Maine's Cottage Food Law

Maine allows cottage food production under its home food processing exemption, which lets individuals make and sell certain low-risk foods from a residential kitchen without a commercial license. The law applies to home-based producers selling non-potentially-hazardous foods, meaning products that don't require refrigeration to stay safe. This covers a range of shelf-stable baked goods, jams, and confections made in your home kitchen.

You can sell your products through direct, in-person transactions only. Permitted venues include farmers markets, roadside stands, fairs, and other face-to-face settings. Online sales are not allowed, and you cannot ship products to customers. All sales must happen in person, with the buyer present at the point of purchase. There are no restrictions on how many venues you can sell at.

Maine's cottage food law has one of the lowest annual revenue caps in the country at $1,000 per year, which limits how much your business can scale. No permit, license, or registration is required to get started. That low threshold is a meaningful constraint, so tracking your gross sales carefully from day one will help you stay compliant and plan your next steps as your business grows.