Nevada cottage food law for home bakers

The short version

Nevada is mid-transition. 2025 AB 352 already repeals NRS 446.866 and rewrites the cottage food scheme, but its own effective-date section delays the substantive change to July 1, 2027. Until then the OLD law (this row) governs: $35,000 cap, local health-authority registration, in-person-only sales, no telephone or internet sales at all.

This is the most consequential 'coming soon' change for a home baker selling through an online marketplace: she cannot lawfully take an online or phone order in Nevada today, but will be able to (fulfilled in person, by mail, or via a food delivery platform) starting July 1, 2027, once she holds a Department of Agriculture license instead of a health-authority registration and her cap rises to $100,000.

Registering

The rule is administered by The local health authority (e.g. Southern Nevada Health District for Clark County, Washoe County Health District, Carson City Health and Human Services) or the state Division of Public and Behavioral Health (DPBH) elsewhere. Administration transfers to the Nevada Department of Agriculture on July 1, 2027 under 2025 AB 352.; the guide reads NRS 446.866 (Exemption from certain requirements; registration; fee; inspection), currently in force. 2025 Assembly Bill 352 (enrolled, Statutes of Nevada 2025) repeals NRS 446.866 (§28) and re-enacts a revised cottage food operation scheme within NRS chapter 585 (Sec. 12-19.5 of the act), but §29(2)(b) delays that repeal and re-enactment until July 1, 2027 for all but administrative prep purposes; until then, NRS 446.866 as it reads today remains the operative law.

Reported county fees vary widely in secondary sources (over two hundred dollars a year for Clark County/Southern Nevada Health District vs. no fee in Carson City); each district's current number could not be verified against that district's own fee schedule.

Where you can sell, and whether online counts

Some legislative trackers describe the post-2027 law as codified at 'NRS 580.600'; the enrolled AB352 text places the new sections inside NRS chapter 585 (cottage cosmetics and cottage food) rather than chapter 580, so the exact final codification is flagged as unconfirmed pending the official 2027 NRS republication.

What goes on the label

Minimum font size for the required label statement was not found in either the current statute or the AB352 text.

"MADE IN A COTTAGE FOOD OPERATION THAT IS NOT SUBJECT TO GOVERNMENT FOOD SAFETY INSPECTION"

• The exact statement above, printed prominently
• Compliance with federal labeling requirements (allergen disclosure under 21 U.S.C. §343(w))
• Packaging that protects the food from contamination during transport, display, sale, and acquisition by consumers

What you can bake and sell

• Allowed: Non-hazardous, home-produced food sold directly to consumers; current guidance and the near-identical future statutory list both point to shelf-stable baked goods, jams, candies, and dried goods as the core category.
• Not allowed: Potentially hazardous/TCS food. The not-yet-effective 2027 law is explicit that baked goods containing cream, uncooked egg, custard meringue, or cream cheese frosting or garnishes are excluded even though otherwise non-hazardous-looking; whether this specific carve-out is already implicit in current law's general 'not potentially hazardous' standard was not confirmed.

The sales cap

Nevada caps cottage food sales at $35,000 a year until June 30, 2027, then $100,000 from July 1, 2027, counted as Gross sales of the cottage food operation (total revenue), not per product.

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

What changed

July 1, 2027: 2025 AB 352 repeals NRS 446.866 and re-enacts the cottage food operation exemption administered by the Nevada Department of Agriculture instead of local health authorities. Raises the gross-sales cap from $35,000 to $100,000/year, requires a Department-issued license (not mere registration, and including a child-support-compliance statement), and affirmatively authorizes selling 'by telephone or via the Internet' with fulfillment 'in person, by mail or through a food delivery service platform.' The same act raises Nevada's separate craft food (acidified food) operation cap from $35,000 to $100,000 and allows craft-food telephone/internet orders fulfilled in person..

Questions people ask

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

Yes, Nevada requires registration before the first sale. Register with the health authority (name, address, contact information, and any business/DBA name) before selling any food item. Fee: Set by the health authority administering registration in the baker's county or district (Southern Nevada Health District, Washoe County, Carson City HHS, or DPBH elsewhere), capped by statute at that authority's actual cost to establish and maintain the registry; not a fixed statewide number.

Has the cottage food sales cap in Nevada changed over time?

$100,000 a year from July 1, 2027, up from $35,000 on January 1, 2013, counted as Gross sales of the cottage food operation (total revenue), not per product.

Can I take orders online in Nevada?

No, online orders are not allowed. The handover has to happen in person.

Can I deliver or ship cottage food in Nevada?

Delivery is not allowed. Shipping inside the state is not allowed.

What does my Nevada cottage food label need to say?

The label must say: MADE IN A COTTAGE FOOD OPERATION THAT IS NOT SUBJECT TO GOVERNMENT FOOD SAFETY INSPECTION

Sources

• NRS 446.866, current text (nevada.public.law)nevada.public.law
• Nevada AB352 (2025), enrolled textarchive.leg.state.nv.us
• NRS Chapter 446 official text (leg.state.nv.us)leg.state.nv.us
• NRS Chapter 580 official text (leg.state.nv.us)leg.state.nv.us