6 Things Louisiana Law Says About Selling Homemade Food

Under Louisiana’s homemade food rules, you can sell a pecan pie from your kitchen.

A meat pie is another story.

With Thanksgiving on Nov. 26, it’s a good time to know the rules before the orders come in.

Here’s what Louisiana law says about selling homemade food, so your first sale is a legal one.

Note: This is general information, not legal advice. Food rules and dollar limits are subject to change, so confirm the current requirements with the Louisiana Department of Health.

1. Annual Sales Cap

Louisiana’s homemade food exemption frees low-risk foods made at home from the state Sanitary Code’s equipment and preparation rules.

That exemption ends once your gross annual sales reach $100,000.

Act 801 raised the cap from $30,000 and took effect August 1, 2026.

The printed statute may still show the old $30,000 figure.

The enrolled bill says the exemption ends once sales equal the cap or more, so exactly $100,000 is over.

Under the cap, you still follow the food list, the label requirement, sales tax registration, and extra sanitation rules for home bakers.

2. Low-Risk Foods List

Homemade food falls under the exemption when the statute defines it as low-risk.

That definition names nine categories, starting with baked goods, including breads, cakes, cookies, and pies.

Candies, cane syrup, and dried mixes come next.

Honey and honeycomb products, jams, jellies, and preserves, pickles and acidified foods, sauces and syrups, and spices round out the nine.

Going by ordinary meaning, pralines would fit under candies, and pepper jelly under jams, jellies, and preserves.

A food the list doesn’t name isn’t clearly covered, so ask the Louisiana Department of Health before you sell it.

The exemption can’t be read to allow selling any unwholesome food, listed or not.

3. Meat and Fish Exclusion

Homemade food stays out of the exemption when it consists of “any animal muscle protein or fish protein.”

A pecan pie fits the list, but a meat pie is built around animal muscle protein, which is excluded.

Fish is out, too.

If you want to sell a meat pie or a fish dish, ask the department how it would regulate your product.

Its retail food page is a starting point.

4. Required Label

Most homemade food you sell under the exemption has to carry a label.

The label has to clearly indicate that the food was "not produced in a licensed or regulated facility."

A jar of pickles you sell needs a label that makes that clear.

5. Sales Tax Registration

Louisiana law doesn't let you sell homemade food until you're registered to collect the local sales and use taxes that apply.

A current sales tax certificate is your proof.

It comes from the sales and use tax collector for the parish where your sales occur.

6. Home Bakery Rules

Homemade breads, cakes, cookies, and pies come with extra conditions under the exemption.

You can't sell them to a retail business or another individual for resale.

If you employ someone to help with your cookie orders, the exemption stops covering you.

The building has to be constructed to exclude rats, mice, roaches, and other vermin.

Every outside opening needs protection against flies and other vermin.

Domestic pets must stay out of any part of your home where you prepare and bake those goods.

After each day's production, you have to clean and sanitize every food contact surface.

Equipment has to be kept clean and free of cracks and, wherever possible, made of non-corroding metal or another smooth, impervious material that cleans easily.

Stationary equipment must be installed to allow easy cleaning.

Barrels, tubs, pails, kneading troughs, pans, and other receptacles have to be kept clean and sanitary and built to clean easily.

A piece of equipment too large for your sinks has to be cleaned in a manner the state health officer approves.

The Cap Bill's Path

House Bill 403, the homemade food bill behind the new cap, came from Representative Kimberly Coates.

The bill's title describes it as providing for the production of homemade food for sale to the public.

A House committee reported it with amendments, 9 to 0, on April 1.

The House passed it 95 to 0 on April 9, 2026.

The Senate health committee reported it with amendments on May 13.

The Senate followed 38 to 0 on May 26, and the House agreed to the Senate's changes 96 to 0 on May 29.

The governor signed it on June 8, nearly two months before you could rely on the higher cap.

Retail Food Permits

If your homemade food business outgrows the exemption, the department's retail food page is the place to start asking what applies to you.

That page lists permit categories that include bakeries, meat markets, seafood markets, mobile food vendors, and seasonal or temporary permits, and points you to your regional sanitarian for local help.

For a new retail food establishment, the department's For New Businesses page tells you to give its attached documents to the State Sanitarian in the parish where you plan to operate.

The plans review fee applies to new plans and to plans for substantial renovation.