Cottage Food Label Requirements in South Carolina (2026)

Cottage food rules in South Carolina — the whole program

Who can sell homemade food in South Carolina

South Carolina's cottage food regime is a statutory exemption, not a licensing program. S.C. Code Ann. § 44-1-143 defines a 'home-based food production operation' (HBFP) as 'an individual, operating out of the individual's dwelling, who prepares, processes, packages, stores, and distributes nonpotentially hazardous foods for sale directly to a person, including online and by mail order, or to retail stores, including grocery stores.' The definition expressly excludes 'preparing, processing, packaging, storing, or distributing aluminum canned goods or charcuterie boards.' Subsection (F) states that an HBFP operation 'is not a retail food establishment and is not subject to regulation by the department pursuant to Regulation 61.25', and subsection (E) provides that food from an HBFP operation is considered to be from an approved source for the purposes of Regulation 61-25. The operator must be an individual working out of their own dwelling; the state guidance adds that the kitchen 'must be within the home dwelling and must be the family-use kitchen'. Only nonpotentially hazardous (non-TCS) foods qualify: § 44-1-143(A)(4) defines potentially hazardous foods as raw or heat-treated animal foods, heat-treated plant foods, raw seed sprouts, cut melons, cut leafy greens, unmodified cut tomatoes or tomato mixtures, unmodified garlic-in-oil mixtures, plus foods designated Product Assessment Required (PA) because of the pH/water-activity interaction table reproduced in the statute (a food with Aw above 0.95 and pH above 4.6, or Aw 0.92-0.95 with pH above 5.6, is potentially hazardous unless a product assessment is conducted under the 2009 FDA Food Code). Subsections (B) and (C) impose sanitation and facility duties on the home kitchen (see 'inspection' and below). One correction to the brief that commissioned this file: the SC cottage food statute is § 44-1-143, in Title 44 Chapter 1, not Title 44 Chapter 4, and there is no § 44-4-1310 cottage food provision. A second correction: since 1 July 2024 the administering agency is the Department of AGRICULTURE (SCDA), not DPH/DHEC — Act 60 of 2023 (S.399) dissolved DHEC and moved the retail food program, including the HBFP law, to SCDA. The statute's own word 'department' therefore now reads through to SCDA in practice, and every current program document (fact sheet dated 5/1/26, guidance version 1.4 of July 2025) is published by SCDA.

What you may and may not sell

Allowed:

