Home baker and cook guide
How to sell homemade food in Nebraska
Nebraska's updated cottage food program can include both shelf-stable and certain temperature-controlled foods, but registration, training, handling, and disclosure rules vary. 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 Nebraska resources
Open the official pages below for registration, labeling, allowed foods, and temperature rules. Nebraska updated cottage food law in 2024: many trays, casseroles, and some refrigerated items may be allowed from a registered home kitchen when requirements are met. Do not rely on old "non-refrigerated only" summaries. This app collects your application only. After approval, classify every meal when you publish.
What the official pathway currently emphasizes
- Most producers must complete approved food-safety training and register before selling; a narrow farmers-market exception exists for non-TCS food.
- Private-well producers may need nitrate and bacteria test documentation with registration.
- The state lists excluded categories—including meat, raw eggs, unpasteurized juice, infused oils or honey, sprouts, low-acid canned food, and specified fermented foods—even though some refrigerated products can qualify.
- Pickup, delivery, advertising, event disclosures, labeling, and safe temperature control must match the product and sales method.
A practical preparation sequence
- Classify the product as TCS or non-TCS and check the excluded list.
- Complete training and any required well-water test.
- Register with the Department of Agriculture.
- Prepare the exact consumer disclosure and, for TCS food, compliant labels and temperature controls.
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.