Michigan cottage food law for home bakers

The short version

Michigan needs no license, caps sales at $50,000 a year, or $75,000 when every unit you sell is priced at or above the statute's threshold, and lets you sell online, by mail or through a delivery platform to a Michigan customer once they have met you face to face or by video first.

You can optionally register with Michigan State University's Product Center to print a number instead of your address; the cap was 20,000 dollars, then $25,000, before this year's rise.

Registering

The rule is administered by Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development; the guide reads MCL 289.4102 and 289.1105(k), Food Law (Act 92 of 2000), as amended by 2012 PA 178 (eff. 2012-10-01) and 2025 Act 51 (House Bill 4122, eff. 2026-03-24).

There is no license to hold. If you would rather not print your home address on your label, you can register once with the MSU Product Center for a one-time fee and use the number it issues instead. The department can still act on a violation even though it never evaluates or licenses your kitchen.

Where you can sell, and whether online counts

You can sell from home, online, by mail order, or through a third-party delivery app, as long as the sale is only to a Michigan customer and you have met that customer in person or over video first, before the sale. Consignment and wholesale stay off the table.

What goes on the label

The statement above, printed at least the size of 11-point type in a color that stands out. Your name and address go on the label, unless you registered for a number instead. The product name, its ingredients by weight, its net weight, and its allergens round it out.

• Your business name and address, or your name, phone number and MSU Product Center registration number if you registered
• The name of the cottage food product
• The ingredients in descending order of predominance by weight
• The net weight or net volume of the cottage food product
• Allergen labeling as federal law requires
• Any nutritional claim labeling federal law requires, if you make one

What you can bake and sell

Jams, jellies, dried fruit, candy, cereal, granola, dry mixes and baked goods that keep at room temperature are yours to sell. Salsa and other low-acid canned foods, meat, milk products and bottled beverages are not.

• Allowed: Baked goods, jams, jellies, dried fruit, candy, cereal, granola and dry mixes that do not need temperature control for safety
• Not allowed: Salsa and other low-acid or acidified canned foods, meat and poultry products, milk products, bottled water and other beverages, and anything that needs refrigeration

The sales cap

Michigan caps cottage food sales at $50,000 a year, counted as gross sales of cottage food products, computed on a per-person basis within or at a particular domestic residence.

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

What changed

October 1, 2012: 2012 PA 178 (House Bill 5130) set the cap at 20,000 dollars annually until 2017-12-31, then $25,000 after, computed on the whole residence rather than per person; this was the cap 2025 Act 51 superseded.

March 24, 2026: 2025 Act 51 (House Bill 4122) raised the cap to $50,000, or $75,000 for units priced at the statute's threshold or higher, authorized internet, mail-order and third-party delivery-platform sales to an in-state consumer after direct interaction, created the optional MSU Product Center registration, and switched the cap's computation basis from the whole residence to a per-person basis within it.

Questions people ask

Do I need to register to sell cottage food in Michigan?

No, Michigan does not require registration. No license; you may optionally register with the MSU Product Center for an identifying registration number to print on your label instead of your name and address. The fee is $50 one-time, only if you opt into the optional MSU Product Center registration.

What is the cottage food sales cap in Michigan?

Michigan caps cottage food sales at $50,000 a year, counted as gross sales of cottage food products, computed on a per-person basis within or at a particular domestic residence.

Can I take orders online in Michigan?

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

Can I deliver or ship cottage food in Michigan?

Delivery is allowed. Shipping inside the state is allowed.

What does my Michigan cottage food label need to say?

The label must say: Made in a home kitchen that has not been inspected by the Michigan department of agriculture and rural development.

Sources

Laws change; check the linked source before you sell.

• MCL 289.4102, Cottage food operationlegislature.mi.gov
• MCL 289.1105, Definitionslegislature.mi.gov
• 2025 Public Act 51 (House Bill 4122), enrolled textlegislature.mi.gov
• 2012 Public Act 178 (House Bill 5130), enrolled textlegislature.mi.gov