Illinois Cottage Food Law (2026): Registration, Foods, Labels and Where to Sell

Last verified: October 27, 2026 · Written by the UrbanAgLaw.org Editorial Team

Baskets of chocolate muffins and powdered-sugar pastries on a market stall

Quick answer: Yes, you can sell food from home in Illinois as a cottage food operation, but you must register with your local health department and hold a Certified Food Protection Manager certificate. Under the Illinois cottage food law you can make any food or drink that is not on the prohibited list, sell it directly to consumers at markets, events, from home, by delivery or online, and ship it within Illinois. Every product needs a label with the state’s home kitchen statement, and the same notice must appear where you sell.

At a glance

Registration: Required with the local health department where you live. The department may charge a fee of up to $50 and may require you to register every year.
Sales limit: Neither University of Illinois Extension nor current county registration materials describe a dollar sales limit
Allowed foods: Any food or drink not on the prohibited list, including baked goods, jams, candy, dried foods, roasted coffee, and (with extra steps) pickles, fermented foods and canned tomatoes
Not allowed: Meat, poultry, fish and shellfish, custard and cream pies, cheesecake, low-acid canned foods, sprouts, kombucha, alcoholic beverages and other items on the prohibited list
Where you can sell: Directly to consumers anywhere in Illinois: farmers markets, fairs, events, home or farm pickup, delivery, online and in-state shipping. No sales to stores, restaurants or distributors.
Training required: Yes, an ANSI-accredited Certified Food Protection Manager (CFPM) certificate for everyone who prepares or packages the food

Who the Illinois cottage food law covers

Illinois cottage food operations are governed by section 4 of the Food Handling Regulation Enforcement Act. The Home-to-Market Act (Public Act 102-0633) made major changes that took effect on January 1, 2022. A cottage food operation makes food or drink in a home kitchen and sells it directly to consumers for their own use, not for resale. You may have employees, but every person who prepares or packages the food must hold a Certified Food Protection Manager certificate; staff who only handle sales or marketing do not need one.

What you can sell

Illinois uses a prohibited list instead of an allowed list: any food or drink that is not on the list can be made, as long as you follow the extra steps for higher-risk products. Low-risk, shelf-stable foods include jams, jellies, preserves and syrups, fruit butters and fruit pies, bread, tortillas and cookies, dried fruits, vegetables and spices, roasted or ground coffee and nuts, and candies and caramels.

Some foods are allowed only with extra steps. Acidified and fermented foods such as pickles, kimchi and hot sauce need a tested recipe, or a written food safety plan and a pH test of a representative product. Canned tomatoes and tomato products such as salsa need a tested recipe from the USDA National Center for Home Food Preservation or a state extension office, or a pH test for each recipe. A health department may ask for a lab test on baked goods made with cheese.

Can you sell it under the Illinois cottage food law?
Food	Allowed?
Bread, tortillas, cookies and scones	Yes
Jams, jellies, preserves and syrups	Yes
Fruit butters, fruit pies and fruit pastries	Yes
Dried fruits, vegetables, spices and herbal teas	Yes
Roasted or ground coffee and nuts	Yes
Candies and caramels	Yes
Cakes and cupcakes with frostings or icings	Yes, with conditions your health department may ask about the recipe
Pickles, kimchi, hot sauce and other acidified or fermented foods	Yes, with conditions a tested recipe, or a food safety plan and pH test
Canned tomatoes and salsa	Yes, with conditions a tested recipe or a pH test for each recipe
Baked goods with cheese	Yes, with conditions the health department may require a lab test
Meat, poultry, fish and shellfish	No
Pumpkin, sweet potato, custard and cream pies, and cheesecake	No
Low-acid canned foods	No
Garlic in oil that is not acidified	No
Cut or pureed fresh tomato or melon	No
Sprouts and wild-harvested mushrooms	No
Kombucha and alcoholic beverages	No

Illinois allows any food or drink that is not on the prohibited list. Rows follow University of Illinois Extension guidance and the Cook County Department of Public Health registration form; your local health department has the final word on your products.

Registration, fees and inspections

Register with the local health department in the county where you live before you start selling. The registration form asks for your Certified Food Protection Manager certificate, a sample label for each product type and, if you use a private well, water test results. The local health department may charge a registration fee of up to $50; the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) and the Illinois Department of Agriculture do not charge one. Keep a copy of your certificate of registration, because IDPH or any local health department can ask to see it.

There are no routine inspections, but IDPH or a local health department can inspect your home kitchen after a complaint, during an illness outbreak or when it suspects an imminent health hazard, charge a reasonable inspection fee and stop sales until the problem is fixed. A registration can be revoked if the problem cannot be resolved.