• Shelf-stable cakes, cupcakes, cake pops, funnel cakes and coconut cake; iced with buttercream, cream cheese or other icing that is commercially prepared or made from a standard recipe and classified non-TCS; decorated and wedding cakes on the same condition
• Cookies and brownies (any icing or filling must be non-TCS or commercially prepared); fruit or vegetable puree allowed only if baked into the batter, with no chunks or shreds
• Breads: bagels, ciabatta, focaccia (no vegetables or tomatoes in or on top), naan, pretzels, tortillas, jalapeno bread made with commercially prepared pickled jalapenos, cheese bread, cheese biscuits and cheddar bites where the cheese is baked with the bread
• Sourdough bread, where the starter originates from a commercial culture and is replaced with a new commercial culture every fourth generation (the starter itself may not be sold)
• Low-moisture baked goods: cheese straws, crackers, pretzels, taco shells, matzos; also baklava, kolachke, lamington and scones under the recipe conditions in the guidance
• Baking mixes for cake, cookie or bread containing no TCS ingredient, with any alternative flour from an approved source
• Candy: hard candy, cotton candy, candy apples, caramel apples made only with commercially prepared shelf-stable caramel, popcorn, fudge
• Chocolate: tempered, molded, coating, ganache, truffles, hot cocoa bombs, chocolate-covered strawberries
• Canned high-acid fruits, and jams, jellies, preserves and high-acid fruit curds made from a standardized science-based recipe with acidic fruit, sugar and pectin (no low-acid ingredients such as peppers, fig, elderberry or mint; no no-sugar, low-sugar or sugar-substitute recipes)
• Pies and pie fillings using cooked or canned high-acid fruit (max pH 4.6), commercially prepared or home-canned from a science-based recipe; fried pies; pecan pies
• Dried, dehydrated, roasted or freeze-dried products dried in the home kitchen: fruit (no melons), vegetables including mushrooms (no tomatoes), herbs, spices and spice mixes, teas from GRAS ingredients, coffee roasted in the home kitchen, hard candy
• Nuts and seeds, candied, roasted or toasted; granola bars and trail mix; protein balls made with commercially prepared shelf-stable ingredients that need no refrigeration
• Chips: corn, potato, vegetable; popcorn; pasta that is heat dried
• Edible cookie dough made with commercially heat-treated flour that does not require refrigeration
• Honey - combed, creamed, raw, or infused with GRAS commercially dried ingredients - where extracting, preparing, processing, packaging, storing and distributing all happen out of the home kitchen (an SCDA Registration Verification Certificate or honey exemption must first be surrendered, since the two regimes cannot be held at once)
• Icings and frostings from a standardized recipe: buttercream, Italian buttercream, Swiss meringue and royal icing, with any egg whites commercially pasteurized or replaced by meringue powder
• Extracts from dried or fresh herbs and spices containing more than 20% ethanol or 35% glycerin; infused or flavoured vinegar infused in the home kitchen with GRAS ingredients; high-acid fruit syrup extracted and prepared in the home kitchen
• Marshmallows flavoured with extract (water-based flavouring not allowed); sugar substitutes in non-TCS baked foods; liquor as a baked-in flavour at 0.5% alcohol or less
• Filled muffins and pastries where the filling is commercially prepared shelf-stable or an allowed high-acid fruit filling or jam, and doughnuts or pastries with commercially prepared shelf-stable cooked bacon
• Pasteurized dairy from an approved licensed source may be used as an ingredient, provided the finished product is non-TCS

Not allowed under the program:

• Any potentially hazardous / TCS food as defined in § 44-1-143(A)(4), and all foods or beverages that require refrigeration
• Aluminum canned goods and charcuterie boards - excluded from the statutory definition of a home-based food production operation itself, not merely from the allowed list
• Acidified foods and canned goods generally: pickles in all forms, salsa, relish, chow chow, chutney, mustard, marinades, pepper jelly, hot sauce, BBQ sauce, acidic vinaigrettes and dressings, fig preserves, fermented foods in all forms, low-acid vegetables, fruits, dressings and sauces
• Jams, jellies and preserves made from low-sugar or no-sugar recipes or containing low-acid ingredients (peppers, tomatoes, figs, mint)
• Bottled beverages of any kind, including juice, smoothie mix, bottled teas and coffees, cocktail mixes, cold brew coffee, herbal tinctures, kombucha and kefir
• Cheesecake in all varieties, carrot cake (unless from a dry commercial mix with no added ingredients), pumpkin cake, fruit tarts, and cream, custard, meringue, pumpkin, sweet potato or vegetable pies
• Cream fillings and fresh fruit fillings for pies and pastries; cream cheese and caramel icings
• Meat and meat-containing products, poultry, seafood, prepared meals, casseroles, ice cream (SC dairy regulation), raw milk as an ingredient, lard
• Sourdough starter in any form - fresh, refrigerated, dehydrated or freeze-dried - and pizza dough; quick breads made with fresh, frozen or canned fruits or vegetables; sweet potato bread
• Freeze-dried or dried meat, melons and tomatoes; dried products not dried in the home kitchen
• Sprouts (bean, seed, wheat grass), chopped lettuce, cooked vegetables and salads
• Muffins with added fresh or frozen fruit or vegetables, whole, chopped or grated; pumpkin in any form except baked into a thin cookie
• Alcoholic products, and liquor-filled candy or liquor-infused fruit; products at or above 0.5% alcohol fall to the federal TTB
• CBD isolate, Delta 8 and Delta 9, which are not approved food ingredients
• Elderberry, mango and other low-acid fruit syrups, simple syrup; sorghum and sugarcane syrup unless commercially prepared and used in a non-TCS food
• Peanut butter, nut butters, nut juice or milk, and packaged boiled peanuts
• Pet treats and animal feed, which fall under the SC Commercial Feed Act rather than the cottage food law
• Repackaging of purchased bulk foods, which were not produced in the home kitchen
• Soap and cosmetics, which are not food and so are outside the law entirely
• Any recipe that would need laboratory testing to establish whether it is TCS - SCDA's position is that a product requiring testing must instead be produced under a retail food establishment permit

