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Michigan Cottage Food Laws and Regulations: How to sell your homemade foods in Michigan
Michigan Cottage Food Laws, Regulations and Facts
Date of the enactment of the Michigan cottage food law:
2010, Cottage
Foods Law
Which foods are subject to the Michigan Cottage Food law?
Certain non-potentially hazardous foods (time and/or temperature
controls not required to assure food safety;- meaning foods can
safely be kept at room temperature and do not require refrigeration)
meet the requirements for cottage foods and can be prepared in a
home kitchen and sold directly to consumers without a license. Many
of these items are identified by MDARD.
Allowed Foods
Examples include:
-
Breads
-
Similar baked goods
-
Vinegar and flavored vinegars
-
Cakes, including celebration cakes (birthday, anniversary,
wedding)
-
Sweet breads and muffins that contain fruits or vegetables
(e.g., pumpkin or zucchini bread)
-
Cooked fruit pies, including pie crusts made with butter, lard
or shortening
-
Fruit jams and jellies (as defined in 21 CFR part 150) in glass
jars that can be stored at room temperature (except vegetable
jams/jellies)
-
Cookies
-
Dry herbs and dry herb mixtures
-
Dry baking mixes
-
Dry dip mixes
-
Dry soup mixes
-
Dehydrated vegetables or fruits
-
Popcorn
-
Cotton Candy
-
Non-potentially hazardous dry bulk mixes sold wholesale can be
repackaged into a Cottage Food product. Similar items already
packaged and labeled for retail sale can not be repackaged
and/or relabeled
-
Chocolate covered pretzels, marshmallows, graham crackers, Rice
Krispies treats, strawberries, pineapple or bananas
-
Coated or uncoated nuts
-
Dried pasta made with eggs
-
Roasted coffee beans or ground roasted coffee
-
Vanilla extract (Note: these products require licensing by the
Michigan Liquor Control Commission)
-
Baked goods that contain alcohol, like rum cake or bourbon balls
(Note: these products require licensing by the Michigan Liquor
Control Commission)
Prohibited foods
Potential Hazardous Foods PHF/TCS is a food that:
-
Contains moisture (water activity greater than 0.85)
-
Contains protein
-
Is neutral to slightly acidic ( pH between 4.6 and 7.5)
Please refer to the 2009
Michigan Modified Food Code for pH and water activity
tables.Examples of PHF/TCS foods include:
-
Meat and meat products like fresh and dried meats (jerky)
-
Fish and fish products like smoked fish
-
Raw seed sprouts
-
Vegetable jams/jellies (e.g., hot pepper jelly)
-
Canned fruits or vegetables like salsa or canned peaches
-
Canned fruit or vegetable butters like pumpkin or apple butter
-
Canned pickled products like corn relish, pickles or sauerkraut
-
Pies or cakes that require refrigeration to assure safety like
banana cream, pumpkin, lemon meringue or custard
pies; cheesecake; and cakes with glaze or frosting that requires
refrigeration (e.g., cream cheese frosting)
-
Milk and dairy products like cheese or yogurt
-
Cut melons
-
Caramel apples
-
Hummus
-
Garlic in oil mixtures
-
All beverages, including fruit/vegetable juices, Kombucha tea,
and apple cider
-
Ice and ice products
-
Cut tomatoes or chopped/shredded leafy greens
-
Confections that contain alcohol, like truffles or
liqueur-filled chocolates
-
Foccaccia style breads with fresh vegetables and/or cheeses
-
Food products made from fresh cut tomatoes, cut melons or cut
leafy greens
-
Food products made with cooked vegetable products that are not
canned
-
Sauces and condiments, including barbeque sauce, hot sauce,
ketchup, or mustard
-
Salad dressings
-
Pet food or treats
If your food product does not meet the definition of a Cottage
Food:
Don't give up. You may still be able to make and sell it commercially,
through a startup approach.
First, you may be able to rent space in a local licensed commercial kitchen.
Second, if that doesn't work, you may be able to get a co-packer to make the food for you.
