Home Kitchen Laws in Montana

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

🏛️ Mixed state + county administration.
Montana sets statewide rules, but counties add their own requirements or opt-ins. Check both levels before you start.

County detail: Cottage food operations must register with the LOCAL health authority in the county where the domestic residence is located (50-50-117): the county reviews the application (operation name, address, ingredient sources, product list, labels), may request additional food-safety information, and collects the nonrefundable registration fee ($40 one-time, per county registration documents). The Montana Local Food Choice Act, by contrast, is a state-level exemption: a state agency or agency of a political subdivision may not require licensure, permitting, certification, packaging, labeling, testing, sampling, or inspection of compliant homemade food (50-49-203(1)(a)), and MLFCA transactions are not subject to regulation by a board of county commissioners (50-49-203(2)(d)). County/local health officers retain a role only in investigating complaints or suspected foodborne illness.

Which laws apply

Cottage food law
Food freedom act

Allowed foods

COTTAGE FOOD (50-50-102, 50-50-116, 50-50-117): only foods that are NOT potentially hazardous — jams, jellies, dried fruit, dry mixes, and baked goods, plus other similar non-potentially-hazardous foods defined by DPHHS rule. Direct (face-to-face) sale to consumers in Montana only — no consignment (including at retail food establishments or through wholesalers), no shipping, no internet sales, no sales to restaurants/distributors for resale. MONTANA LOCAL FOOD CHOICE ACT / food freedom (50-49-201 through 50-49-203): broad 'homemade food and homemade food products' INCLUDING potentially hazardous / time-and-temperature-controlled foods, sold directly by the producer to an informed end consumer, for home consumption or consumption at a traditional community social event (weddings, funerals, potlucks, church socials, school events, farmers markets, neighborhood gatherings, etc.). Sales must stay in Montana — interstate commerce is prohibited. Key restrictions: (a) meat or meat products may not be used in homemade food sold under the act, except poultry from producers slaughtering fewer than 1,000 birds/year (subject to federal recordkeeping, 9 CFR 381.10(c) and 381.175) and except temporary food establishments under 50-50-120; (b) homemade food generally may not be sold to or used in a retail food establishment, EXCEPT raw, unprocessed fruit, vegetables, and aquaculture products (80-3-302); (c) small dairies (no more than 5 lactating cows, 10 lactating goats, or 10 lactating sheep) may sell raw milk and raw milk products direct to consumers, subject to mandatory testing — milk/cream tested every 6 months for standard plate count, coliform, and somatic cell count; every animal tested yearly for brucellosis; 2 years of records kept for the Department of Livestock; (d) producers may donate homemade food to traditional community social events but may NOT donate milk; (e) producers must inform consumers the food is unlicensed, unpermitted, uncertified, unpackaged, unlabeled, and uninspected. Alcohol and THC/marijuana-infused products are not covered — existing liquor and marijuana licensing laws still apply (DPHHS guidance).

Cottage track — shelf-stable foods in Montana

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

Allowed foods: COTTAGE FOOD (50-50-102, 50-50-116, 50-50-117): only foods that are NOT potentially hazardous — jams, jellies, dried fruit, dry mixes, and baked goods, plus other similar non-potentially-hazardous foods defined by DPHHS rule. Direct (face-to-face) sale to consumers in Montana only — no consignment (including at retail food establishments or through wholesalers), no shipping, no internet sales, no sales to restaurants/distributors for resale. MONTANA LOCAL FOOD CHOICE ACT / food freedom (50-49-201 through 50-49-203): broad 'homemade food and homemade food products' INCLUDING potentially hazardous / time-and-temperature-controlled foods, sold directly by the producer to an informed end consumer, for home consumption or consumption at a traditional community social event (weddings, funerals, potlucks, church socials, school events, farmers markets, neighborhood gatherings, etc.). Sales must stay in Montana — interstate commerce is prohibited. Key restrictions: (a) meat or meat products may not be used in homemade food sold under the act, except poultry from producers slaughtering fewer than 1,000 birds/year (subject to federal recordkeeping, 9 CFR 381.10(c) and 381.175) and except temporary food establishments under 50-50-120; (b) homemade food generally may not be sold to or used in a retail food establishment, EXCEPT raw, unprocessed fruit, vegetables, and aquaculture products (80-3-302); (c) small dairies (no more than 5 lactating cows, 10 lactating goats, or 10 lactating sheep) may sell raw milk and raw milk products direct to consumers, subject to mandatory testing — milk/cream tested every 6 months for standard plate count, coliform, and somatic cell count; every animal tested yearly for brucellosis; 2 years of records kept for the Department of Livestock; (d) producers may donate homemade food to traditional community social events but may NOT donate milk; (e) producers must inform consumers the food is unlicensed, unpermitted, uncertified, unpackaged, unlabeled, and uninspected. Alcohol and THC/marijuana-infused products are not covered — existing liquor and marijuana licensing laws still apply (DPHHS guidance).

