Vermont gives home food makers more latitude than almost any other state in the country. Here's the complete breakdown of what's open, what comes with conditions, and what falls outside the cottage food exemption.
Every food category falls into one of three buckets under Vermont's cottage food framework. The categories below reflect 18 V.S.A. § 4301(6) as amended by Act 42 of 2025.
If you scan the prohibited list, a pattern emerges quickly: nearly everything that's off-limits has one thing in common — it can grow harmful bacteria if it isn't kept cold, kept hot, or processed in a way that prevents microbial growth. These are called TCS foods, short for "Time/Temperature Control for Safety," and they're the dividing line between cottage food and licensed food production.
Vermont's cottage food exemption is built around non-TCS, shelf-stable foods — products that are inherently safe at room temperature because their water activity, acidity, sugar content, or salt content keeps bacteria from growing. A loaf of sourdough, a jar of strawberry jam, a bag of granola, and a pickle made from an NCHFP-approved recipe all share this property. A cheesecake, a sandwich, and a jar of canned soup do not.
For home-canned pickles, vegetables, fruits, and fermented foods, Vermont requires that the product reach an equilibrium pH of 4.6 or lower, OR a water activity of 0.85 or less, AND that the recipe was either approved by the National Center for Home Food Preservation or reviewed by a recognized food processing authority. This isn't bureaucratic friction — it's the same standard the FDA uses, and it's what keeps your jars (and your customers) safe.
Hot sauces, salsas, BBQ sauces, and similar products often need process authority review before you can sell them. A process authority is a credentialed expert (often at a university extension or a private lab) who tests your specific recipe and confirms it consistently reaches a safe pH. UVM Extension is the most common starting point for Vermont sellers; the FDA also maintains a national directory.
Before July 2025, Vermont's home bakery exemption capped sales at $125 per week (about $6,500/year), and home-canned and fermented products lived in a much narrower lane. Act 42 unified the framework, raised the cap to $30,000 in annual gross sales, and explicitly added home-canned pickles, vegetables, fruits, and fermented foods to the cottage food list — provided they meet the pH/aw standard and use approved recipes. It's the largest expansion in Vermont's home food laws in decades.
Tell us about your specific product — ingredients, recipe, sales channel — and we'll tell you in seconds whether it's open, restricted, or prohibited under Vermont's cottage food rules.
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