Proofsheet

Cottage food label requirements in Alabama

Cottage Food Law (Cottage Food Production Operations), Ala. Code § 22-20-5.1 (as amended by Act 2021-461, SB160). Regulated by Alabama Department of Public Health (via county health departments). Checked against state sources on .

Not fully verified. We could not confirm every detail for Alabama on a primary state source when we checked. Treat these items as unconfirmed and check them with Alabama Department of Public Health (via county health departments) before you print: disclaimerText, permitType, statuteCitation.

The statement your label needs

This food is not inspected by the Alabama Department of Public Health or local health department

Type size and placement: Label information in at least size 10-point font

What is different in Alabama

  • No annual sales cap
  • Mail delivery allowed within Alabama only
  • No consignment, retail store or restaurant sales
  • QR code cannot replace contact info or ingredient list
  • pH/water-activity verification needed for fermented and freeze-dried foods
Permit
Registration required. No food service permit required by statute. Submit a Cottage Food Review Form, food safety course certificate and product labels to the county health department for review; fees vary by county. Approved food safety course required; certificate must be kept current. Home kitchen not inspected.
Sales cap
No annual sales cap found in state sources
Where you can sell
Directly to consumers in Alabama, in person, by phone or online; delivery in person, through an agent, or by mail within the state.
Online orders
Yes
Ship in state
Yes
Ship out of state
No
Sell to shops / cafés
No
Allowed foods
Non-TCS foods excluding meat, poultry and fish: baked goods, jams/jellies/preserves, candy, dried herbs/vegetables/fruits, roasted coffee, dried baking mixes, and fermented/preserved produce with acidity verified. ADPH also allows freeze-dried foods with water-activity verification.

What a Alabama cottage food label must show

  1. Common or usual name of the food
  2. Name of the cottage food production operation
  3. Home or P.O. Box address of the operation
  4. Statement that the food is not inspected by the department or local health department
  5. List of ingredients in descending order of predominance
  6. Disclaimer that the food may contain allergens

Federal rules still apply on top: ingredients in descending order by weight (21 CFR 101.4), the nine major allergens declared by name (FALCPA and the FASTER Act), and net quantity in ounces and grams (21 CFR 101.7). Alabama allows cottage food orders online or by phone. Shipping within the state is allowed, and products may not cross state lines.

Make a Alabama label now

The Alabama statement is already on it. Type your ingredients, tick the allergens and print on Avery sheets or a thermal roll. To have the ingredient order and allergens worked out from a costed recipe, use the workbench.

List by weight in the recipe, largest first, with sub-ingredients in parentheses. The workbench does this ordering for you from a recipe.
Contains (major food allergens)

Still missing: business name and address.

Print at 100% scale with no margins. Check the result against Alabama’s rules above before selling.

Chocolate chip cookies
Ingredients: Enriched flour (wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), semisweet chocolate (sugar, chocolate, cocoa butter, soy lecithin), butter (cream), brown sugar, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract, baking soda, salt.
Contains: Milk, Egg, Wheat, Soy.
Net Wt 3 oz (85 g)
This food is not inspected by the Alabama Department of Public Health or local health department

True size. Alabama statement at 10 pt minimum.

Alabama cottage food questions

What statement has to be on a Alabama cottage food label?

Alabama requires: “This food is not inspected by the Alabama Department of Public Health or local health department” (Label information in at least size 10-point font).

Do I need a permit to sell baked goods from home in Alabama?

Registration required. No food service permit required by statute. Submit a Cottage Food Review Form, food safety course certificate and product labels to the county health department for review; fees vary by county. Approved food safety course required; certificate must be kept current. Home kitchen not inspected.

Is there a sales limit for cottage food in Alabama?

No annual cap appears in the state sources we checked. No cap; Act 2021-461 removed the former $20,000 gross income limit.

Can I sell cottage food online or ship it in Alabama?

Alabama allows cottage food orders online or by phone. Shipping within the state is allowed, and products may not cross state lines.

Sources

  1. Act 2021-461 (SB160 Enrolled) amending Ala. Code § 22-20-5.1 (statute)
  2. Alabama Department of Public Health: Cottage Food (agency)

Checked October 17, 2026. This is a checklist built from the sources above, not legal advice. Rules change; your county or the agency has the final word. Spotted something out of date? The about page explains how we check.

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