Start a home kitchen in Ohio

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

Cottage food law Microenterprise home kitchen (MEHKO-style) — pending bill, not yet law

Sales cap: Current cottage food law: NO sales cap — Ohio imposes no annual sales limit on cottage food production operations; in-state sales are unrestricted (ORC Chapter 3715 sets no cap; OSU Extension ag-law bulletin: 'there are no restrictions on sales that occur within Ohio'). Scheduled change: none enacted for 2024-2026. Pending HB 134 would cap a MEHKO registrant's gross receipts for potentially hazardous homemade food items at $150,000 per calendar year — but the bill has not passed the Senate and has no effective date yet.

Allowed foods: Allowed: shelf-stable (non-potentially hazardous) foods only — bakery products (cookies, breads, brownies, cakes, fruit pies), candy, jams, jellies, fruit butters, granola, popcorn, unfilled baked donuts, waffle cones, pizzelles, dry cereal/nut mixes, roasted coffee, dry baking mixes, dry herbs/seasoning/tea blends, flavored honey (from exempt beekeeper), fruit chutney, maple sugar (from exempt processor), and dry soup mixes with commercially dried ingredients (per ODA Feb 2024 fact sheet, OAC 901:3-20-04). Not allowed: acidified foods, low-acid canned foods, potentially hazardous foods (anything needing refrigeration — cheesecake, cream/custard pies, pumpkin pies, cooked animal products, garlic in oil, cooked vegetables, rice/beans, cut melons/tomatoes, dairy), vacuum/reduced-oxygen packaged foods, and freeze-dried foods (ODA explicitly says freeze-drying is not permitted as a cottage food operation). No meat, poultry, seafood, alcohol, or juice. If HB 134 becomes law, MEHKO registrants could sell most home-prepared foods including perishable items, EXCEPT: low-acid canned foods, alcohol, smoked/cured-as-preservation foods, juice (outside codified standards), custom-processed meat/poultry, shellfish from live-display tanks, potentially hazardous foods made with reduced-oxygen methods, and foods containing any drug.

The permit steps

1. Cottage food: NO license, registration, inspection, or food-safety training required — operation is exempt from ODA licensing and inspection (ORC 3715.021, 3717.22); ODA may still sample products for adulteration/misbranding.
2. Produce only on the ODA-allowed non-potentially hazardous food list (no freeze-drying, no vacuum/reduced-oxygen packaging).
3. Label every unit per ORC 3715.023: product name, net quantity (U.S. + metric), ingredients in descending order by weight, business name and address, major-allergen declaration, and 'This Product is Home Produced.' in 10-point type.
4. Sell in Ohio only — direct from home (in-person or online within Ohio), licensed grocery stores, registered farm markets, farmers markets, licensed restaurants (food used in preparation), and political-subdivision festivals of 7 days or fewer; no interstate sales, no wholesale distributors.
5. Check local zoning for home-based retail sales before selling from your residence.
6. If HB 134 becomes law (pending), MEHKO registration would require: apply per ODA procedures + $25 annual registration fee ($12.50 if applied within six months of expiration), $25 annual renewal, complete ODA-approved food safety training BEFORE selling, pass annual home-kitchen inspection (inspection fee up to $50), deliver potentially hazardous items in person within 7 days of preparation with temperature control in transit, fines up to $75 (after warning) for violations.

How it works, start to finish

1. Pick a shelf-stable product from Ohio's allowed cottage food list — e.g., cookies, breads, jams, jellies, candy, granola, roasted coffee, dry mixes (freeze-drying and refrigerated foods are out).
2. Make it in your primary home kitchen with a standard residential stove/oven.
3. No license or registration to file — Ohio cottage food operations are exempt from ODA licensing and inspection, but your products are subject to ODA sampling for misbranding/adulteration.
4. Create a compliant label for each unit: product name, net weight in ounces and grams, full ingredient list (heaviest first), your business name and home address, allergen declarations, and 'This Product is Home Produced.' in 10-point type.
5. Sell in Ohio only — from your home, online to Ohio customers, farmers markets, farm markets, licensed grocery stores, licensed restaurants, or short government-organized festivals (7 days or fewer); no out-of-state or distributor sales.
6. Check your city/township zoning rules for home-based sales.
7. Scale freely — Ohio sets no annual sales cap.
8. If you want to sell perishable foods (meals, cooked dishes), watch HB 134: Ohio's proposed MEHKO registration would allow most homemade foods under a $25/year state registration, training, and annual home-kitchen inspection, capped at $150,000/year — but it is not law yet.

Where to apply in Ohio

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

• Ohio Revised Code Chapter 3715 (Pure Food and Drug Law) — official statute
• Ohio Legislature — HB 134 (136th GA) bill page
• Ohio Senate — HB 134 bill status page
• ODA Cottage Food Production Operation Fact Sheet (Feb 2024) — official ODA guidance

Inspection prep (general)