Indiana's Home-Based Vendor (HBV) program, governed by IC 16-42-5.3, allows you to make and sell non-TCS foods — foods that do not require time or temperature control for safety. If your product is shelf-stable at room temperature and poses no refrigeration-dependent safety risk, you are almost certainly in the clear. The three-column grid below shows every confirmed category.
What Is a TCS Food?
TCS stands for Time/Temperature Control for Safety. A TCS food is one that requires refrigeration or specific temperature management to prevent the growth of dangerous bacteria, toxins, or pathogens. Under Indiana Code IC 16-18-2-351.7, TCS foods are exactly what Home-Based Vendors may not sell. If your product is safe sitting at room temperature for days — think cookies, jam, popcorn, or dry spice blends — it is almost certainly non-TCS and permitted. If it would spoil or become unsafe without refrigeration, it is TCS and prohibited.
The TCS framework replaced the older "potentially hazardous food" (PHF) language in the 2022 reform. The practical meaning is the same: Indiana is drawing a line between foods that are inherently shelf-stable and those that require a controlled environment to stay safe. Baked goods dry out but don't become dangerous at room temperature. A cream pie, by contrast, can support rapid bacterial growth within hours of leaving a refrigerator.
Indiana doesn't publish a universal pH cutoff for all products, but as a general reference, a water activity at or below 0.85 and/or a pH at or below 4.6 are commonly used benchmarks for non-TCS classification. If your product is borderline — dehydrated fruit, unusual ferments, low-sugar jams — Purdue University's Food Entrepreneurship and Manufacturing Institute (FEMI) offers product testing: ag.purdue.edu/department/foodsci/home-based-vendors.html, phone (765) 494-8256.
One critical nuance: Indiana's HBV rules do NOT preempt local farmers market vendor agreements. A market may have its own product approval policies layered on top of state law. Always check with the specific market before assuming all HBV-allowed products will be accepted at that venue.
Yes — sourdough is a non-TCS baked good and is fully allowed. The fermentation happens in the dough; the finished baked loaf is shelf-stable.
Prohibited under HBV rules — both are hermetically sealed acidified foods requiring FDA process filing and a commercial kitchen license.
Prohibited. Live-culture kombucha requires refrigeration and may reach alcohol levels that trigger additional licensing. See the Beverages page.
Pet food and treats are NOT regulated under HBV rules. They are regulated separately by the Office of the Indiana State Chemist (OISC). Check with OISC before selling.
Traditionally fermented pickles (no vinegar or acidifiers, stored in open non-sealed containers) are allowed. Vinegar pickles in sealed jars = prohibited.
Generally allowed if shelf-stable. Cream cheese frosting, fresh fruit fillings, and custard fillings make the product TCS — those are prohibited.
Contact Purdue Extension's Food Science team before you start selling borderline products. They offer free guidance and paid laboratory testing for pH and water activity. Reach them at their HBV page or (765) 494-8256. Your county health department can also provide informal guidance — find yours at the IDOH county contacts directory.
If you want to sell prohibited items — hot sauce, salsa, cream pies, beverages — you have options. Renting time in a licensed commercial kitchen and obtaining a Retail Food Establishment permit opens those doors. This guide covers HBV rules only. See Special Categories for a breakdown of what licensed pathways look like.
Indiana Product Compliance Checker
Enter your product and get an instant Open / Restricted / Prohibited determination based on Indiana's current HBV rules — plus what you'd need to sell it legally.
Create Free Account to Use This Tool →