Can I sell food from home in Louisiana?

Q: Can I sell food from home in Louisiana?

Yes. Louisiana lets you make certain foods at home and sell them, under the Low-risk homemade foods exemption (Cottage Food Law). No state permit, license or registration is needed (training, a food handler card or local rules may still apply; see below). Sales cap: $100,000 a year (see details). Last checked 2026-10-25. Not legal advice.

AllowedOnline ordersShipping: unverifiedStores: limited

Yes. Louisiana lets you make certain foods at home and sell them, under the Low-risk homemade foods exemption (Cottage Food Law). No state permit, license or registration is needed (training, a food handler card or local rules may still apply; see below). Sales cap: $100,000 a year (see details).

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.

Louisiana cottage food law at a glance

Home food sales allowed	yes Low-risk homemade foods exemption (Cottage Food Law)
Law	La. R.S. 40:4.9 (as amended by Act 801 of 2026, HB 403)
Sales cap	$100,000 gross annual sales (effective Aug 1, 2026; previously $30,000)
Permit or registration	none. No health permit, registration or kitchen inspection under the exemption. Seller must hold a sales tax certificate from the parish where sales occur (state and local sales tax registration). No training requirement found. Bread/cake/cookie/pie preparers may not employ helpers and must meet basic sanitation conditions (no pets in baking area, refrigeration at 45F or below).
Sell in person	yes
Take online orders	yes
Ship within the state	unverified
Ship to other states	no
Sell to shops and cafes	limited
Where you can sell, details	Statute does not address internet sales, delivery or shipping; a secondary source (Forrager) reports online sales allowed and interstate sales prohibited. Home-baked breads, cakes, cookies and pies may not be sold to retailers or for resale; statute is silent on indirect sale of other low-risk foods.

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 Louisiana?

Allowed: Low-risk foods: baked goods, candies, cane syrup, dried mixes, honey and honeycomb products, jams, jellies and preserves, pickles and acidified foods, sauces and syrups, spices. Custard/cream fillings only with pasteurized milk cooked per statute.

Not allowed: Any of the above containing animal muscle protein or fish protein; foods containing cannabidiol (unless FDA approves it as a food additive); unwholesome food. Other TCS foods not covered.

Label requirements in Louisiana

Required statement: Label must clearly indicate that the food was not produced in a licensed or regulated facility (statute requires the meaning, not fixed wording). summary, not exact wording

Suggested wording: This food was not produced in a licensed or regulated facility.

Other label items: Statute requires only the not-licensed/regulated-facility notice. Unpasteurized, unfiltered raw honey that retains its pollen is exempt from the label requirement. No other statutory label elements found (federal allergen rules may still apply).

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

Get the toolkit Try the free cookie price check

Notes

Act 801 of 2026 (HB 403), signed 6/8/2026, effective Aug 1, 2026, raised cap from $30,000 to $100,000; the online consolidated statute still showed $30,000 when checked (not yet updated). Act 357 of 2022 had raised it to $30,000. Cane syrup may be made in an open-sided structure on private property. Label check (2026-10-25): La. R.S. 40:4.9(D)(1)(a) re-read; it requires a label that clearly indicates the food was not produced in a licensed or regulated facility, with no fixed words. Act 801 (2026) changed only subsection B (the sales cap). The toolkit offers suggested wording.

Sources

La. R.S. 40:4.9 (Louisiana Legislature) official
HB 403 (2026 RS) bill info - Act 801 official
Resume Digest, Act 801 (HB 403) 2026 official
Forrager - Louisiana cottage food law secondary

Last checked: 2026-10-25 · confidence: high (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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