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Can I sell food from home in Wisconsin?
Wisconsin cottage food law at a glance
| Home food sales allowed | limited Home-baked goods license exemption (court order, Kivirist v. DATCP); home-canned goods exemption ('pickle bill') |
|---|---|
| Law | Kivirist v. DATCP, Lafayette County Case No. 2016CV06 (baked goods); Wis. Stat. 97.29(2)(b)2. (home-canned acid foods) |
| Sales cap | Home-baked goods: no cap stated by DATCP; home-canned acid foods: less than $5,000 per year |
| Permit or registration | none. No DATCP license or registration for non-potentially hazardous home-baked goods sold directly to consumers (enforcement barred by court order). No license for home-canned goods within the $5,000 exemption. No training requirement stated. |
| Sell in person | yes |
| Take online orders | unverified |
| Ship within the state | unverified |
| Ship to other states | unverified |
| Sell to shops and cafes | no |
| Where you can sell, details | Baked goods: unlicensed sales only directly to consumers; wholesaling requires a license. DATCP does not address online, delivery or shipping. Home-canned goods: only at community or social events or farmers markets in Wisconsin. |
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 Wisconsin?
Allowed: Baked goods (made with dry oven-type heat) that are not potentially hazardous in finished form. Home-canned pickles and other processed fruits or vegetables with equilibrium pH 4.6 or lower.
Not allowed: Potentially hazardous baked goods (cream, custard, cheesecake fillings etc.), and other homemade shelf-stable foods (candy, dried mixes, etc.) since the Dec 2022 expansion was reversed; low-acid canned foods; meat and dairy.
Label requirements in Wisconsin
Home-kitchen statement: No statement required for home-baked goods. Home-canned goods (jams, pickles) need the label: 'This product was made in a private home not subject to state licensing or inspection.' and a point-of-sale sign: 'These canned goods are homemade and not subject to state inspection.' no statement required
Other label items: Home-baked goods: no state labeling rule of their own (home bakers sell under the Kivirist court order); general misbranding law (Wis. Stat. 97.03, adopting 21 USC 343) still means the usual package items: name and address, net quantity, ingredients and allergens. Home-canned goods: preparer's name and address, canning date, ingredients in order of prominence, common names of major allergen sources, the canned-goods statement, and a point-of-sale sign (Wis. Stat. 97.29(2)(b)).
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A Dec 28, 2022 circuit order extended the exemption to all non-hazardous home foods, but it was stayed (May 2023) and reversed by the Court of Appeals (Nov 19, 2024); DATCP now applies the exemption to baked goods only. No Wisconsin cottage food statute found; DATCP warns ongoing litigation may change this. Buyer test (2026-10-25): the record was marked exact, so labels for baked goods printed the whole description. It is now a summary; home-canned sellers type the canned-goods wording above into the statement box. Label check (2026-10-25): DATCP's home-baker fact sheet (05/2025) has no label content and notes ongoing litigation; 97.29 covers home-canned goods only.
Sources
- Wis. Stat. 97.03 (misbranding) official
- DATCP Home Bakers official
- DATCP Licenses and Homemade Baked Goods flyer (05/2025) official
- Wis. Stat. 97.29(2)(b) official
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.