Sales cap (cottage track): NO SALES CAP in either of Montana's home-kitchen regimes. The cottage food statutes (50-50-116, 50-50-117 — unchanged since 2015) and the Montana Local Food Choice Act (50-49-201 through 50-49-203) contain no dollar or gross-sales limit, and no future cap is scheduled in law. Limits are on WHAT may be sold and HOW (allowed food types, direct-to-consumer channels, intrastate sales), not on revenue.

Labeling rules (from the published permit steps):

Inform every consumer that the homemade food has not been licensed, permitted, certified, packaged, labeled, or inspected per any official regulations — via a label, sticker, or sign at the point of sale (50-49-203(3)).
provide the operation name, physical address, ingredient sources, a complete product list, and copies of each label
Cottage food: label every product with your name/address, the product name, ingredients in descending order of predominance, net quantity, allergen labeling, and the conspicuous statement 'Made in a home kitchen that is not subject to retail food establishment regulations or inspections' (50-50-116(2)(b)).

Where sales are allowed (from the published rules):

Cottage food: label every product with your name/address, the product name, ingredients in descending order of predominance, net quantity, allergen labeling, and the conspicuous statement 'Made in a home kitchen that is not subject to retail food establishment regulations or inspections' (50-50-116(2)(b)).
Cottage food producers must print the full statutory label, including the statement 'Made in a home kitchen that is not subject to retail food establishment regulations or inspections.' 5
Cottage food: face-to-face direct sales only — no shipping, no internet sales, no consignment

Street track — sidewalk & mobile vendors in Montana

🌮 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

NO SALES CAP in either of Montana's home-kitchen regimes. The cottage food statutes (50-50-116, 50-50-117 — unchanged since 2015) and the Montana Local Food Choice Act (50-49-201 through 50-49-203) contain no dollar or gross-sales limit, and no future cap is scheduled in law. Limits are on WHAT may be sold and HOW (allowed food types, direct-to-consumer channels, intrastate sales), not on revenue.

Permit steps

MONTANA LOCAL FOOD CHOICE ACT path: NO license, permit, registration, certification, or inspection is required — 50-49-203(1)(a) expressly prohibits any state agency or agency of a political subdivision from requiring them for compliant homemade-food sales.
Sell only direct from the producer to the informed end consumer, for home consumption or consumption at a traditional community social event (weddings, funerals, potlucks, farmers markets, neighborhood gatherings, etc.); keep every transaction inside Montana — no interstate commerce (50-49-203(2)).
Inform every consumer that the homemade food has not been licensed, permitted, certified, packaged, labeled, or inspected per any official regulations — via a label, sticker, or sign at the point of sale (50-49-203(3)).
COTTAGE FOOD path: register with the local health authority in the county where your domestic residence is located; provide the operation name, physical address, ingredient sources, a complete product list, and copies of each label; pay the nonrefundable registration fee ($40 one-time per county registration documents; the department sets the fee by rule) (50-50-117).
Cottage food: label every product with your name/address, the product name, ingredients in descending order of predominance, net quantity, allergen labeling, and the conspicuous statement 'Made in a home kitchen that is not subject to retail food establishment regulations or inspections' (50-50-116(2)(b)).
Cottage food: process and package only in the registered area of your domestic residence and store products only there (or temporarily in a transport vehicle); consignment sales — including at retail food establishments or through wholesalers — are prohibited (50-50-116(3)-(5)).
SMALL-DAIRY raw milk producers under the MLFCA: sample/test/retest milk or cream every 6 months for standard plate count, coliform count, and somatic cell count; test every lactating animal yearly for brucellosis; maintain 2 years of records to provide to the Department of Livestock if it suspects a foodborne illness (50-49-203(8)).