How much you may sell

No cap. Section 44-1-143 sets no annual sales, revenue or volume ceiling, and neither the SCDA guidance (version 1.4, July 2025) nor the SCDA fact sheet (5/1/26) states one. The only dollar figure in the statute runs the other way: § 44-1-143(G) provides that 'the provisions of this section do not apply to an operation with net earnings of less than fifteen hundred dollars annually but that would otherwise meet the definition of a home-based food operation'. That $1,500 is a floor for the law's application, not a sales cap - an operation below it is outside the labeling and sanitation provisions altogether, but SCDA's reading is that such an operator may then only sell in person, directly to the end consumer, and may not sell through retail locations. The $1,500 figure was raised from $500 by S.506, effective 23 May 2022 (the bill text struck 'five' and inserted 'fifteen').

Where you may sell

• Direct to the consumer, where 'person' is statutorily defined as an individual consumer
• Online and mail order sales, allowed by § 44-1-143(A)(1) and (E) since the 2022 amendment
• Retail stores, including grocery stores, in packaged and labeled form - the store must post clearly visible signage indicating that home-based food products are not subject to commercial food regulations
• In-person direct sales venues such as farmers markets and events follow from direct-to-consumer sales; SCDA notes that markets, events and other retail establishments may set their own vendor policies and limits
• Food trucks and mobile units may sell HBFP product only if it was prepared and packaged in the home kitchen and is sold pre-packaged; no preparation or modification, such as icing cupcakes, may occur in the mobile unit
• Intrastate only: SCDA's FAQ states that § 44-1-143 'is only applicable to sales intrastate. You can sell online for delivery to South Carolina addresses. Products that cross state lines are subject to FDA regulations.' A customer who travels to South Carolina, buys, and carries the product across a state line themselves is outside the seller's control and allowed
• Wholesale is not available under this exemption - selling wholesale requires an SCDA Registration Verification Certificate (RVC) and inspection; qualifying home-based foods do not need an RVC precisely because they may not be sold wholesale
• Service or use as an ingredient in a restaurant is possible only with a variance approved by SCDA, which the restaurant, not the producer, must obtain; the variance must state how the consumer is informed, and the consumer advisory must carry the statutory statement
• Foods prepared in the home kitchen may not be sliced, topped or served on site - a display is allowed, but what is sold must have been packaged and labeled in the home kitchen