See this page for detailed information about selling foods that do
not meet the Cottage Food definition
Definitions:
- "home" or "single family domestic residence"
This is the place where you live, whether you own the home or
are renting. So an apartment, condominium or a rental home all
could be a single family domestic residence. It does not include
group or communal residential settings, such as group homes,
sororities or fraternities.
Licensing
Michigan's Cottage Food Law, PA 113 of 2010 exempts a "cottage food
operation" from the licensing and inspection provisions of the
Michigan Food Law. A cottage food operation still has to comply with
the labeling, adulteration, and other provisions found in the
Michigan Food Law, as well as other applicable state or federal
laws, or local ordinances.
Labeling requirements
Cottage Food Production Operations must label all of their food products properly,
which include the following information on the label of each unit of food product offered or
distributed for sale:
-
Name and physical address of the Cottage Food operation. (You
must use the physical address of your home kitchen; Post Office
Box addresses are not adequate).
-
Name of the Cottage Food product (All capital letters or
upper/lower case are both acceptable).
-
The ingredients of the Cottage Food product, in descending order
of predominance by weight. If you use a prepared item in your
recipe, you must list the sub ingredients as well. For example:
soy sauce is not acceptable, soy sauce (wheat, soybeans, salt)
would be acceptable, please see the label below for further
examples.
-
The net weight or net volume of the Cottage Food product (must
also include the metric equivalent - conversion charts are
available online).
-
Allergen labeling as specified in federal labeling requirements.
-
The following statement: "Made
in a home kitchen that has not been inspected by the Michigan
Department of Agriculture & Rural Development" in at least
the equivalent of 11-point font (about 1/8" tall) and in a color
that provides a clear contrast to the background (All capital
letters or upper/lower case are both acceptable).
Hand-printed labels are acceptable if they are clearly legible,
written with durable, permanent ink, and printed large enough to
equal the font size requirements listed above.
Here is a free
Microsoft Word label template which you can download and edit.
These labels are already formatted to fit on Avery Template 5164
Print-to-the-Edge Labels 3-1/3-Inch x4-Inch, 6 per Sheet.
You can get the label stock online (see at right). You can
get the blank labels to make your own here online.
Depending on the
size of your business, your label must comply with Federal label
regulations and with the new nutritional labeling law. You can
download a copy of
the FDA Food Labeling Guide here it s an illustrated booklet
that should answer all your questions.
Allergens: you must identify if any of your
ingredients are made from one of the following food groups: milk,
eggs, wheat, peanuts, soybeans, fish (including shellfish, crab,
lobster or shrimp) and tree nuts (such as almonds, pecans or
walnuts). So if you have an ingredient made with a wheat based
product, you have two options: 1. Include the allergen in the
ingredient list. For example, a white bread with the following
ingredient listing: whole wheat flour, water, salt and yeast. In
this example the statement Whole Wheat Flour, meets the requirements
of federal law. 2. Include an allergen statement ("Contains:") after
the ingredient list. For example a white bread, with the following
ingredients: whole wheat flour, water, sodium caseinate, salt and
yeast. Contains wheat and milk. The "Contains" statement must
reflect all the allergens found in the product. In this example, the
sodium caseinate comes from milk.
You must identify which tree nut you are using. For example, if you
made the following product: Nut Bread, an acceptable ingredient
list would be: wheat flour, water, almonds, salt, yeast. The
following would not be acceptable: flour, water, nuts, salt, yeast.

At above right is an example of a label that should help you develop your own
labels. You can
get the blank labels to make your own here online.
Meanwhile, below it, at right, is the state's sample label
The state of Michigan's sample label is in a (frankly) absurd
order...putting the very OFF-putting warning at the top of the label.
The law does NOT require that and only someone absolutely clueless in
marketing would do that. The law requires only the following:
"Made
in a home kitchen that has not been inspected by the Michigan
Department of Agriculture & Rural Development" in at least
the equivalent of 11-point font (about 1/8" tall) and in a color
that provides a clear contrast to the background (All capital
letters or upper/lower case are both acceptable).
