Home baker and cook guide
How to sell homemade food in California
California uses local registration or permitting for cottage food operations that make foods on the state's approved non-potentially-hazardous list. Start with the official program below, then confirm the rules for your product, preparation setting, and local jurisdiction.
Official resources last reviewed 2026-07-21. Rules can change.
Official California resources
Open the official pages below for registration, labeling, allowed foods, and temperature rules. This app collects your application only. After approval, classify every meal when you publish.
What the official pathway currently emphasizes
- Class A covers direct sales; Class B can also make indirect sales through permitted retailers.
- The local environmental health department—not CDPH—registers or permits the operation; Class B includes inspection.
- Operators must use approved foods, complete required training, follow sanitation and labeling rules, and stay within the annually adjusted sales limit.
A practical preparation sequence
- Choose Class A or Class B based on sales channels.
- Confirm every product appears on the current CDPH approved-food list.
- Contact the local environmental health department for its packet and local requirements.
- Complete registration or permitting, training, labels, and any required inspection before selling.
Questions to answer before listing
- Which foods may be produced in your proposed kitchen?
- Does the product require refrigeration or temperature control?
- Are registration, training, inspection, testing, or permits required?
- What must appear on the product label and customer disclosure?
- Where may you advertise, sell, deliver, ship, or arrange pickup?
- Do county, city, zoning, tax, or tribal rules add requirements?
Prepare your local kitchen page
Once you understand the applicable pathway, create a kitchen profile, describe your general pickup area, upload real food photos, and post specific preorder windows. Kitchen Counter-Measures does not approve a product on behalf of a regulator.