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Home kitchen laws in Mississippi

The plain-English guide to selling food from home in Mississippi.

🏢️ State-run program.
In Mississippi, one statewide agency sets the home-kitchen rules — the same requirements apply wherever you live in the state.

Which laws apply

  • Cottage food law

Allowed foods

Allowed: nonpotentially hazardous foods that need no time/temperature control, including baked goods without cream, custard, or meat fillings (breads, biscuits, cookies, pastries, tortillas, fruit pies, fried-pie-style pastries); candy and confections; chocolate-covered nonperishables (except melons); dried fruit (except melons); dried pasta, spices, baking mixes, rubs; granola, cereal, trail and nut mixes; jams, jellies, and preserves (21 CFR Part 150); acidified/pickled foods meeting 21 CFR Part 114 (pH 4.6 or below), including sauerkraut and kimchi (fermented products need extra paperwork, product testing, and process approval); mustard; popcorn; vinegar; waffle cones; air-dried hard-cooked eggs with intact shell. Not allowed: meat, fish (including smoked), poultry, eggs (except air-dried hard-cooked with intact shell), dairy (including custard pies), cooked vegetables/beans/legumes/potatoes/rice, low-acid canned foods (pH above 4.6), garlic or fresh herbs in oil, fruit/vegetable juice, sliced melons, raw seed sprouts, pasteurized or pre-cooked foods, nut butters, and wine/beer.

Cottage track — shelf-stable foods in Mississippi

🥧 Cottage Food — Shelf-Stable Cottage food law — the shelf-stable track in Mississippi: foods are made at home and sold by preorder / pickup, not as restaurant-style reservations.

✅ No permit required in Mississippi for Cottage food law production, per the state's published permit steps. Makers here are not “permitted” — they operate under the cottage food rules, and claims on this site are verified by rule-compliance proof, not a permit.

Allowed foods: Allowed: nonpotentially hazardous foods that need no time/temperature control, including baked goods without cream, custard, or meat fillings (breads, biscuits, cookies, pastries, tortillas, fruit pies, fried-pie-style pastries); candy and confections; chocolate-covered nonperishables (except melons); dried fruit (except melons); dried pasta, spices, baking mixes, rubs; granola, cereal, trail and nut mixes; jams, jellies, and preserves (21 CFR Part 150); acidified/pickled foods meeting 21 CFR Part 114 (pH 4.6 or below), including sauerkraut and kimchi (fermented products need extra paperwork, product testing, and process approval); mustard; popcorn; vinegar; waffle cones; air-dried hard-cooked eggs with intact shell.

Prohibited foods: meat, fish (including smoked), poultry, eggs (except air-dried hard-cooked with intact shell), dairy (including custard pies), cooked vegetables/beans/legumes/potatoes/rice, low-acid canned foods (pH above 4.6), garlic or fresh herbs in oil, fruit/vegetable juice, sliced melons, raw seed sprouts, pasteurized or pre-cooked foods, nut butters, and wine/beer.

Sales cap (cottage track): $35,000 in gross annual sales (all products, all locations combined). No increase is scheduled: every bill to raise it — 2024 SB 2638 ($50,000), 2025 SB 2265 ($59,000), 2026 SB 2394 ($120,000), and 2026 SB 2398 (eliminate cap entirely) — died in committee.

Labeling rules (from the published permit steps):

  • Label every package with the operation name and address, product name, ingredients in descending order by weight, net weight or volume, allergen information, nutritional information if a claim is made, and the statement "Made in a cottage food operation that is not subject to Mississippi's food safety regulations" in at least 10-point type with clear contrast

Where sales are allowed (from the published rules):

  • Make and store products in the kitchen of your private home, following FDA Retail Food Code safe-handling practices
  • Sell direct to the consumer only — from home, farmers markets, roadside stands, fairs/events — and only within Mississippi
  • no online, mail-order, wholesale, or retail-store sales (online advertising is allowed)

Street track — sidewalk & mobile vendors in Mississippi

🌮 Street Food — Sidewalk & Mobile

Street and mobile vendors do not cook from home kitchens — they sell in public places under different permits, and on this site they are walk-up only (no bookings).

Sales caps

$35,000 in gross annual sales (all products, all locations combined). No increase is scheduled: every bill to raise it — 2024 SB 2638 ($50,000), 2025 SB 2265 ($59,000), 2026 SB 2394 ($120,000), and 2026 SB 2398 (eliminate cap entirely) — died in committee.

Permit steps

  1. No MSDH permit, license, or registration is required to operate a cottage food business — cottage food operations are exempt from the food-establishment permitting requirements of Miss. Code Ann. §41-3-18.
  2. No food-safety training is legally required; MSDH strongly encourages training, especially for acidified/pickled products (MSU Extension offers Acidified Canned Foods training and Better Process Control School).
  3. No routine health-department inspections; MSDH may investigate and inspect only upon a consumer complaint of unsafe food or a law violation.
  4. Check your city or county for local business licenses or zoning rules — these vary locally (e.g., some cities require zoning compliance for home-based sales).
  5. Fees: none at the state level (no registration or permit fees).

How to start in Mississippi

1. Confirm your product is a nonpotentially hazardous food on the allowed list (when in doubt, ask MSDH). 2. Make and store products in the kitchen of your private home, following FDA Retail Food Code safe-handling practices. 3. Label every package with the operation name and address, product name, ingredients in descending order by weight, net weight or volume, allergen information, nutritional information if a claim is made, and the statement "Made in a cottage food operation that is not subject to Mississippi's food safety regulations" in at least 10-point type with clear contrast. 4. Keep gross annual sales at or under $35,000 and keep sales/production records (MSDH or the IRS can ask to review them). 5. Sell direct to the consumer only — from home, farmers markets, roadside stands, fairs/events — and only within Mississippi; no online, mail-order, wholesale, or retail-store sales (online advertising is allowed). 6. Check with your city or county for any local business license or zoning requirements. 7. Report income to the IRS.

Recent changes

The cottage food law (Miss. Code Ann. §75-29-951) was enacted in 2013 (SB 2553). HB 326 (signed 6/25/2020, effective 7/1/2020) raised the sales cap from $20,000 to $35,000 and allowed online advertising. Since then every change bill has died: 2024 SB 2638 (cap to $50,000, defined food list, homemade alcohol products) died; 2025 SB 2265 (cap to $59,000, homemade wine from 100% MS-grown fruit ≤300 gal/yr, mandatory ANAB-accredited food handler training) died in Senate Agriculture committee 2/4/2025; 2026 SB 2394 (cap to $120,000) and SB 2398 (eliminate cap and internet/mail-order sales bans) did not advance; 2026 HB 1594 (raw milk sales; would have amended §75-29-951) died in House committee 2/3/2026. No bills are currently pending — the cap stays $35,000.

Official sources

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Not legal advice. Rules change — confirm everything with Mississippi's health department before selling.