Permit, registration and fees

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

1. Confirm the product qualifies: check it against the allowed and not-allowed lists in the SCDA Home-based Food Production Law Guidance, and where it appears on neither list, email sccottagefood@clemson.edu rather than assume
2. Produce only in the family-use kitchen inside the dwelling, and meet the § 44-1-143(B) and (C) duties: supervise anyone else handling the food, keep all animals including pets out of the production area, run no domestic kitchen activities during production, exclude anyone with a communicable disease, infected wound or acute respiratory infection, and maintain approved water, separate ingredient storage, working refrigeration, a sink with adequate hot water, sanitary utensil storage, hand washing facilities separate from utensil cleaning, a working toilet, no insect or rodent activity, and approved sewage disposal
3. On a private well, have the water tested at least annually for total coliform bacteria by a laboratory certified in South Carolina for public drinking water testing; sample bottles and testing are available through the SC Department of Environmental Services (des.sc.gov), which is also the contact for onsite wastewater (septic) questions
4. Build a compliant label before selling anything: operation name and address (or SCDA ID number), the standard name of the product, the ingredients in descending order of predominance by weight, the major food allergens declared by common name, and the statutory statement in all capital letters in a colour clearly contrasting the background. Net contents belong in the lower third of the front panel in both customary and metric units per SCDA's label guide, and no health claims may be made
5. OPTIONAL, and the only application in the whole program: if you do not want your home address on the label, request an SCDA identification number. § 44-1-143(D)(1) obliges the department to provide one on the operator's request. The application (CPD Form #2108, dated 7/22/24) asks for name, physical address, mailing address, phone numbers, email and owner details, and is returned to SCDA Retail Food Safety & Compliance by email or post; SCDA also now runs an online portal at homebasedcottagefood.agriculture.sc.gov. SCDA states the application is 'strictly voluntary'
6. If selling through retail stores, make sure the store posts the required signage; if a restaurant wants to serve or use the product, direct it to file a Request for Operational Variance with food-variances@scda.sc.gov
7. Handle the separate, non-food obligations yourself: SCDA points producers to the SC Department of Revenue and the SC Small Business Development Center (803-777-0749) for business licensing and taxation, and to local authorities for permitting and zoning

Fee: No fee is stated anywhere in the sources read. SCDA states plainly that 'there are no licenses, permits, or mandatory applications related to producing food under the Home-based Food Production Law', and that HBFP producers are 'not required to obtain a retail food permit'. The voluntary SCDA ID number application form (CPD Form #2108) shows no fee line, and § 44-1-143(D)(1) requires the department to provide the number on request without conditioning it on payment. NOT CONFIRMED, however, is any fee schedule for the newer online registration portal, which sits behind a login and states no price.

Renewal: Not applicable - there is nothing to renew, because there is no permit, licence or registration. The only recurring obligation identified is annual total coliform testing where the kitchen is on a private well. NOT CONFIRMED: whether the voluntary SCDA ID number, once issued, expires or must be re-confirmed; no source read states an expiry or a renewal cycle for it.

Food safety training

None. No food handler card, food safety course, certificate or training hour requirement appears in § 44-1-143 or in the SCDA guidance. What the statute imposes instead is a knowledge duty without a credential: § 44-1-143(B)(5) requires the operator to ensure 'that all people engaged in processing, preparing, packaging, or handling food intended for sale by the home-based food production operation are knowledgeable of and follow safe food handling practices'. A related substantive constraint sits in the recipe rules rather than in training: recipes for jams, jellies and preserves must come from a science-based source (SCDA names the National Center for Home Food Preservation, So Easy to Preserve, and the 2015 USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning), and recipes from social media or passed along informally may not be used unless verified as science-based.

Inspection

No routine inspection. Subsection (F) removes the operation from Regulation 61-25 oversight, and SCDA does not inspect home kitchens or issue permits for them. The sanitation standards of subsections (B) and (C) are nonetheless legally binding on the producer and self-enforced: SCDA's guidance stresses that 'safety requirements found in the law must be followed carefully', warns that dehydrating or freeze-drying does not reliably destroy pathogens introduced through poor handling, and places responsibility for uncontaminated food on the producer. Because permits are not required, SCDA's guidance also notes that a home kitchen is not obliged to install a separate hand washing sink even though § 44-1-143(C)(6) lists 'adequate hand washing facilities separate from the utensil and equipment cleaning facilities' - SCDA calls a nearby accessible sink a best practice. The enforcement route is complaint-driven, through SCDA's food safety complaint form. Note also that § 44-1-143 gives the producer no liability protection: SCDA states the law 'is not an insurance policy' and recommends liability insurance. NOT CONFIRMED: what penalties attach to a violation. The S.506 bill title announced an intent 'TO PROVIDE PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS', but no penalty subsection appears in the enacted text of § 44-1-143 as read, and no separate penalty provision was located.

