Home baker and cook guide
How to sell homemade food in Tennessee
Tennessee's Food Freedom Act exempts qualifying home-produced foods from routine state food licensing, permitting, and inspection, with important product and sales conditions in the current law. 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 Tennessee 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
- The Department of Agriculture does not issue a permit or routine inspection for food produced under the Act.
- Changes effective July 1, 2025 expanded the pathway to certain time/temperature-control-for-safety foods under additional requirements.
- Producers remain responsible for food safety, required consumer information, and the limits of the amended statute.
- Products outside the Act, local business rules, and illness investigations are not erased by the exemption.
A practical preparation sequence
- Read the current TDA summary and amended statute for the exact product category.
- Determine whether the food is TCS and add the required controls if it is.
- Prepare the required consumer disclosures and safe handling plan.
- Confirm the planned sale and delivery method fits the Act before listing.
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.