2026 reference
Utah Cottage Food Law
Utah's cottage food law sets no statewide revenue cap and producers must register with the state before the first sale. Utah has two home-kitchen programs, and UDAF says products under both may only be sold within Utah. Registered cottage food operations may sell direct to consumers or to stores for resale (UDAF), including to a food establishment in Utah if the food has not been subject to intervening storage or transfer (Utah Admin. Code R70-560-7(8)), and must display a copy of the registration at farmers markets and roadside stands (R70-560-5(4)). A food service establishment may not use a cottage food product as an ingredient in food it prepares for the public (Utah Code 4-5-501(7)). Under the Home Consumption and Homemade Food Act, a producer or the producer's contracted designated representative (added by SB 217, 2026) may sell only directly to an informed final consumer, for personal or home consumption, at a direct-to-sale location: a farm, ranch, direct-to-sale farmers market, home, office, or any location both parties agree on (Utah Code 4-5a-102, 4-5a-104). Homemade Food Act products may not be sold to or used by a restaurant or commercial establishment, and at a farmers market they must be in a separate direct-to-sale area marked with signs (4-5a-103). Neither program addresses online ordering or shipping; confirm with UDAF before shipping.
Watch for: The two programs are easy to confuse. A UDAF cottage food registration allows sales to stores, but only for UDAF's list of shelf-stable foods (no refrigerated, custard, cheesecake, canned, or acidified products) and with "Home Produced" on the label. The Homemade Food Act needs no registration and excludes only raw dairy and most meat products, but sales must be direct to an informed final consumer for home consumption, never to a restaurant or store, and the label must say the product is not for resale and was processed and prepared without state or local inspection. Both programs are limited to sales within Utah. A third path, for ready-to-eat food prepared and offered for sale from a home kitchen, is a microenterprise home kitchen permit from the local health department (Utah Code 26B-7-401, 26B-7-416).
Key facts
Where you can sell
Utah has two home-kitchen programs, and UDAF says products under both may only be sold within Utah. Registered cottage food operations may sell direct to consumers or to stores for resale (UDAF), including to a food establishment in Utah if the food has not been subject to intervening storage or transfer (Utah Admin. Code R70-560-7(8)), and must display a copy of the registration at farmers markets and roadside stands (R70-560-5(4)). A food service establishment may not use a cottage food product as an ingredient in food it prepares for the public (Utah Code 4-5-501(7)). Under the Home Consumption and Homemade Food Act, a producer or the producer's contracted designated representative (added by SB 217, 2026) may sell only directly to an informed final consumer, for personal or home consumption, at a direct-to-sale location: a farm, ranch, direct-to-sale farmers market, home, office, or any location both parties agree on (Utah Code 4-5a-102, 4-5a-104). Homemade Food Act products may not be sold to or used by a restaurant or commercial establishment, and at a farmers market they must be in a separate direct-to-sale area marked with signs (4-5a-103). Neither program addresses online ordering or shipping; confirm with UDAF before shipping.
- Direct (in-person)
- Farmers markets
- Retail / grocery
What's required before your first sale
Cottage food operations (Utah Code 4-5-501; Utah Admin. Code R70-560) must register with the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF) before operating, pass a UDAF inspection before the registration is issued, ensure each operator holds a valid food handler permit, and get UDAF approval for each food; at UDAF's discretion, a department-approved laboratory or process authority must confirm in writing that a food is not potentially hazardous. The UDAF Fiscal Year 2027 fee schedule lists a $100 cottage food establishment registration fee and a $100 cottage plan review fee. Registrations expire December 31 and may be renewed for the following year (Utah Code 4-5-301(2)). The operation must test a private water supply every year, keep a sample of each food for 14 days labeled with the production date and time, and keep pets out of the kitchen and free-roaming pets out of the home. Under the Home Consumption and Homemade Food Act (Utah Code 4-5a), a producer who follows the Act is exempt from state, county, and city licensing, permitting, certification, inspection, packaging, and labeling requirements beyond those in the Act, but must comply with business license requirements (4-5a-104(2)).