So do
that... and put it at the bottom of the label!
And
here is a detailed labeling guide.
Where may Cottage Food Production Operations sell the food products?
You may sell your Cottage Foods directly to the consumer at
farmers' markets, farm stands, roadside stands and similar venues.
The key is you are selling it directly to the consumer.
You cannot sell your Cottage Foods to a retailer for them to
resell or to a restaurant for use or sale in the restaurant.
You cannot sell your Cottage Foods over the internet, by mail
order, or to wholesalers, brokers or other food distributors who
will resell the Cottage Foods.
Other requirements
- You are limited in the amount of money you can make selling
Cottage Foods to $20,000 gross sales annually per household.
The limit was increased, effective October 1,
2012, from $15,000 per year in gross sales to $20,000 per year. The
limit will increase again December 31, 2017 to $25,000 per
year. You need to maintain sales records and provide them to a
Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development (MDARD)
food inspector, upon request (MDARD has regulatory
responsibility for the Cottage Food Law.).
- Llocal zoning or other laws: the Cottage Food
exemption does not exempt you fromm these; it only exempts you
from the requirements of licensing and routine inspection by the
Michigan Department of Agriculture.
Recommendations:
Beyond the requirements, common sense, good practices and
reducing liability suggests you should do the following.
Training
Take the
ServSafe® training classes for Manager and employees, the 7th Edition Book that accompanies this course should be purchased here..
Testing of pH
It's best to use a pH meter, properly calibrated on the day
used. I use this one, which is reliable and inexpensive.
And this pH meter is really good, but isn't always available.
Short-range paper
pH test strips, commonly known as litmus paper, may be used
instead, if the product normally has a pH of 4.0 or lower and the
paper's range includes a pH of 4.6.
Record-keeping is suggested
Keep a written record of every batch of product made for sale,
including:
- Recipe, including procedures and ingredients
- Amount canned and sold
- Canning date
- Sale dates and locations
- Gross sales receipts
- Results of any pH test
Sanitation
Although inspections are not required, you should consider doing
the following:
- Use clean equipment that has been effectively sanitized
prior to use
- Clean work surfaces and then sanitize with bleach water
before and after use
- Keep ingredients separate from other unprocessed foods
- Keep household pets out of the work area
- Keep walls and floors clean
- Have adequate lighting
- Keep window and door screens in good repair to keep insects
out
- Wash hands frequently while working
- Consider annual testing of water if using a private well
Best Practices
- On site wells - annually testing your well
for coliforms and nitrates is recommended. Contact your local
health department for sampling containers and directions.
- Cross-allergenicity: There are also
ingredients available, even flours, that can cause a
cross-allergenicity. The American Academy of Allergy Asthma &
Immunology explains cross-allergenicity as an allergic reaction
when proteins in one substance are similar to the proteins found
in another substance. For example, consumption of lupine flour
may trigger an allergic reaction to peanuts, and cricket flour
may trigger an allergic reaction to shellfish. Again, providing
such information might be a beneficial marketing tool and help
keep potential consumers safe.
- The 2 Hour/4 Hour Rule - Anyone
wishing to make and sell refrigerated bakery items should
remember to follow the "2 Hour/4 Hour Rule." This is a system
that can be implemented when potentially hazardous foods are out
of temperature control (temperatures greater than 45 degrees
Fahrenheit) during preparation, serving or display for sale. The
rule guidelines are as follows:
- If a potentially hazardous food has been out of
temperature control for 2 hours or less, then it may
continue to be used or be placed back in the refrigerator.
- If a potentially hazardous food has been out of
temperature control for more than 2 hours but less than 4
hours, it needs to be used quickly or discarded.
- If a potentially hazardous food has been out of
temperature control for more than 4 hours, it must be
discarded.
More resources:
Questions? Contact Information:
If you have a question or concern about the Michigan Cottage Food Law not covered, please contact the Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural
Development at
Phone: MDARD at 800-292-3939. or
Email: MDA-Info@Michigan.gov
. Please supply your zip code with your question, so it can be directed to a food inspector in your area.