State Guides6 min read
North Carolina Cottage Food Laws 2026: Home Inspection, No Permit
North Carolina has no cottage food license or permit. NCDA&CS inspects your home kitchen before you sell shelf-stable foods, and its pages list no sales cap.
At a glance
- Who it's for
- home cooks who make shelf-stable foods. The NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (NCDA&CS) runs the Home Processor program and says you must have your home kitchen inspected before you sell.
- What you need
- an inspection, not a license. NCDA&CS does not issue a permit, and NC State Extension reports no charge for the inspection. If a pet ever comes into your home, you cannot make food for sale there.
- Sales cap
- none is stated on NCDA&CS's Home Processor page or its application form.
- Where you can sell
- directly to customers, and to retail stores, distributors and restaurants.
What you can and can't sell
NCDA&CS allows low-risk foods only: shelf stable, with no refrigeration or freezing needed. Its examples are baked goods that do not require refrigeration, jams and jellies and preserves, candies, dried mixes and spices, and some drinks such as iced tea, coffee and lemonade. The application also lists bread, cakes, pies, cookies, honey, peanuts and dry goods.
Some foods need an evaluation first. NCDA&CS says sauces must be evaluated to see whether they are shelf stable, and it lists acidified foods such as pickles and barbecue sauce. Acidified foods, dressings and sauces, homemade cream cheese frosting, "moist" breads and cakes, and some pies may need pH or water-activity testing. If you test, the lab's Process Authority Letter goes with your application. Makers of acidified foods may also need an acidified food course certificate. Apple butter needs evaluation because it has no standard of identity; apple jelly does not. For pickles, hot sauce or salsa, call NCDA&CS at (984) 236-4820 first.
NCDA&CS says high-risk foods are not allowed in a home kitchen. Its list, which is not complete, includes:
- Refrigerated or frozen products
- Low-acid canned foods, such as jarred fruits and vegetables
- Dairy products
- Seafood products
- Bottled water and juice products
- Bakery products with cream or cream cheese fillings, and cheesecakes
Meat and meat-containing products are regulated by NCDA&CS's Meat and Poultry Inspection Service.
How and where you can sell
The inspection requirement covers anyone selling to retail stores, restaurants, or directly to consumers, so wholesale is part of the program. Goods you ship by USPS, FedEx or a similar service need an affixed label. NCDA&CS's pages do not mention online sales or customers in other states, so ask before you sell online or ship across state lines.
Your kitchen and the inspection
Use your home kitchen. A kitchen set apart from it, such as in a garage or basement, or in a separate building on your property, does not qualify for the program and is treated as a commercial business. NCDA&CS views a home processor as a food manufacturing facility, so federal Good Manufacturing Practices apply. If a pet comes into your home at any time, even only at night, you cannot make food for sale there. Inspectors check cleanliness, pests and running water. The kitchen sink is for food preparation only, so hand washing must be done in a separate sink or bathroom sink.
On city water, send your latest water bill. If your only water source is a private well, send a coliform and E. coli test from the past year by a certified agency; a store-bought kit is not accepted. NCDA&CS requires you to check with your local or county planning department first, and says to check with your HOA or leasing office too.
To apply, email homeprocessing@ncagr.gov or mail the application with your water bill or test results, a business plan and, if you need a label, one sample label. NCDA&CS's web page says a specialist contacts you about 8 to 12 weeks after receiving it, and it can take longer. The form says six to eight weeks for processing, so plan for 8 to 12. You get an inspection report and a Notice of Inspection, not a permit, and major violations may disqualify you.
Labels
NCDA&CS describes two situations. Packaged goods that customers pick up themselves (including at farmers markets), goods you ship, and goods sold to stores, distributors or restaurants need a label affixed to the package. The only exemption is for goods sold on demand directly to the consumer. NCDA&CS says that may include orders picked up at your home, delivered orders, event orders and goods you hand over from behind the counter at a market. You must give ingredient information on request.
Label rules last verified Oct 2, 2026 against 7 official sources.
Make a North Carolina labelHome Processor program: products that need an affixed label
More
retail stores, distributors or restaurants.Required on the label
Contains: {allergens}
- Product nameThe common or usual name of the food (statute).
- IngredientsComplete list, in order of predominance by weight (greatest amount first).
