Nebraska puts no cap on how much you can earn selling shelf-stable home-made food. Here's what qualifies as shelf-stable, where and how you can sell it, and what the rules look like in practice.
Shelf-stable foods are foods that are safe to store at room temperature without refrigeration or heating — they do not support the rapid growth of foodborne pathogens under normal storage conditions. The technical definitions involve water activity and pH, but the practical meaning is simpler: if your product can sit in a pantry or on a farmers market table without spoiling, it's almost certainly shelf-stable.
Food safety regulators use two key measurements to determine whether a food requires refrigeration. Understanding these helps you make confident decisions about your own recipes:
Water Activity (aw): The amount of "free" water available in a food for microbial growth. Most shelf-stable foods have a water activity at or below 0.85 — meaning bacteria and mold don't have enough moisture to grow rapidly. Dry cookies, crackers, granola, spice blends, and hard candy all fall well below this threshold.
pH: A measure of acidity. Foods with a pH at or below 4.6 are generally too acidic to support growth of the most dangerous pathogens. Naturally acidic foods like lemon curd (if properly made) or some fruit preserves may be shelf-stable through acidity alone.
Important: Nebraska's cottage food law does not require you to lab-test your shelf-stable products. But if you plan to sell acidified foods like refrigerated pickles or fresh salsa, lab testing is strongly recommended to confirm pH and water activity. Labs at UNL, Midwest Labs, and Warren Labs (Greeley, CO) offer testing for $30–$100+ per product.
Nebraska's cottage food law allows a wide range of shelf-stable products. The following all qualify as non-TCS foods and can be sold, shipped, and delivered without refrigeration requirements:
Nebraska's cottage food framework gives shelf-stable sellers significant flexibility in how and where they reach customers. The core requirement across all channels: all food must be prepared in a private home, and wholesale to restaurants, grocery stores, or retail chains is not permitted under any circumstances.
| Sales Channel | Allowed? | Key Conditions |
|---|---|---|
| Farmers Markets | ✓ Yes | No NDA registration or training required for non-TCS sellers at farmers markets only. Must post disclaimer and label with name/address. |
| Home Pickup & Delivery | ✓ Yes | NDA registration and food safety training required. Disclaimer must be posted at your home and on your website. |
| Public Events (fairs, festivals, craft shows) | ✓ Yes | NDA registration and training required. Must also comply with county/city event food safety requirements. |
| Online Sales (within Nebraska) | ✓ Yes | NDA registration and training required. Disclaimer must appear on your website/listing. Non-TCS food can be shipped by mail within Nebraska. |
| Mail / Shipping (out of state) | ⚠ Conditional | Allowed if the receiving state permits receiving cottage food by mail. Non-TCS only — shelf-stable foods. Seller must verify legality in recipient's state. [VERIFY which states currently permit this] |
| Wholesale to Restaurants or Retail | ✗ Not Allowed | Nebraska cottage food law does not permit any indirect sales. All sales must be direct from producer to the end consumer. |
| Consignment / Third-Party Sellers | ✗ Not Allowed | Selling through another person, shop, or platform that resells to consumers is considered wholesale — not permitted. |
Nebraska is one of the few states that explicitly allows shelf-stable cottage food to be mailed — both within Nebraska and to other states where receiving cottage food by mail is legal. This opens up a real direct-to-consumer e-commerce channel for home food sellers.
Nebraska does not inspect home kitchens, but the law still requires that all cottage food products be prepared and stored properly. Here's what good shelf-stable food handling looks like in practice:
One important exception: foods that are made shelf-stable through acidification and hermetic sealing — such as canned salsas, shelf-stable hot sauces, canned pickles, and vinegar-based sauces in sealed jars — are not permitted under Nebraska's cottage food law, even though they can sit at room temperature.
These are regulated under the FDA Acidified Foods Regulations (21 CFR 114). Selling them requires a licensed commercial kitchen, a scheduled process from a process authority, and FDA facility registration. If you're interested in scaling to shelf-stable acidified products, see Special Categories for the full licensing path.
Nebraska has no sales cap — but tracking your annual revenue still matters for taxes and business planning. Log your sales and get a running total across all channels.
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