Maryland Cottage Food Law

Maryland's cottage food law sets an annual revenue cap of $50,000 and no state permit or registration is required. Direct sales, mail delivery, farmers markets, special events, and retail outlets all permitted.

Watch for: Cap was doubled from $25K to $50K in 2022. Retail-channel sellers face extra requirements; direct-and-mail sellers do not.

Annual revenue cap

$50,000

Permit / registration

Not required

Kitchen inspection

Not required

Food handler training

Not required

Acidified foods

Excluded

Interstate shipping

In-state only

Where you can sell

Direct sales, mail delivery, farmers markets, special events, and retail outlets all permitted.

Direct (in-person)
Farmers markets
In-state mail
Retail / grocery

What's required before your first sale

No license, inspection, or training required to sell direct or by mail. Selling at retail outlets adds a food safety course and label approval. Label ID# protects your home address.

Label requirements

Name and address of the cottage food business, OR the business name, phone number, and a Maryland Department of Health-issued identification number in lieu of the address
Product name
Complete ingredient list in descending order of predominance by weight (with sub-ingredients in parentheses for compound ingredients)
Net weight or volume
Verbatim disclosure required by COMAR 10.15.03.27, printed in 10-point or larger type in a color that provides clear contrast with the label background: "Made by a cottage food business that is not subject to Maryland's food safety regulations."
Federal allergen labeling under FALCPA + FASTER Act: "Contains:" statement for any of the nine major allergens (milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans, sesame)
Retail-store sales add the producer's phone number, email address, and the production date

How Ardent Seller helps

Generate your Maryland disclosure label in one click

Ardent Seller assembles a print-ready cottage food label for Maryland from data you already track — the state's required disclosure statement rendered verbatim (and sized to meet the state's minimum type size where one applies), your operator info, ingredients in descending order by weight, the federal "Contains:" allergen line, net weight, and lot code. A validation checklist flags anything Maryland requires that's missing before you print. Included on every plan.

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