / $759 / $950 by sales tier) — https://secure.sos.state.or.us/oard/view.action?ruleNumber=603-021-0650 · Oregon Department of Agriculture, Food Safety Program, 'Cottage Food Exemption FAQ', page-footer date March 2026, 33 questions (PHF examples, $52,700 at Q10/Q15/Q32, no registration at Q17, food handler at Q18, sales venues at Q19-Q20, unpackaged sales and placard at Q24, FALCPA nine allergens at Q25, address and UIN at Q26-Q28, interstate at Q29, ODA oversight at Q30, local zoning at Q31, Farm Direct interaction and additive limits at Q32) — https://www.oregon.gov/oda/Documents/Publications/FoodSafety/CottageFoodExemptionFAQENG.pdf · Oregon Department of Agriculture, Food Safety Program, 'Food Safety License Fee Schedule 2026-2027 Fiscal Year' (Domestic Kitchen Bakery tiers from $179; Domestic Kitchen Processor flat $223; gross sales reported for the accounting year preceding the license year, subject to audit under ORS 561.265) — https://www.oregon.gov/ODA/Documents/Publications/FoodSafety/FoodLicenseFeeSchedule.pdf · Oregon Department of Agriculture, Food Safety Program, 'Domestic Home Kitchens: Laws and Regulations', dated 10-2025 (domestic kitchen license required to sell home-kitchen food; well/septic additional requirements; ORS 616, ORS 625, OAR 603 div. 21 and 25, 21 CFR Part 117) — https://www.oregon.gov/oda/Documents/Publications/FoodSafety/DomesticKitchensLawsRegs.pdf · Oregon Department of Agriculture, 'Home (Domestic) Kitchen Licensing' program page (domestic kitchen definition; production and storage must occur within the home kitchen space; low-acid canned food, milk, animal food and catering excluded; 503-986-4550, info@oda.oregon.gov) — https://www.oregon.gov/oda/food-safety/fs-licensing/pages/domestic-kitchen.aspx · ORS 616.723 'Exemption from ORS 616.695 to 616.755 for establishments in residential dwellings; rules', full text of subsections (1) to (11) with source credits [2015 c.453 s.2; 2017 c.21 s.120; 2019 c.57 s.31; 2023 c.211 s.1] — read on the oregon.public.law reproduction because the official site was unreachable — https://oregon.public.law/statutes/ors_616.723 · ORS 616.683 'Regulatory exemption for sales location and farm direct marketer of certain agricultural products' (Farm Direct product list; $50,000 prior-year sales limit for the processed tier; shorter homemade statement) — read on the oregon.public.law reproduction — https://oregon.public.law/statutes/ors_616.683 · NOTED AS STALE, NOT RELIED ON: oregon.public.law reproduction of OAR 603-025-0320, which still serves the repealed '$20,000' cap and the old rule title 'License and Inspection Exemption' — https://oregon.public.law/rules/oar_603-025-0320