If you love to cook and live in Texas, you might be curious about the legality of selling your own salsa there. There is a simple answer: yes, you can. Before you can begin making money by selling your homemade salsa, there are a few rules and specifications that you must follow.
A food establishment permit or a food handler’s certificate are not required under the Texas Cottage Food Law for people to sell specific types of homemade food products to customers directly from their homes or at farmers’ markets. Baked goods, candies, jams, jellies, dried herbs, and salsa are a few examples of these handcrafted culinary products.
1. It must not be a potentially dangerous food. Your salsa must not need to be refrigerated in order to be safe to eat. This is so that foods that may be harmful, like dairy products, meat, and foods that contain more than 10% of fruits or vegetables, are not sold due of the Cottage Food Law.
2. It needs to be labeled properly: The following information must be included on the label of your homemade salsa: the name of the product, the ingredients used, the producer’s name and address, and the phrase “This product is homemade and not regulated by the Texas Department of State Health Services.”
3. It must be offered for sale directly to customers; you cannot offer your homemade salsa for sale online or through a third-party merchant. It can only be sold to customers directly from your home, a farmers’ market, or a public gathering.
What handmade meal is most popular in your area will mostly depend on local demand. However, baked goods like cookies and cakes, jams and jellies, and pickles are among well-liked homemade food products.
Overall, turning your love of cooking into a successful business can be accomplished by selling homemade food goods in Texas. To ensure that your goods are safe for consumption and that you are working within the law, it is crucial to adhere to the rules and specifications outlined by the Cottage Food Law.