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Texas cottage food label rules

What has to be on the label when you sell homemade baked goods in Texas, and the limits that matter at a market. Checked September 2026.

Another state Mostly confirmed. Check the open points below

Your label must include

Name of the cottage food production operation
Address (or DSHS unique identification number)
Common or usual name of the product
Major food allergens (eggs, tree nuts, soy, peanuts, milk, wheat, sesame, etc.)
Required statement
Date made (TCS foods)
Batch number (pickled/fermented foods)

Required statement

“THIS PRODUCT WAS PRODUCED IN A PRIVATE RESIDENCE THAT IS NOT SUBJECT TO GOVERNMENTAL LICENSING OR INSPECTION.”

Label must be legible. TCS foods also need the date made and SAFE HANDLING INSTRUCTIONS in at least 12-point font. Foods too large or bulky to package can have label information on an invoice or receipt. Vendors must post the disclosure statement near the display. The old ‘This food is made in a home kitchen and is not inspected by the Department of State Health Services...’ wording is out of date.

Brown Butter Toffee Cookies

Sunny Crumb Co. · 123 Palm Ave, Your City, TX 00000

Contains: wheat, milk, eggs, tree nuts (almond), soy.

THIS PRODUCT WAS PRODUCED IN A PRIVATE RESIDENCE THAT IS NOT SUBJECT TO GOVERNMENTAL LICENSING OR INSPECTION.

Baked on 10/03/2026

[Batch number (pickled/fermented foods)]

Sample label for illustration, made from the checklist above. Your own label has to match your recipe and your state’s exact rules.

Key limits in Texas

Permit: No permit for non-TCS foods like cookies; DSHS registration required only for TCS foods or to use a DSHS unique ID number instead of a home address (third-party ‘cottage food vendors’ must also register).
Training: Accredited food handler training required (Health & Safety Code ch. 438, subch. D)
Sales cap: $150,000 annual gross income (indexed for inflation going forward)
Where you can sell: Direct to consumers in Texas, including farmers markets, farm stands and events; registered cottage food vendors may sell non-TCS items for the operator at farmers markets, farm stands, food service establishments (restaurants) and retail stores.
Online & shipping: Online/phone orders allowed only if the operator, an employee or a household member personally delivers to the consumer in Texas; no mail/parcel shipping, in-state or out-of-state.
Law: Cottage Food Production Operations, Tex. Health & Safety Code ch. 437 (§ 437.0191-.0196), as amended by SB 541 (89th Leg., 2025), effective Sept. 1, 2025

What we could not confirm (4)

Cap: House committee substitute said $100,000 with CPI adjustment; DSHS and secondary sources say the enacted figure is $150,000 — went with DSHS; current inflation-adjusted figure not confirmed
Could not load enrolled bill text; minimum font size for the main statement not confirmed
DSHS list does not include ingredients or net weight — confirm before omitting from labels
Registration fee (if any) not confirmed

Check with: Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS)

Last change to the law: Sept. 1, 2025 (SB 541)

Sources

Made by BakersKeep

Set up this label once. Print it for every cookie.

BakersKeep builds your Texas label from each recipe: ingredients in order, allergens and the required statement. Change a recipe and every label updates. It also prices your cookies, takes pre-orders and writes the week’s posts.

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This page is general information, not legal advice. Rules change and counties can add their own. Confirm with Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) before you print. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.

Texas cottage food label rules

Your label must include

Required statement

Set up this label once. Print it for every cookie.

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