What your city or county may add

Subsection (I) is decisive and unusual in its direction: 'The provisions of this section apply in the absence of a local ordinance to the contrary.' The state exemption therefore yields to a contrary local ordinance rather than overriding it, so a municipal or county rule can restrict or forbid home food production locally even where the state law would allow it. SCDA does not adjudicate this and refers producers to the SC Small Business Development Center for local permitting, laws, zoning and licensing, and to SCDES for septic adequacy. Sales venues add a further private layer: markets, events and retail establishments may set their own vendor policies and limits. A separate practical constraint is the store-side duty - a retail store selling HBFP products must post the required signage, and a restaurant needs an SCDA variance, so the producer's access to those channels depends on another party's compliance.

Program sources: S.C. Code Ann. § 44-1-143 (Requirements for home-based food production operations), official South Carolina Statehouse code page, Title 44 Chapter 1, with history line 2012 Act No. 190 eff. 6/7/2012; 2018 Act No. 231 (H.5063) eff. 5/18/2018; 2022 Act No. 208 (S.506) eff. 5/23/2022 — https://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t44c001.php · South Carolina General Assembly, S. 506 (124th Session, 2021-2022), conference committee text amending § 44-1-143 in strike-and-insert form (definition, subsections A-I, 'five'→'fifteen hundred dollars', deletion of 'NOT FOR RESALE-'), reproduced in full as Appendix A of the SCDA guidance below; original at https://www.scstatehouse.gov/sess124_2021-2022/prever/506_20220512.htm · SCDA, 'South Carolina Home-based Food Production Law Guidance', version 1.4, July 2025, 45 pp. (Ch. 1 history and the 1 July 2024 Act 60 transfer; Ch. 2 general requirements and Section G exemption; Ch. 3 definitions; Ch. 4 allowed foods; Ch. 5 foods not allowed; Ch. 6 honey and RVC; Ch. 7 labeling; App. A statute; App. B science-based recipe sources; App. C non-cottage exemptions; App. D regulatory decision tree; App. E label guide CPD Form #408 7/24/24; App. F SCDA ID number application CPD Form #2108 7/22/24; App. G FAQ; App. H high-acid fruit pH; App. I sourdough) — https://agriculture.sc.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/SCHome-basedFoodProductionLawBook2025_digital.pdf · SCDA, 'Home-based Food Production (Cottage Law) | Regulation 61-25: Retail Food Establishments' fact sheet, CPD Form #2210, dated 5/1/26 (allowed and not-allowed examples, labeling, retail establishment signage and restaurant variance, nine major allergens with finfish and crustacean shellfish marked 'not allowed as cottage food') — https://agriculture.sc.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Home-basedFoodProduction2026.pdf · SCDA, 'Retail Food Safety' division page (SCDA issues no permits, licences, certificates or registrations for HBFP operators; ID number provided on request; homebasedfoods@scda.sc.gov) — https://agriculture.sc.gov/divisions/consumer-protection/retail-food-safety/ · SCDA online home-based cottage food registration portal (login only; program contact retailfood@scda.sc.gov, 803-896-0640) — https://homebasedcottagefood.agriculture.sc.gov/Registration/Account/Loginuser · SCDA press release, 'SC Department of Agriculture to Take Over Restaurant Inspections, Other DHEC Food Safety Responsibilities' (S.399 / Act No. 60 of 2023; retail food, manufactured food, milk inspection and laboratory transferred effective 1 July 2024) — https://agriculture.sc.gov/sc-department-of-agriculture-to-take-over-restaurant-inspections-other-dhec-food-safety-responsibilities/ · Clemson University Cooperative Extension, 'South Carolina Home-based Food Production Law Guidance' resource page (co-publisher of the guidance; sccottagefood@clemson.edu as the guidance help address) — https://www.clemson.edu/extension/food/resources/cottage-law.html