District of Columbia cottage food law for home bakers

The short version

The District runs a registration model, not a pure exemption: you apply to DC Health for a Cottage Food Business Registration Certificate, which costs $50 and lasts two years, and you need a Home Occupancy Permit and a Certified Food Protection Manager credential before you can apply.

There is no dollar cap on how much you can sell; the District dropped its original twenty-five-thousand-dollar limit in 2020. You can sell direct to a customer, at a farmers market or public event, and online, all within the District, and since 2025 you can also sell wholesale to a licensed food establishment such as a shop that carries your products. Selling or shipping to anyone outside the District is off the table entirely.

DC Health may inspect your kitchen before approving you, though a visit is not guaranteed for every applicant, and the department keeps the right to inspect afterward if there is a complaint, an illness report or a reason to suspect you are not following the rules.

Registering

The rule is administered by District of Columbia Department of Health (DC Health), Division of Food Safety; the guide reads D.C. Official Code §§ 7-742.01 to 7-742.03 (Cottage Food Business, Part C of the Department of Health Functions Clarification Act of 2001), added by the Cottage Food Amendment Act of 2013 (D.C. Law 20-63, effective January 25, 2014). Amended by the Cottage Food Expansion Amendment Act of 2019 (D.C. Law 23-61, effective March 10, 2020, which repealed the original twenty-five-thousand-dollar annual revenue cap, widened direct sale to anywhere in the District, and made the preoperational inspection discretionary) and by D.C. Law 26-7 (effective June 10, 2025, which added wholesale sale to a licensed food establishment). Implemented by Subtitle K of Title 25 of the D.C. Municipal Regulations (DCMR), the Cottage Food Regulations.

Everything goes to DC Health together: the Home Occupancy Permit, a calibrated scale if you sell by weight, your Certified Food Protection Manager credential, your product list and recipes, and your labels. Only the foods listed on your application are approved for you to make and sell.

Where you can sell, and whether online counts

The statute names direct sale, retail at a farmers market or public event, online sale, and, since a 2025 amendment, wholesale sale to a licensed food establishment, all within the District; selling or shipping outside the District is the one thing the law rules out flatly. A general retail sale at a restaurant's or grocery store's own counter is still off the table, which is different from the newer wholesale door that lets a licensed food establishment carry your product.

What goes on the label

Every label needs your cottage food business identification number, the product's name, an ingredient list by weight, net weight or volume, allergen information naming each tree nut specifically, and the exact disclosure sentence the regulation sets out in at least ten point type that contrasts with the label's background.

"Made by a cottage food business that is not subject to the District of Columbia's food safety regulations."

• Cottage food business identification number
• Name of the cottage food product
• Ingredients in descending order of predominance by weight
• Net weight or net volume of the product
• Allergen information under federal labeling rules, naming each tree nut by kind rather than the word "nuts"
• Nutrition information, only if you make a nutrition or health claim

What you can bake and sell

The District keeps a fixed list of approved products, mostly shelf-stable baked goods, candy, dry mixes and sugared preserves, and updates it by rule rather than by informal guidance; a recipe not on the list needs a lab-tested pH and water activity result before DC Health will approve it. Canning, hermetic sealing and anything needing refrigeration are excluded outright, along with meat, poultry, fish and dairy.

• Allowed: Baked goods without a cream, custard, cheese or meat filling (breads, biscuits, churros, muffins, rolls, scones, sweet breads), unfilled baked donuts, waffle cones, pizzelles, roasted coffee, cakes including celebration cakes, cereals, trail mix, granola, candies, pastries, pies, brownies, cookies, tortillas, caramel corn and other shelf-stable snacks, fruit pies, fruit empanadas, fruit tamales, jams, jellies, syrups, marmalades and other sugared preserves, honey and honeycomb (with beekeeping registration), dried pasta, dry herbs and seasoning blends, dry tea blends, dry baking mixes, and vinegar.
• Not allowed: Fish, shellfish, meat and poultry in any form; anything needing refrigeration such as cream, custard or meringue pies and cream-cheese-iced cakes; cheese made from unpasteurized milk; raw seed sprouts; raw cookie dough; any canned or hermetically sealed food, including canned fruit, vegetables, vegetable butters and salsas; milk and dairy products; cut fresh fruit or vegetables; sugar-free preserves; pumpkin or fruit butters; pressed juices; and anything not meant for human consumption such as pet treats.

The sales cap

The District of Columbia has no cap on cottage food sales; the original 2013 law capped a cottage food business at twenty-five thousand dollars in annual revenue; the Cottage Food Expansion Amendment Act of 2019 repealed that clause outright, effective March 10, 2020, and the current D.C. Code names no dollar limit of any kind.

Work out how much room you have left this year with the cottage food sales cap checker.

Questions people ask

Do I need to register to sell cottage food in the District of Columbia?

Yes, the District of Columbia requires registration before the first sale. Apply to DC Health's Division of Food Safety for a Cottage Food Business Registration Certificate: a Home Occupancy Permit from the Department of Buildings, proof of a calibrated scale if you sell anything by weight, a Certified Food Protection Manager credential, the list of products and recipes you want to sell, and your packaging labels. DC Health reviews the application and may run a preoperational inspection of your kitchen before issuing the certificate and identification number, though a visit is not automatic for every applicant. The fee is $50. It covers a certificate good for two years; a replacement certificate costs five dollars.

Has the cottage food sales cap in the District of Columbia changed over time?

No cap from March 10, 2020.

Can I take orders online in the District of Columbia?

Yes, you can take orders online. You can hand an order over in person or send it anywhere inside the District.

Can I deliver or ship cottage food in the District of Columbia?

Delivery is allowed. Shipping inside the District is allowed.

What does my District of Columbia cottage food label need to say?

The label must say: Made by a cottage food business that is not subject to the District of Columbia's food safety regulations.

Sources

• D.C. Official Code § 7-742.01, Cottage food business definitions (current codified text and amendment history)code.dccouncil.gov
• DC Health, Cottage Food Businessesdchealth.dc.gov
• DC Health, Cottage Food FAQ (September 2021)dchealth.dc.gov
• DC Health, Cottage Food Regulations, Notice of Final Rulemaking, 64 D.C. Register 52 (Dec. 29, 2017)dchealth.dc.gov
• Cottage Food Expansion Amendment Act of 2019, enrolled original (D.C. Act 23-193)lims.dccouncil.gov