How to start in Montana

1. Choose your track: (a) Montana Local Food Choice Act — no license, permit, registration, or inspection needed; covers broad homemade foods including hot meals and raw dairy, but only direct producer-to-consumer sales in Montana; or (b) Cottage food — non-potentially-hazardous foods only (baked goods, jams, jellies, dried fruit, dry mixes), requires county registration. 2. If you plan to sell raw dairy under the MLFCA, keep no more than 5 lactating cows, 10 lactating goats, or 10 lactating sheep, and set up the testing schedule required by 50-49-203(8): milk/cream tested every 6 months (standard plate count, coliform, somatic cell count), every animal tested yearly for brucellosis, records kept 2 years. 3. Cottage food track: contact the environmental health office of your county health authority, submit the registration (operation name, home address, ingredient sources, complete product list, copies of labels), and pay the one-time $40 registration fee. 4. Set up labeling: MLFCA producers must inform every buyer that the food was not licensed, permitted, certified, packaged, labeled, or inspected — a label, sticker, or sign at the point of sale works. Cottage food producers must print the full statutory label, including the statement 'Made in a home kitchen that is not subject to retail food establishment regulations or inspections.' 5. Sell only through allowed channels. MLFCA: direct to the informed end consumer at your home/farm or at a traditional community social event (including farmers markets); the internet may be used for advertising, marketing, and payment, but the exchange must be in person — no third-party delivery services and no selling to stores for resale (Missoula County MLFCA guidance, 2024). Cottage food: face-to-face direct sales only — no shipping, no internet sales, no consignment. 6. Keep all sales within Montana; MLFCA sales may not involve interstate commerce.

Recent changes

2024: No changes to Montana's home-kitchen statutes. Montana's legislature holds regular sessions in odd-numbered years (68th Legislature in 2023, 69th in 2025), so there was no 2024 regular session. 2025: SB 161 (Sen. Hertz), 'Provide for regulation and sale of aquaculture,' signed into law; Chapter 344, Laws of 2025, effective on passage and approval. It amended the MLFCA (50-49-203) and the retail-food definitions (50-50-102): raw, unprocessed aquaculture products (as defined in 80-3-302) joined raw fruits and vegetables as homemade food that may be sold to or used in a retail food establishment; aquaculture products were added to the 'raw agricultural commodity' definition in 50-50-102; homemade food/MLFCA products and cottage food products were added as exceptions to the method-of-sale commodity rules (30-12-301); and aquaculture definitions, exemptions, and rulemaking were added to 80-3-302. The 2025 session also revised licensed-establishment fee and establishment-category definitions in 50-50-102 (MCA history note: Ch. 737, L. 2025); this did not alter cottage-food or MLFCA home-kitchen rules. 2025: SJ 11 (enrolled) directed an interim committee to study farmers markets and the impact, opportunities, and challenges of the MLFCA (Title 50, ch. 49, part 2) and the state cottage food laws (Title 50, ch. 50), plus producer-liability and consumer-protection statutes, with all work concluded by September 15, 2026 and findings reported to the 70th Legislature — the pending study most likely to shape the next round of home-kitchen legislation (2027 session). 2026: no regular session; no additional changes or pending bills verified from primary sources. Background (outside the 2024-2026 window): SB 202 (2023), 'Generally revise the Montana Local Food Choice Act,' Chapter 347, Laws of 2023, amended 50-49-202, 50-49-203, and 50-50-102.

Official sources

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