A compliant Texas cottage food label has to carry four things: the state’s mandatory disclosure statement in all capital letters, your operation’s name with either your home address or a DSHS-issued identification number, the common name of the product, and a disclosure of any major food allergen it contains.1State of Texas. Texas Health and Safety Code 437.0193 – Packaging and Labeling Requirements for Cottage Food Production Certain product types add a fifth or sixth element. Miss any of them and your product is out of compliance, even if everything you make is safe to eat.
The Mandatory Disclosure Statement
Every cottage food product must display this exact wording, in all capital letters: “THIS PRODUCT WAS PRODUCED IN A PRIVATE RESIDENCE THAT IS NOT SUBJECT TO GOVERNMENTAL LICENSING OR INSPECTION.”1State of Texas. Texas Health and Safety Code 437.0193 – Packaging and Labeling Requirements for Cottage Food Production
The language is set by statute. Paraphrasing it, shortening it, or using an older version that referenced the Department of State Health Services or a local health department will not satisfy the requirement. Copy it verbatim.
Your Name, Address or ID Number, and the Product Name
The label must identify the cottage food production operation by name and give either the producer’s physical home address or a unique identification number issued through the DSHS registration system.2Texas Department of State Health Services. Texas Cottage Food Production This is what lets a health authority trace a product back to its kitchen if a complaint comes in.
You also have to list the common or usual name of the product. “Pecan brittle,” “sourdough bread,” “strawberry jam.” If what you make is a variation on something standard, use the standard name as the product identifier and keep your brand name separate. A creative name alone, with no recognizable description of what the food actually is, doesn’t meet the requirement.
The label needs to be legible. Texas does not set a minimum font size for the standard elements, with one exception noted below for refrigerated foods.
Allergen Information
If your product contains any of the nine major food allergens recognized under federal law, you have to declare it on the label.2Texas Department of State Health Services. Texas Cottage Food Production Sesame joined the list on January 1, 2023, under the FASTER Act. The full set:
- Milk
- Eggs
- Peanuts
- Tree nuts (specify the type: pecans, walnuts, almonds, and so on)
- Wheat
- Soybeans
- Fish (specify the species)
- Crustacean shellfish (specify the type: shrimp, crab, lobster, and so on)
- Sesame
You can meet the disclosure by naming the allergen in parentheses within the ingredients list or by adding a separate “Contains:” statement after the ingredients. For tree nuts, fish, and crustacean shellfish, the category name alone is not enough. “Contains tree nuts” fails; “contains pecans” works. Undeclared allergens are one of the fastest routes to a recall order and to liability if a customer reacts.
Extra Elements for Certain Products
Refrigerated (TCS) Foods
Texas now allows cottage food producers to sell some foods that require temperature control for safety, such as custard pies and cream cheese pastries. These products must carry a safe handling instruction, in at least 12-point font, on the label, invoice, or receipt: “SAFE HANDLING INSTRUCTIONS: To prevent illness from bacteria, keep this food refrigerated or frozen until the food is prepared for consumption.” Producers selling TCS foods also have to register with DSHS before they sell.
Pickled, Fermented, and Acidified Products
Labels on pickled fruit or vegetables, fermented vegetable products, and plant-based acidified canned goods must include a unique batch number.2Texas Department of State Health Services. Texas Cottage Food Production The batch number lets a health authority trace a problem to a specific production run instead of your entire output.
Products Resold Through a Cottage Food Vendor
If a registered cottage food vendor resells your product, the label also has to show the date the food was made.2Texas Department of State Health Services. Texas Cottage Food Production The date requirement does not apply when you sell directly to the consumer yourself.
Online Sales
Online transactions split the labeling in two. Before the buyer pays, all of the required labeling information has to appear in a legible statement on your website: the disclosure, the producer identification, the product name, and the allergen information.2Texas Department of State Health Services. Texas Cottage Food Production When you deliver the product, it still needs a physical label with your address or unique identification number.
Delivery itself has to be handled personally by you, a household member, or an employee. Shipping through a carrier is not permitted, which effectively limits online sales to your local area.
Bulk Items That Can’t Be Packaged
Products too large or bulky for conventional packaging don’t get a pass on labeling. Instead of a package label, you provide the information to the buyer on an invoice or receipt, and that invoice has to contain every element a regular label would: operation name, address or registration number, product name, allergen disclosure, and the full disclosure statement.2Texas Department of State Health Services. Texas Cottage Food Production Handing a customer an unpackaged loaf with no paperwork does not comply.
Using a DSHS ID Number Instead of Your Home Address
On September 1, 2025, DSHS launched a cottage food registration system that issues a unique identification number producers can use on labels in place of a physical home address.2Texas Department of State Health Services. Texas Cottage Food Production For producers selling at public markets or online, this solves the practical problem of printing a home address on every item that leaves the kitchen.
Registration is optional if you sell only non-TCS foods directly to consumers and are willing to put your address on the label. It becomes mandatory in two situations: when you sell TCS foods that require refrigeration, and when you operate as a cottage food vendor buying products from another producer to resell. Vendors have to register regardless of what they carry.