- Net quantityOunces/pounds with the gram equivalent, or fluid ounces with the mL equivalent (application).
- Business or producer nameName of the manufacturer.
- AddressPhysical address, not a website address (the application says a website cannot be substituted).
Depends on your product or how you sell
- Nutrition informationWhen: The label makes a claim such as low fat, sugar free or gluten free.NCDA&CS: nutritional labels are 'not required under the home processor program', but a claim brings one in.
- Required statementWhen: The food bears or contains artificial flavoring, artificial coloring or chemical preservatives.On the label ('labeling stating that fact').
The cottage food rules say nothing about date made. That does not make them optional: general food labeling rules may still apply, and the label generator lets you add them.
Home Processor program: custom / on-demand direct sales
More
counter at a farmers market or similar venue, or served on demand from a secure bulk container or display case where the customer must ask for the product. NCDA&CS calls this the 'only exemption' from an affixed label.Depends on your product or how you sell
- IngredientsWhen: A consumer asks for it.Ingredient information must be available upon request by the consumer; it need not be on a label.
The cottage food rules say nothing about allergens, date made. That does not make them optional: general food labeling rules may still apply, and the label generator lets you add them.
General labeling law: Yes.
Sources (7)
- N.C. Gen. Stat. § 106-130 (misbranded food), lead-in
- 02 NCAC 09B .0116(o) and (o)(41); text of the 2019 amendment as filed with OAH (https). The current consolidated rule text was also read at http://reports.oah.state.nc.us/ncac/title%2002%20-%20agriculture%20and%20consumer%20services/chapter%2009%20-%20food%20and%20drug%20protection/chapter%2009%20rules.html (served over http only, Last-Modified 2026-05-07) and carries the same item '(41) 101 Food Labeling'.
- 21 U.S.C. § 343(w)(1)
- 21 U.S.C. § 321(qq)(1)
- NCDA&CS Food & Drug Protection, 'Starting a home-based food business' (Home Processor page), Step 7 Food product labels
- NCDA&CS, Application for Home Processor Inspection (PDF, created 2023-09-19), Section 4 Product Labeling
- NCDA&CS Food & Drug Protection, Food Program page (commercial label review; not specific to home processors)
Before your first sale
- To do: Confirm no pet comes into your home and that you will cook in your home kitchen, not a garage.
- To do: Check each product against the lists above, and call NCDA&CS about pickles, sauces or cream cheese frosting.
- To do: Ask your local planning department, and your HOA or landlord, whether you may run a food business from home.
- To do: Gather your water bill or well-water test, business plan and sample label, then apply.
- To do: Get a Sales & Use Tax number, which NCDA&CS says is required if you plan to have sales, and ask the NC Department of Revenue which products are taxable.
- To do: Price your food to cover your costs.
Common questions
Does North Carolina have a cottage food law, and do I need a license?
North Carolina handles home food businesses through NCDA&CS's Home Processor program rather than a cottage food license. Its Starting a Food Business page says no license is required, but inspections can be made. Its Home Processor page says to inspect first, so plan on the inspection.
House Bill 833 (the FRESH Act) would direct NCDA&CS to expand the program to refrigerated or frozen foods and bakery products with cream or cream cheese fillings. As printed on April 10, 2025, it was referred to a House committee, so it is a bill, not law. Check its status.
How much does it cost, and how long does it take?
NC State Extension's May 2024 summary of an NCDA&CS webinar says NCDA&CS does not charge for the inspection. Lab tests, a well-water test and the acidified food course, where they apply, are separate, so ask each provider for its price. Allow 8 to 12 weeks for NCDA&CS to contact you; questions go to (984) 236-4820 or homeprocessing@ncagr.gov.
What is the penalty for selling food without a permit in North Carolina?
NCDA&CS issues no permit to home processors, but it says you must have your kitchen inspected before you sell. The state's Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act makes violating the Act, or a Board of Agriculture rule under it, a Class 2 misdemeanor, and lets the Commissioner assess a civil penalty of up to $2,000. The Commissioner must first give written notice and a reasonable time to correct, unless the violation is likely to cause future physical injury or illness. The Act prohibits selling adulterated or misbranded food and refusing to permit an inspection. Ask NCDA&CS which penalty applies to selling without the inspection.
