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Shelf-Stable Food in Washington

What "shelf-stable" means under Washington's cottage food program, and how it defines what you can make, store, and sell.

Definition

What Counts as Shelf-Stable

Under Washington's cottage food program (Chapter 69.22 RCW), every product you sell must be "nonpotentially hazardous" — the food safety term for products that don't need refrigeration to stay safe. In everyday language, these are shelf-stable foods: products you can safely store and display at room temperature without risk of dangerous bacterial growth.

Three measurable properties determine whether a food is shelf-stable: water activity, pH, and sugar or salt concentration. Here's what each means for your products:

Water Activity (aw)

Water activity measures how much free moisture is available in your food for bacteria to use. Pure water has an aw of 1.0, while a completely dry food approaches 0. Most dangerous bacteria can't grow below an aw of 0.85. Products like cookies, dry mixes, and hard candies naturally fall well below this threshold. Jams and jellies achieve low water activity through high sugar concentration, which binds the water and makes it unavailable to microbes.

pH (Acidity)

pH measures how acidic or alkaline a food is on a scale from 0 (very acidic) to 14 (very alkaline). Most harmful bacteria cannot grow below a pH of 4.6. This is why fruit-based jams, jellies, and vinegars are considered safe — the natural acidity of the fruit combined with sugar creates an environment where pathogens can't survive.

The Combination Effect

Many cottage food products are safe because of a combination of these factors rather than any single one. A fruit butter, for instance, might have moderate water activity and moderate acidity — neither one alone would guarantee safety, but together they prevent pathogen growth. This is exactly what WSDA evaluates when they review your recipes during the permit application.

WSDA Recipe Review: Washington doesn't publish specific numerical thresholds for water activity or pH in its cottage food rules. Instead, WSDA reviews each recipe individually during the permit process to confirm it meets nonpotentially hazardous standards. This means your exact formulation matters — small changes in sugar, acid, or moisture content can affect whether a product qualifies.
Sales Cap

Annual Sales Limit

Washington Annual Gross Sales Cap
$35,000
Per cottage food operation · per calendar year

Washington's annual gross sales cap is $35,000, raised from the original $25,000 by a 2023 amendment to the cottage food statute. This applies to your total gross revenue — not net profit — across all sales channels for the calendar year. The cap applies per cottage food permit, meaning it covers your entire operation, not individual products.

If you reach $35,000 in gross sales during the year, you have two choices: stop selling for the remainder of that calendar year, or transition to a WSDA Food Processing Plant License, which removes the sales cap but requires a commercial-grade facility and more rigorous inspections.

Built-in review: The 2023 amendment also authorized WSDA to review the $35,000 cap every four years, so this number may increase in the future as the program matures and costs rise.

What Counts Toward the Cap

Every dollar of revenue from cottage food sales counts, regardless of where the sale takes place — farmers markets, your home, craft fairs, or personal deliveries. Revenue is calculated before expenses, so ingredient costs, market fees, packaging, and other business expenses are not subtracted.

Sales Channels

Where You Can Sell

Washington allows cottage food sales through a variety of direct-to-consumer channels but strictly prohibits wholesale, consignment, and shipping. Every sale must go directly from you — the permit holder — to the person who will eat or use the product.

Allowed

Home Sales

Sell directly from your home to customers who come to you. This is the simplest channel — no booth fees or market schedules.

Allowed

Farmers Markets & Fairs

Farmers markets, craft fairs, festivals, holiday bazaars, and other public events are all approved direct-sale venues.

Allowed

Online Orders + Pickup/Delivery

You can advertise and take orders online, but the product must be picked up at your home or personally delivered by you within Washington State.

Allowed

Farm Stands

If you operate a farm stand, you can sell your cottage food products alongside your farm products directly to consumers.

Not Allowed

Wholesale

You cannot sell to stores, restaurants, cafes, wholesalers, brokers, or distributors. Every sale must be to the end consumer.

Not Allowed

Consignment

Placing your products in a retail store to be sold on your behalf is not permitted under the cottage food program.

Not Allowed

Shipping

Products may not be shipped by mail, courier, or any delivery service. A COVID-era temporary exception is no longer in effect.

Not Allowed

Interstate Sales

All sales must occur within Washington State. You cannot sell or deliver to customers in Oregon, Idaho, or any other state.

Online selling tip: You're free to use a website, social media, or online marketplace to advertise your products and accept orders. The restriction is on how the product reaches the customer — it must be hand-delivered by you or picked up in person, not shipped.
Food Safety

Storage and Handling Requirements

Your home kitchen is your production facility under Washington's cottage food permit, and WSDA inspects it before issuing your permit. Beyond the initial inspection, you're responsible for maintaining safe storage and handling practices year-round. Here are the key requirements:

✓
Prepackaged products only. All cottage food products must be packaged and labeled before sale. You cannot sell unpackaged items or allow customers to serve themselves from bulk containers.
✓
Approved water source. Your kitchen must be connected to an approved water source — typically municipal water or a tested private well. Documentation is required as part of the permit application.
✓
Clean and sanitary kitchen. You must maintain a cleaning and sanitation plan covering food contact surfaces, equipment, utensils, and storage areas. This plan is submitted with your application and verified during the WSDA kitchen inspection.
✓
Child and pet management. Children and pets must be kept out of the kitchen during food production. Your application requires a written plan explaining how you'll manage this.
✓
Food Worker Card for everyone. All persons involved in preparing cottage food products must hold a valid Washington State Food Worker Card before the permit is issued.
✓
Room-temperature storage. Since all cottage food products must be nonpotentially hazardous, they should be stored at room temperature in a clean, dry area protected from contamination, pests, and direct sunlight.
✓
Approved ingredients from safe sources. Dry herbs, seasonings, teas, coffees, and spices used in recombining or repackaging must be obtained from approved commercial sources — not foraged or home-grown (unless part of an approved recipe).
Inspection access: By holding a cottage food permit, you grant WSDA the right to enter your home kitchen during normal business hours for compliance inspections. This goes beyond the initial inspection — WSDA can conduct follow-up inspections at any time to verify you're meeting the program's requirements.
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