Start a home kitchen in Nebraska

The steps, the costs, where to apply, and how to get inspection-ready — in Nebraska's own program terms.

Cottage food law

Sales cap: No annual sales cap in the statute — the enacted text of Neb. Rev. Stat. 81-2,280 (subsections 1-8, as amended by LB262) contains no sales-cap provision, and the Nebraska Department of Agriculture's cottage-food program page and FAQ list no cap. A $25,000 gross-annual-sales cap was proposed in LB764 (2018) but never became law. No scheduled cap changes found.

Allowed foods: Allowed: all non-adulterated foods EXCEPT the prohibited TCS categories below, made in the producer's private home. Since LB262 (2024), this includes refrigerated/perishable foods such as cheesecake, cream-filled pastries, ice cream, pudding, and cooked items with dairy/eggs from approved sources. Not allowed: any animal part or byproduct (meat, lard, tallow, bone broth); fluid milk/milk products as defined by the Grade A Pasteurized Milk Ordinance; raw eggs (including uncooked in homemade ice cream); unpasteurized juice; infused oils or infused honey; sprouts; low-acid canned and hermetically sealed acidified foods; tofu, tempeh, or similar meat substitutes; kimchi, kombucha, or similar fermented foods. Eggs and raw milk have separate non-cottage-food rules.

The permit steps

1. Complete an approved food-safety course before any sales (nationally accredited course, culinary-school course, county/city food-handler course, or NDA-approved course). EXEMPT: producers selling only non-TCS food directly to consumers at farmers markets are exempt from both training and registration.
2. Register with the Nebraska Department of Agriculture before selling (department forms; provide name, address, phone, course type and completion date, and well-water test results if using a private well).
3. If using private well water, test it for nitrate and bacteria contamination before producing/selling.
4. No registration fee or inspection fee is stated in the statute or on NDA's cottage-food page; registration is state-level — state law preempts local food-safety permitting/inspection requirements.
5. Allow up to 10 days for your registration to appear on NDA's online list of registered producers.

How it works, start to finish

1. Check your recipes against the allowed/prohibited list — no meat, fluid milk products, raw eggs, fermented foods, or home-canned low-acid/acidified foods.
2. If you will sell anything beyond non-TCS foods at a farmers market, complete an approved food-safety course (e.g., ServSafe, UNL Cottage Food Law Training online, or a county food-handler course) before selling.
3. If you use private well water, have it tested for nitrates and bacteria.
4. Register with the Nebraska Department of Agriculture on its cottage-food registration form (name, address, phone, course type and completion date, well-water test if applicable); confirm your listing appears (can take up to 10 days).
5. Label every product with your name and address; add an ingredient list (descending by weight) if the food is TCS.
6. Display the required notice — prepared in a kitchen not subject to regulation/inspection; may contain allergens — at the sale location, at your home, on your website, and in ads.
7. Sell directly to the consumer only: farmers markets, fairs, festivals, craft shows, or pickup/delivery from your home; non-TCS foods may also ship by U.S. mail or commercial carrier; TCS foods must be delivered by you in person within 2 hours at safe temperatures.
8. Check your farmers market's own vendor rules, and follow any local event-site food-handling guidelines where you sell.

Where to apply in Nebraska

Official sources — start with the agency or department that runs Nebraska's program:

• Nebraska Legislature — LB262 (2024) slip law, approved by the Governor April 16, 2024; enacted text of Neb. Rev. Stat. 81-2,280, Sec. 40
• Nebraska Department of Agriculture — Cottage Food Registration program page (requirements, prohibited TCS list, FAQs)

Inspection prep (general)