Which laws apply

• Cottage food operator exemption
• Food processor exemption (nonbakery, $10,000 or less gross annual sales)
• Home bakery license
• Home caterer license

Allowed foods

Cottage foods are lower-risk, shelf-stable foods that do not require refrigeration or time/temperature control for safety. The Manufactured Food Rule (Ch. 5, Subch. 1, §4.1.6) lists: non-potentially hazardous baked goods (e.g., breads, cookies), candy, jams and jellies, dry herbs, trail mix, granola, cereal, mixed nuts, flavored vinegar, popcorn, coffee beans, dry tea, and home-canned pickles, vegetables, or fruits with equilibrium pH of 4.6 or lower or water activity of 0.85 or less made with National Center for Home Food Preservation-approved recipes or reviewed by a food processing authority for safety. TCS (time/temperature control for safety) foods are excluded — e.g., quiche, cheese danish, cheesecake, meats, poultry, fish, dairy, eggs, cooked plant-based foods, and other refrigerated foods. Dehydrated meats are not cottage foods; dehydration of fruits and vegetables is a specialized process that is not covered by the exemption. Food made under a license exemption may not be sold to restaurants or other licensed food establishments.

Sales caps

Cottage food operators may have gross annual sales of up to $30,000 from cottage food products and remain exempt from licensure and licensing fees; nonbakery food manufacturing establishments with gross annual sales of $10,000 or less are also exempt (Manufactured Food Rule §6.1.1; VDH guidance confirms the two exemptions can be combined — up to $30,000 of cottage foods plus up to $10,000 of processed foods). No future scheduled cap change was found — the $30,000 threshold took effect July 1, 2025 under Act 42 and remains current.

Permit steps

1. No license is required to claim the cottage food operator exemption (gross annual sales of $30,000 or less from cottage food products) or the food processor exemption (nonbakery food manufacturing establishment with gross annual sales of $10,000 or less) — say so explicitly: these are exemption paths, not licenses.
2. Before beginning manufacturing (and annually thereafter), complete the Health Department's approved online training in food handling, cleanliness, sanitation, and healthfulness (per 18 V.S.A. §4303(a)(7) and Manufactured Food Rule §6.2.2).
3. Each calendar year, file the Department's licensing exemption filing/attestation (by January 15 annually; VDH required a new filing by January 15, 2026 for operators who had filed under the prior system) attesting to completion of the training and compliance with the rule (Manufactured Food Rule §6.1).
4. Label all products per Manufactured Food Rule §6.2.1, including the physical home-kitchen address and the 'Made in a home kitchen not inspected by the Vermont Department of Health' statement.
5. If you exceed the exemption caps, apply to the Health Department for the appropriate license at least 30 days before operating (application + fee per 18 V.S.A. §4353, product list, water test results for private wells, wastewater permit documentation, local permit/zoning approval) and pass an opening inspection.
6. If you prepare meals in your home kitchen to sell directly to customers or prep food at home for cooking later at an event/farmers market, you need a Home Caterer License (the exemption does not cover prepared meals).

How to start in Vermont

1) Confirm your product is a 'cottage food product' under the Manufactured Food Rule §4.1.6 (shelf-stable, non-TCS); if unsure, submit a Cottage Food Product Review Request Form to the Health Department for a determination. 2) Produce only in the kitchen of your private residential dwelling or a kitchen on your personal property — a rented kitchen (even a licensed commercial one) does not qualify. 3) Before you begin selling (and annually after), complete the Vermont Department of Health's free online training on the Manufactured Food Rule and food safety. 4) File the Health Department's license exemption form/attestation (online self-attestation) — by January 15, 2026 for the first cycle under the new law, and by January 15 each year after. 5) Label every product per Rule §6.2.1: operation name and physical address (not a P.O. box), product name, ingredients in descending order, net weight/volume, federal allergen information, and the statement 'Made in a home kitchen not inspected by the Vermont Department of Health' in at least 10-point contrasting type. 6) Track gross receipts to stay within the $30,000 cottage-food cap ($10,000 cap for other processed foods); if you will exceed the cap, apply to VDH for the appropriate license before crossing it. 7) Check with your town/municipality and other agencies for any local permits (e.g., zoning) that apply.

Recent changes

The biggest 2024–2026 change is Act 42 (H.401, 'An act relating to exemptions for food manufacturing establishments'), enacted by the 2025 General Assembly and effective July 1, 2025. It replaced the old home-kitchen licensing exemption (average gross retail sales ≤$125/week, enacted 2017 via Act 76 §5 and never adjusted for inflation) with a $30,000/year cottage-food-operator exemption, added statutory definitions for cottage food products, cottage food operators, and cottage food operations, and required VDH to adopt training rules plus an annual licensing-exemption filing with a training attestation. VDH implemented it first through a Manufactured Food Emergency Rule (effective July 1, 2025, revised August 12, 2025) and then through the final adopted Manufactured Food Rule (Chapter 5, Subchapter 1), effective January 15, 2026, which sets the operative definitions, the $30,000 cottage-food and $10,000 nonbakery-processor exemptions, labeling (§6.2.1), and training (§6.2.2) requirements. No 2026 follow-up legislation and no pending bills were identified in this research pass; nothing is pending.

Official sources

• Vermont Department of Health — Home-Based Food Licenses and Exemptions (updated June 3, 2026)
• Vermont Department of Health — Manufactured Food Rule, Chapter 5 Subchapter 1 (Final Adopted Rule, effective January 15, 2026)
• Vermont Legislature — Bill Status H.401 (Act 42), An act relating to exemptions for food manufacturing establishments
• Vermont Legislature — 18 V.S.A. §4351 (license from Department of Health)
• Vermont Joint Fiscal Office — H.401 fiscal note (fee and exemption changes)