Can I sell food from home in Georgia?

Q: Can I sell food from home in Georgia?

Yes. Georgia lets you make certain foods at home and sell them, under the Cottage Food (as revised by HB 398, 2025). No state permit, license or registration is needed (training, a food handler card or local rules may still apply; see below). There is no state sales cap. Last checked 2026-10-25. Not legal advice.

AllowedOnline ordersShipping: unverifiedSells to stores

Yes. Georgia lets you make certain foods at home and sell them, under the Cottage Food (as revised by HB 398, 2025). No state permit, license or registration is needed (training, a food handler card or local rules may still apply; see below). There is no state sales cap.

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.

Georgia cottage food law at a glance

Home food sales allowed	yes Cottage Food (as revised by HB 398, 2025)
Law	HB 398 (2025), reportedly codified at O.C.G.A. 26-2-470 et seq. (section numbers from a secondary source); Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 40-7-19 (being revised to match HB 398)
Sales cap	No cap found
Permit or registration	none. HB 398 removed the GDA license, its fee, and pre-licensing kitchen inspections; GDA still investigates complaints and illness reports. An optional GDA Identification Number can replace the home address on labels. Training is unclear: GDA's page still lists ANSI-accredited food safety training, but a secondary source says HB 398 removed it.
Sell in person	yes
Take online orders	yes
Ship within the state	unverified
Ship to other states	unverified
Sell to shops and cafes	yes
Where you can sell, details	HB 398 allows sales to retail food sales establishments (grocery stores, convenience stores, restaurants). Cities and counties may opt out of these third-party sales by ordinance, and may not bar commercial carriers from delivering cottage food. The old rule and GDA guidance banned shipping across state lines; a secondary source says HB 398 now allows interstate sales (not confirmed).

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 Georgia?

Allowed: Non-potentially hazardous foods only. GDA examples: loaf breads, rolls, biscuits, cakes, pastries, cookies, candy, fruit pies, jams and jellies, dried fruit, dry herbs and seasoning mixes, cereals, trail mix, granola, nuts, vinegar, popcorn, and cotton candy.

Not allowed: Potentially hazardous foods requiring refrigeration (e.g. cream or custard fillings, cheesecake), meat products including jerky, and low-acid canned foods. Pet food and treats need a separate GDA feed license.

Label requirements in Georgia

Required statement: This product was produced at a residential property that is exempt from state inspection. This product may contain allergens. exact wording from an official source

Other label items: O.C.G.A. 26-2-473 (HB 398, effective July 1, 2025): the business name, address and telephone number (or a GDA-issued identification number instead of the address), and the statement above in at least 10-point font. It goes on the package label, a bulk-container label, a point-of-sale placard for unpackaged items, or the web page for internet sales; for phone or custom orders it may be given orally. Third-party vendors must label a separate section or display case as containing cottage food items that are exempt from state inspection. The older rule 40-7-19-.09 (not yet amended) also lists product name, ingredients by weight, net quantity and FDA allergen labeling.

Selling from home in Georgia? The Cottage Kitchen Toolkit prices your recipes for markets, pre-orders and shops. It scales batches and prints ingredient and allergen labels with Georgia'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

HB 398 was signed May 13, 2025 and took effect July 1, 2025. GDA is amending rule 40-7-19 and will not enforce provisions that conflict with HB 398, such as licensing. Local business licenses and zoning still apply. Re-check the final statute and new rules for the exact label wording and training requirement. Round 2 check (2026-10-24): the GDA cottage food page still lists ANSI-accredited food safety training and marks its HB 398 document 'under revision'; the rules site still shows the pre-HB 398 chapter 40-7-19; the official bill PDF on legis.ga.gov could not be read by our tools, so the statute wording stays unconfirmed. Label check (2026-10-25): the statement was confirmed verbatim from the as-passed HB 398 text (O.C.G.A. 26-2-473(a)(2)), hosted by GDA and identical on legis.ga.gov. Rule 40-7-19-.09 still shows the old wording; the statute controls, and GDA says the rule is being amended.

Sources

HB 398 (2025) as passed, O.C.G.A. 26-2-470 et seq. (hosted by GDA) official
Georgia Dept. of Agriculture - Cottage Food official
Georgia General Assembly - HB 398 (2025-26) bill page official
Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. ch. 40-7-19 Cottage Food Regulations (Secretary of State rules site) official
GDA Cottage Food Update: HB 398 FAQ (PDF) official
Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 40-7-19-.09 Product Labels (Cornell LII) secondary
Forrager - Georgia 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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