Can I sell food from home in Colorado?

Q: Can I sell food from home in Colorado?

Yes. Colorado lets you make certain foods at home and sell them, under the Colorado Cottage Foods Act (amended by HB26-1033, the 'Tamale Act'). No state permit, license or registration is needed (training, a food handler card or local rules may still apply; see below). Sales cap: $10,000 a year (see details). Last checked 2026-10-25. Not legal advice.

AllowedOnline ordersShips in-stateNo store sales

Yes. Colorado lets you make certain foods at home and sell them, under the Colorado Cottage Foods Act (amended by HB26-1033, the 'Tamale Act'). No state permit, license or registration is needed (training, a food handler card or local rules may still apply; see below). Sales cap: $10,000 a year (see details).

Law change coming 2027-01-01. HB26-1033 (Tamale Act): annual CDPHE registration, a $150,000 gross annual revenue cap for all cottage foods (inflation-adjusted yearly), one TCS food type with up to 5 variations, and new label items (registration number, county, CDPHE website).

Sales cap from 2027-01-01: $150,000 gross revenue per calendar year from all food sold under C.R.S. 25-4-1614 (from Jan 1, 2027, per HB26-1033). CDPHE adjusts the cap each year for Denver-Aurora-Lakewood CPI-U, so check CDPHE for the current figure.
Permit from 2027-01-01: From Jan 1, 2027: register with CDPHE every year before selling, listing the types of food you plan to sell. You get a registration number, and there is a public registry. Everyone must take a food safety course (CSU Extension or comparable) and stay in good standing. TCS sellers need additional time/temperature training. Inspection or sampling happens only on a complaint, misbranding or illness.

The facts below are the rules in force until then. Source: HB26-1033, sections 2 and 8; C.R.S. 25-4-1614 as amended

Not legal advice. This page is a research summary, not legal advice. Laws change, and cities and counties can add their own rules. Confirm with your state agency and local health department, using the official sources below, before you sell.

Colorado cottage food law at a glance

Home food sales allowed	yes Colorado Cottage Foods Act (amended by HB26-1033, the 'Tamale Act')
Law	C.R.S. § 25-4-1614 (amended by HB26-1033, signed June 4, 2026; § 25-4-1614 changes operative Jan 1, 2027)
Sales cap	Through Dec 31, 2026: $10,000 net revenue per eligible product per calendar year. From Jan 1, 2027: $150,000 gross revenue per calendar year for all cottage foods, adjusted annually for Denver CPI.
Permit or registration	none. Currently no license or inspection; producer must complete a food safety course (CSU Extension or comparable) and stay in good standing. Starting Jan 1, 2027: mandatory annual registration with CDPHE (registration number, public registry); TCS sellers need additional time/temperature training. Inspection/sampling only on complaint, misbranding, or illness; fines up to $100 and cost recovery up to $1,000 from 2027.
Sell in person	yes
Take online orders	yes
Ship within the state	yes
Ship to other states	no
Sell to shops and cafes	no
Where you can sell, details	Sales directly to informed end consumers only (home, farmers markets, events, roadside stands); no wholesale, restaurants, or retail resale. In-state online sales allowed since SB16-058 (2016) and mail/delivery per secondary sources. From 2027, TCS foods transported before delivery must be held at safe temperature, transported once, and for no more than 2 hours.

yes = allowed; limited = allowed with conditions; no = not allowed; unverified = we could not confirm it from an official source.

What foods can you sell from home in Colorado?

Allowed: Current: non-potentially hazardous foods such as baked goods, candies, jams/jellies/preserves/fruit butter, pickled fruits and vegetables (pH 4.6 or below), spices, teas, dehydrated produce, nuts, seeds, honey, flour, fruit empanadas, tortillas; whole eggs up to 250 dozen/month. From 2027: also one type of packaged TCS food (e.g., tamales, burritos, tortas) with up to 5 variations; meat must be federally inspected or exempt.

Not allowed: Current: TCS/perishable foods, meat products, and other potentially hazardous foods. Also excluded (explicit from 2027): raw milk, low-acid canned foods, TCS fermented/acidified foods, alcohol beverages, cannabinoid foods, foods smoked/cured/reduced-oxygen processed for preservation.

Label requirements in Colorado

Required statement: This product was produced in a home kitchen that is not subject to state licensure or inspection and that may also process common food allergens such as tree nuts, peanuts, eggs, soy, wheat, milk, fish, and crustacean shellfish. This product is not intended for resale. exact wording from an official source

Other label items: Current (C.R.S. 25-4-1614(3)): product name; producer name, address where prepared, and phone or email; date produced; complete ingredient list; and the statement above. A sign at the point of sale must also read: "This product was produced in a home kitchen that is not subject to state licensure or inspection. This product is not intended for resale." From Jan 1, 2027: department-issued registration number and county (instead of address), plus a CDPHE-provided website for illness reporting and registration verification. The statement and the sign wording do not change.

Selling from home in Colorado? The Cottage Kitchen Toolkit prices your recipes for markets, pre-orders and shops. It scales batches and prints ingredient and allergen labels with Colorado's required statement filled in. It also has this guide for all 50 states and DC. One-time price, and it works offline.

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Notes

MAJOR CHANGE: HB26-1033 signed June 4, 2026; cottage food statute changes take effect January 1, 2027 (registration, $150,000 gross cap, TCS/meat-containing foods allowed, new label elements). Exact current label wording is in statute but only confirmed via a secondary source (Forrager, 2024). Online/mail details from secondary sources. Producers may not split into multiple entities to evade the cap. Round 2 (2026-10-24): the signed act (official PDF, scanned text) was read. Section 8 makes the 25-4-1614 changes take effect January 1, 2027. The cap becomes $150,000 gross revenue per calendar year from food permitted under the section, and CDPHE 'shall annually adjust the cap' for Denver-Aurora-Lakewood CPI-U. Producers must register annually with the department before selling. Labels must add the department-issued registration number, the county, and a department website for illness reports and registration checks. The home-kitchen statement item is unchanged in the act, but its exact wording was not legible in the scan. These 2027 values are stored as a pending change that applies automatically on that date. Label check (2026-10-25): the disclaimer in 25-4-1614(3)(a)(V) and the sign in (3)(c) were read verbatim in the OLLS print of C.R.S. 2024; HB26-1033 leaves both unchanged in 2027. The statute's allergen list in the disclaimer does not include sesame; print it as written (the separate Contains line covers sesame).

Sources

C.R.S. 2024 Title 25 (Colorado OLLS print; 25-4-1614) official
Colorado General Assembly - HB26-1033 Signed Act (Tamale Act) official
Colorado General Assembly - HB26-1033 bill page official
Colorado General Assembly - SB16-058 official
Forrager - Colorado Cottage Food Law secondary

Last checked: 2026-10-25 · confidence: medium (high = key facts confirmed on an official page; medium = partly confirmed or secondary sources agree; low = a single secondary or outdated source). Summaries are our own wording, not the text of the law.

This page is a research summary, not legal advice. Laws change, and cities and counties can add their own rules. Confirm with your state agency and local health department, using the official sources below, before you sell.

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