Pennsylvania Cottage Food Label Requirements

Limited Food Establishment (PA Dept. of Agriculture, Bureau of Food Safety)

Registration

Required

PDA registration ($35 initial, $35 annual), application ≥60 days before operating, plan review, pre-operational on-site inspection; renewed annually. Non-TCS (shelf-stable) foods only; no pets in the home.

Annual sales limit

none (no cap appears in any program document)

Where you can sell

Direct from the production site including internet sales; farmers markets/events need an additional Retail Food Facility license; wholesale possible but may trigger FDA facility registration and nutrition labeling.

The required label statement

Good news — Pennsylvania does not require a home-kitchen disclaimer sentence on the label. Pennsylvania mandates NO home-kitchen disclaimer sentence — do not print one. PA is a registration + inspection regime, not a cottage-food exemption.

What must be on your label

Product name (common/usual name)
Name and address of manufacturer/distributor
Ingredients in descending order by weight, including sub-ingredients
Allergen declaration (if applicable)
Net weight/contents (or unit count)
Nutrition labeling only if sold in interstate commerce or if claims are made (most qualify for the FDA small business exemption, but must apply with FDA)
Exemption: scratch/mix bakery products sold directly to the public by the producer are exempt from labeling (ingredient info available on request)

Worth knowing

Health claims ("low fat", "sugar free", "gluten free") trigger federal nutrition-labeling obligations.
No sales cap is an argument from silence — none appears in official documents.

Verified against official Pennsylvania sources on 2026-08-31. Official source. This page is not legal advice — confirm requirements with your state.

Create a compliant Pennsylvania label