Allowed and excluded foods
Permitted under cottage food
- cottage food: shelf-stable baked goods cooked with dry heat (no cream, uncooked egg, custard, meringue, cream cheese, egg-based buttercream, or fresh fruit toppings; pies limited to fruit pies)
- cottage food: cereals, trail mixes, and granola, including cereal-marshmallow treats
- cottage food: dried fruits made from acidic fruits and chocolate-covered dried fruits (low-acid fruits only if freeze-dried)
- cottage food: dry herbs and seasoning mixes
- cottage food: hard candies, freeze-dried candies, and cotton candy
- cottage food: raw honey and creamed honey
- cottage food: jams, jellies, and preserves made only from 21 CFR 150 fruits (no tomatoes, fruit butters, or sugar-free or no-sugar-added versions)
- cottage food: nuts, nut mixes, and nut brittles, including candied and chocolate-covered nuts
- cottage food: popcorn and popcorn balls, repackaged non-TCS foods, roasted coffee beans, vanilla extract, and strained or filtered flavored vinegar
- Homemade Food Act: any homemade food or nonalcoholic drink except raw dairy and meat products (limited poultry and rabbit exceptions)
Excluded from cottage food
- cottage food: refrigerated or frozen food, products that contain meat or poultry, cheesecakes and custards, and other canned, high-risk, or potentially hazardous foods (UDAF)
- cottage food: fried or steamed baked goods, cream-based ganache and truffles, fruit butters, and sugar-free jams (UDAF)
- Homemade Food Act: raw dairy and raw dairy products (Utah Code 4-5a-105(1)(a))
- Homemade Food Act: meat products other than qualifying poultry and domesticated rabbit (4-5a-105(1)(b))
Label requirements
- Registered cottage food operations (Utah Admin. Code R70-560-6): the name specified by federal regulation or, in its absence, the common or usual name of the food or an adequately descriptive name
- A list of ingredients in descending order of predominance by weight, when the food is made from two or more ingredients
- The name of the food source for each major food allergen, unless it is already part of the ingredient's common or usual name
- An accurate declaration of the net quantity of contents
- Name and place of business of the cottage food production operation (UDAF guidance: street address, city, state, and zip code)
- Telephone number of the cottage food production operation
- Nutritional labeling unless the product qualifies for an exemption
- The words "Home Produced" in bold and conspicuous 12-point type on the principal display panel (R70-560-6(2)(h)); UDAF guidance sets a 1/16-inch minimum height for the other required information
- Home Consumption and Homemade Food Act producers (Utah Code 4-5a-104(3)): the producer's name and address
- Homemade Food Act: a disclosure statement indicating that the product is not for resale and was processed and prepared without state or local inspection (the Act sets no fixed wording; UDAF words it "Not for Resale – Processed and prepared without the benefit of state or local inspection")
- Homemade Food Act: a statement listing whether the food contains, or was prepared in a location that also handles, common allergens including milk, soy, wheat, eggs, peanuts or tree nuts, fish, or shellfish
- Homemade Food Act: direct sales by minor producers are exempt from these label requirements (4-5a-104(7))
Generate your Utah disclosure label in one click
Ardent Seller assembles a print-ready cottage food label for Utah 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 Utah requires that's missing before you print. Included on every plan.
Adjacent programs
Home Consumption and Homemade Food Act (Utah Code 4-5a)
An alternative to cottage food registration with no UDAF registration, inspection, or food handler permit, though business license requirements still apply. Almost any homemade food qualifies except raw dairy products and meat products; the exceptions are poultry from a producer slaughtering no more than 1,000 birds a year under the USDA exemption, and domesticated rabbit meat pending USDA approval (4-5a-105). The food must be produced and sold within Utah, sold directly to an informed final consumer, and be for personal or home consumption; it may not be sold to or used by a restaurant or commercial establishment (raw, unprocessed fruits and vegetables excepted). SB 217 (2026, effective May 6, 2026) lets a producer contract a designated representative to distribute, sell, deliver, hold, store, or offer the food for sale, with the producer keeping ownership unless they agree otherwise. Labels need the producer's name and address, a disclosure statement indicating the product is not for resale and was processed and prepared without state or local inspection, and an allergen statement (4-5a-104(3)); direct sales by minor producers are exempt from the label requirements. The producer must also tell the buyer the food is not certified, licensed, regulated, or inspected by the state or any county or city.
Microenterprise Home Kitchen permit (Utah Code 26B-7-416)
An operator who lives in the home may run a microenterprise home kitchen only with a permit from the local health department, which charges a fee that reimburses its regulatory costs and conducts the initial inspection no more than one week before operation begins. Time and temperature controlled food must be prepared, cooked, and served the same day, or served or distributed within 72 hours with a time and temperature control log. Check the local health department for its permit terms.
Sources
- Utah Department of Agriculture and Food — Cottage Food Production
- Utah Department of Agriculture and Food — Home Consumption and Homemade Food Act
- UDAF — Permitted Cottage Food Products (PDF)
- UDAF — Basic Labeling Guidelines for Cottage Foods (July 2025, PDF)
- Forrager — cottage food law database
- Utah Code 4-5-501 (Cottage food operations)
- Utah Admin. Code R70-560 (Inspection and Regulation of Cottage Food Production Operations); labeling at R70-560-6
- Utah Code 4-5-301 (Registration of food establishments — expiration and renewal)
- Utah Code Title 4, Chapter 5a — Home Consumption and Homemade Food Act (labeling at 4-5a-104(3))
- SB 217 (2026) — Local Food Amendments: designated representatives and direct-to-sale location changes, effective May 6, 2026 (enrolled)
- Utah Code 26B-7-416 (Microenterprise home kitchen permits)
- UDAF Fiscal Year 2027 Fee Schedule
Reference content only — not legal advice. State laws change frequently. Verify against the official source before launching.
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