Prepared meals that need refrigeration are off-limits under cottage food — but there are paths forward if that's where your passion lies.
TCS stands for Temperature Control for Safety. These are foods that support the rapid growth of harmful bacteria when held between 41°F and 135°F — the "danger zone" in food safety. Because they can become unsafe quickly without proper refrigeration or heating, they require careful temperature management from the moment they're prepared through the moment they're consumed.
Colorado's Cottage Foods Act is limited to "non-potentially hazardous" foods — those that do not require time or temperature control for safety. If your product needs to be refrigerated, frozen, or kept hot to stay safe, it falls outside the cottage food framework and requires a different licensing path.
This is the single most important distinction in the entire cottage food system. It's why cookies and jam are allowed (shelf-stable, no refrigeration needed) while tamales and cheesecake are not (they need to be kept at controlled temperatures to prevent bacterial growth).
Colorado's Cottage Foods Act takes a firm line: if a food requires refrigeration for safety, it cannot be produced or sold under the Act. There is no "expanded" cottage food permit, no home kitchen variance, and no exception for small batches. The 2025 attempt to change this — HB25-1190, nicknamed "The Tamale Act" — was defeated in the House Agriculture, Water and Natural Resources Committee.
The Tamale Act (HB25-1190): This 2025 bill would have expanded Colorado's cottage food rules to include refrigerated foods like tamales, allowing home producers to sell a much broader range of prepared meals. It was defeated early in the legislative session. A similar expansion bill, HB26-1033, has been introduced in 2026 — if passed, it would allow refrigerated food sales with additional food safety training requirements and give local health agencies inspection authority. Check with CDPHE for the latest status.
That said, many "prepared" foods are perfectly legal under cottage food as long as they don't require refrigeration. Fruit empanadas, tortillas, baked goods with buttercream frosting, candied nuts, and flavored popcorn are all technically "prepared foods" — and all clearly allowed. The test isn't whether the food is complex or cooked, it's whether it can safely sit at room temperature.
Some products fall into a gray area. A baked good with cream cheese frosting is prohibited, but one with buttercream is fine. A vinegar-based hot sauce may be allowed (if it's shelf-stable), but one with fresh peppers blended into a puree may not be. If you're unsure about a specific product, contact CDPHE at (303) 692-3645, option #2 or email cdphe_mfgfd@state.co.us for a determination before you start selling.
If your vision includes tamales, fresh salsas, soups, or other TCS foods, you'll need to step beyond cottage food and into a licensed operation. Colorado offers several realistic paths for home food entrepreneurs to make this transition:
Rent time in a licensed commercial kitchen that's already inspected and permitted. You produce your food there, and it qualifies as coming from an approved source.
Convert or build a dedicated commercial kitchen in your own space. This requires a full health department inspection and ongoing compliance.
Hire an existing licensed food manufacturer to produce your product according to your recipe. They handle production, you handle branding and sales.
Register with CDPHE as a wholesale food manufacturer if you want to sell to restaurants, grocery stores, or other retail food establishments.
Start cottage, grow commercial: Many successful Colorado food businesses started under the Cottage Foods Act to validate their product and build a customer base, then transitioned to a licensed commercial operation when demand justified the investment. The cottage food framework is an excellent proving ground — even if your long-term goal involves TCS foods.
Even though cottage food sellers in Colorado work exclusively with non-TCS foods, understanding temperature safety is essential — both for food safety training compliance and for knowing where the boundary lies. These are the standard food safety temperature thresholds recognized by CDPHE and taught in all approved training courses:
| Temperature | Significance | Relevance to Cottage Food |
|---|---|---|
| 41°F or below | Cold holding — safe storage for TCS foods | Not required for cottage food products (they're shelf-stable). Relevant if you sell eggs — store and transport refrigerated. |
| 41°F – 135°F | The "danger zone" — bacteria multiply rapidly | Your shelf-stable products should not be TCS foods, so this zone shouldn't apply. If a product needs to avoid this range, it's not cottage food. |
| 135°F or above | Hot holding — safe serving temperature for TCS foods | Not applicable to cottage food. Relevant only for licensed prepared food operations. |
| 165°F | Minimum internal cooking temperature for poultry | Meat and poultry are prohibited under cottage food. Relevant only for licensed operations under USDA inspection. |
| pH ≤ 4.6 | Acidity level below which botulism cannot grow | Directly relevant — required for all pickled products sold under cottage food. Free testing available from CDPHE. |
Egg handling note: Whole shell eggs are a special case in Colorado cottage food. While they're allowed (up to 250 dozen/month), untreated eggs must include a safe handling statement: "Safe Handling Instructions: To prevent illness from bacteria, keep eggs refrigerated, cook eggs until yolks are firm, and cook any foods containing eggs thoroughly." Eggs should be transported and stored under refrigeration even though they're sold under cottage food rules.
Describe your prepared food product and find out whether it's classified as TCS in Colorado — plus your options if it is.
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