Illinois cottage food label requirements

All products must be prepackaged in your home kitchen and labeled. The label must include:

the name of your cottage food operation and the unit of local government (county, township, city or village) where it is located;
your registration number and the name of the county or municipality where you registered;
the common or usual name of the food;
all ingredients in descending order of weight, including colors, artificial flavors and preservatives;
the net weight, not counting packaging;
the date the product was made;
allergen labeling under federal rules, which cover milk, eggs, wheat, peanuts, soybeans, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts and sesame;
this statement in prominent lettering: “This product was produced in a home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common food allergens. If you have safety concerns, contact your local health department.”

The same notice must be shown at the point of sale: on a placard at a market booth or pickup location (Cook County asks for at least 8 by 10 inches) and as a message on your online checkout. For items that are hard to package, such as wedding cakes, you can ask your local health department for a packaging exemption; if it agrees, put all label information on a receipt that goes with the product. You may also call products “Illinois Grown,” “Illinois-Sourced” or “Illinois Farm Product” if you use ingredients bought directly from an Illinois farm.

Name and locationExample Home Bakery
Example Township, Example County
operation name and the unit of local government where it is located

RegistrationRegistration #12345, Example County
your local health department registration number and where you registered

Product nameCinnamon Raisin Bread

IngredientsWheat flour, water, raisins, sugar, butter (milk), cinnamon, yeast, salt
in descending order of weight, including colors, flavors and preservatives

Net weightNet Wt. 20 oz (567 g)

Date madeMade on 10/27/2026

AllergensContains: wheat, milk

Required statementThis product was produced in a home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common food allergens. If you have safety concerns, contact your local health department.
in prominent lettering

Example label with the parts Illinois requires. The business, location, registration number and recipe are made up.

Where you can sell

In person: farmers markets, fairs, festivals, pop-up stands and other public events, an on-farm store, and pickup from your home or farm if local law allows it.
Delivery and pickup: you can deliver directly to the customer, or arrange pickup at a third party’s private property with the owner’s consent.
Online and shipping: online sales are allowed, and you can ship within Illinois if each product is sealed in a way that shows tampering. Cottage foods may not be shipped across state lines.
Anywhere in Illinois: you can sell outside your own city or county.

You cannot sell to restaurants, grocery stores, bakeries or other retailers, to distributors for resale, or to third-party distributors that deliver for you.

Training and insurance

Everyone who prepares or packages your products needs an ANSI-accredited Certified Food Protection Manager certificate. University of Illinois Extension also offers cottage food training. The cottage food rules we reviewed do not require insurance, but markets and events may ask for it. See our guide to liability, risk and insurance.

Local rules, Chicago and HOAs

A unit of local government can limit home pickup through rules that apply to all cottage food operations, such as parking, signs or customer counts. In a municipality with 1,000,000 or more residents, which in Illinois means Chicago, you must also follow the city’s laws for all home-based businesses. Private rules apply too, so read your HOA covenants and lease.

Frequently asked questions

Can I sell food from home in Illinois?

Yes. Register as a cottage food operation with your local health department, get a Certified Food Protection Manager certificate, and make only foods that are not on the prohibited list. You can then sell directly to consumers anywhere in Illinois.

Is roasted coffee allowed under the Illinois cottage food law?

Yes. Roasted or ground coffee is listed among the low-risk, shelf-stable products on the Cook County registration form, and it is not on the prohibited list.

Can I sell cottage food online and ship it in Illinois?

Yes. Online sales are allowed if the required notice appears at checkout, and you can ship within Illinois in tamper-evident packaging. You cannot ship across state lines.

Do I need a food handler card or a manager certificate?

A manager certificate. Illinois requires an ANSI-accredited Certified Food Protection Manager certificate for each person who prepares or packages cottage foods.

How much does Illinois cottage food registration cost?

Up to $50, charged by your local health department. Some health departments require you to renew every year.

Can I sell pickles or salsa under the Illinois cottage food law?

Yes, with extra steps: a tested recipe, or a food safety plan with a pH test for pickles and other acidified foods, and a tested recipe or pH test for salsa and canned tomatoes.

Note on conflicting sources

Wording of the point-of-sale notice differs slightly between sources: University of Illinois Extension shows a placard that says the product was produced in a home kitchen “not subject to public health inspection,” while the Cook County registration form uses the same statement as the label. We show the label statement above; ask your health department which wording it wants on your placard. Some websites still list an annual sales cap of $36,000; the current guidance we reviewed does not mention one, but we could not open the statute text itself, so confirm with your local health department.

Official sources

Illinois Food Handling Regulation Enforcement Act, section 4 (410 ILCS 625/4), as amended by the Home-to-Market Act, Public Act 102-0633 (effective January 1, 2022)
Cook County Department of Public Health: Application for Cottage Food Operations Registration (2026)
University of Illinois Extension: Cottage Food (Allowed Foods, Prohibited Foods, Food Labeling and Placards, Where You Can Sell, Regulation Questions)
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA): Food Allergies (FASTER Act, sesame)

This page is general information, not legal advice. Laws change, so check the official sources above or contact your local health department before you start selling.