Cottage Food Laws in West Virginia
Last verified against official sources on by Amrit. How we verify
Yes. In West Virginia you can make shelf-stable foods (foods that do not need to be kept hot or cold) in your home kitchen and sell them without a state permit, license or inspection, and counties and cities cannot ban or regulate them, apart from some event and government-property rules. There is no sales cap in the law. You must label every item the way the West Virginia Department of Agriculture requires, including a statement that it was made in a non-commercial kitchen. Foods that need refrigeration, and canned acidified foods such as pickles and salsa, are not covered by this exemption. To sell them at a farmers market you need a farmers market vendor permit from the Department of Agriculture.[1][5]
At a glance
| Permit needed | No state permit for shelf-stable foods. Foods that need to be kept hot or cold, and pickles, salsas and other canned acidified foods, need a WVDA farmers market vendor permit to be sold at a farmers market.[1][5] |
|---|---|
| Sales cap | None in the law[1] |
| Kitchen | Your home kitchen, a farm kitchen, a community kitchen or a commercial kitchen, as WVDA determines[1] |
| Label statement | "This product was made in a non-commercial kitchen that may not be subject to inspection and may contain cross-contact allergens not included in the allergen statement."[5] |
| Where you can sell | Directly to customers in person or remotely, through an agent, or through a third-party seller such as a shop or grocery store[1] |
| Online and shipping | Allowed. You can sell online and deliver yourself or use a carrier. Selling to other states depends on federal law and that state's law.[1] |
| Agency | West Virginia Department of Agriculture (WVDA)[1] |
Step by step
Do these in order. Each step links to the official form or page.
Check that your food is shelf-stable
The exemption covers only foods that do not need to be kept hot or cold to stay safe, such as breads, cakes, candies, honey, tree syrup, molasses, apple butter, regular jams and jellies made to the standard recipe (not diet versions), and dried fruits and vegetables. Pickles, salsas, sauces and other canned acidified foods count as "potentially hazardous" (the law's term for foods that need temperature control or other safety steps), as do foods that need refrigeration. They are not covered, and selling them at a farmers market takes a WVDA farmers market vendor permit.[1][5]
Choose your kitchen
You can make shelf-stable foods in your own home kitchen. A farm kitchen, a community kitchen or a commercial kitchen also works. The law lets WVDA decide which kitchens may be used.[1]
Label every item
Every label element must be easy to read. The label must show the common name of the food; your business name; your city, state and ZIP code; the ingredients in order from most to least by weight, starting with "Ingredients:" (even a single-ingredient food needs one); the net contents or count in the bottom third of the front label, in U.S. units followed by the metric amount in parentheses (honey by weight, syrups by volume); any major allergens in a "Contains" line right below the ingredients; and safe-handling instructions when they apply. If you make the food in a home, farm or community kitchen, add the required non-commercial kitchen statement. You may hand-write the net contents if it is easy to read. Instead of a label on the package, you can give the label information on a receipt or other document, on the web page if you sell online, or on a sign where you sell it if the food is not packaged or is sold from a bulk container.[5]
Register your business and handle taxes
The cottage food exemption does not excuse you from tax law or from registering your business name and address with the state where the law requires it.[1]
Sell and deliver
Sell in person, online or by phone, yourself or through an agent or a store. Hand the food over yourself or send it with an agent, the store or a carrier.[1]
What you can and can't sell[5][1]
Allowed
- Breads and cakes
- Candies
- Honey, tree syrup and molasses
- Apple butter, and regular jams and jellies made to the standard recipe (not diet versions)
- Dried fruits and vegetables
- Other foods that do not need to be kept hot or cold
Not allowed
- Foods that need to be kept hot or cold, including baked goods that need refrigeration (farmers market vendor permit needed)
- Pickles, salsas, sauces, fermented foods and other canned acidified foods (farmers market vendor permit needed)
- Non-standard jams and jellies, infused honeys and syrups, and condiments (farmers market vendor permit needed)
- Meat, poultry, fish, milk and dairy products (farmers market vendor permit and other licensing needed)
- Cut produce (farmers market vendor permit needed)
- Wild-harvested mushrooms and sprouted seeds (not allowed at farmers markets)
Local rules
These places add their own requirements on top of the state rules.
- All West Virginia counties and cities: Counties, cities and other local governments cannot ban or regulate making and selling shelf-stable homemade food. They can still set terms for renting space at government-owned or government-run facilities, for product placement agreements with government-owned facilities, for government-run or sanctioned events, and for temporary events of 14 days or less.[1]
Recent changes
- : The Department of Agriculture's Farmers Markets rule (61CSR38) took effect, setting the labeling standards for homemade food, including the non-commercial kitchen statement.[6][5]
- : HB 2633 (the 2021 Farm Bill) took effect. It replaced "homemade food items" with "nonpotentially hazardous foods", replaced the label wording written into the law with the Department of Agriculture's labeling standards, and allowed home, farm, community and commercial kitchens.[2][1]
- : SB 285 took effect. It let West Virginians make shelf-stable "homemade food items" and sell them without a state license, permit or inspection, including remotely and through stores, and stopped local governments from banning them.[4][3]
Frequently asked questions
Is there a limit on how much I can sell?
No. The West Virginia law that exempts homemade shelf-stable food sets no yearly sales limit.[1]
Can I ship my cookies?
Yes, within West Virginia. The law lets a third-party carrier deliver to your customer. If you ship to another state, that state's law and federal law still apply.[1]
Can I sell my baked goods in a coffee shop or grocery store?
Yes. The law lets a third-party vendor, such as a retail shop or grocery store, sell your shelf-stable food to customers.[1]
Do I have to put my home address on the label?
The rule asks for your city, state and ZIP code, not a street address.[5]
Can I sell pickles, salsa or hot sauce?
Not under the permit-free exemption. Canned acidified foods count as potentially hazardous. To sell them at a farmers market you need a WVDA farmers market vendor permit, and for that you need your recipe process approved by a process authority recognized by WVDA, batch records, a water test before permitting and every year after if you use a private water supply, and proof of food safety training such as Better Process Control School. This page does not cover selling them anywhere else.[1][5]
Can I sell cheesecake or other foods that need refrigeration?
Not under the permit-free exemption. To sell them at a farmers market you need a WVDA farmers market vendor permit, and to get one you must show a food handler card or higher food safety training. You can still use a home kitchen, but WVDA can limit some foods to certain kitchens. This page does not cover selling them anywhere else.[5]
Will the health department inspect my kitchen?
Shelf-stable homemade food is exempt from state inspection laws. A local health department or WVDA can still investigate, and stop production, if your food is reported to have made someone sick. You can also ask WVDA for help or an inspection yourself.[1]
Sources
- Enrolled Committee Substitute for H.B. 2633 (2021 Regular Session): the 2021 Farm Bill, amending W. Va. Code §19-35, West Virginia Legislature. Checked October 25, 2026. Enrolled 2021 bill text, not the codified section. The official code site (code.wvlegislature.gov/19-35-6/) redirected automated readers to fbi.gov and could not be read; the reviewer should confirm current §19-35-6 matches this text.
- Bill history: House Bill 2633, 2021 Regular Session, West Virginia Legislature. Checked October 25, 2026.
- Enrolled Committee Substitute for Committee Substitute for S.B. 285 (2019 Regular Session): sale of homemade food items, West Virginia Legislature. Checked October 25, 2026.
- Bill history: Senate Bill 285, 2019 Regular Session, West Virginia Legislature. Checked October 25, 2026.
- 61CSR38, Farmers Markets (legislative rule, Department of Agriculture), West Virginia Secretary of State. Checked October 25, 2026. This PDF is the 2026 proposed amendment of 61CSR38 (modified file filed 2026-10-23, still in progress), which reprints the rule in effect since 2023-05-01. The in-force Final File (DocId 56083) is a scanned PDF and a .docx the checker cannot read. Every passage quoted here was compared against the in-force .docx text and is unchanged; the reviewer should confirm against the Final File.
- Rule detail and documents: 61-38 Farmers Markets (effective 5/1/2023), West Virginia Secretary of State. Checked October 25, 2026.
Related
- Cottage Food Laws in Kentucky
- Cottage Food Laws in Maryland
- Cottage Food Laws in Ohio
- Cottage Food Laws in Pennsylvania
- Cottage Food Laws in Virginia
- Cottage Food Laws by State
This page is general information, not legal advice. Rules and fees change. Before you apply or start selling, confirm the details with West Virginia Department of Agriculture (WVDA) or your local health department. Spotted something wrong or out of date?Report it and we will check it.