The Division of Food Safety inspects Ohio food manufacturers and processing plants. Food Safety also inspects food warehouses, home bakeries and small egg processors. If you are interested in making your own food and selling it, please visit our Starting a Food Business page for more information. 

If you are thinking about opening a food business, there may be regulatory requirements that you will need to meet. Some of these requirements apply to all food businesses, and some are specific to the particular food product or where you plan to operate your business. More details.

Answer the following questions to determine what licensing you will need

Do you want to make a food using beef, pork or poultry in your product?  If so you must contact the Ohio department of Agriculture, Division of Meat Inspection at 614-728-6260.

Do you want to make a dairy product such as cheese, butter, yogurt or ice cream?  If so you must contact the Ohio Department of Agriculture, Dairy Division at 614-466-5550.

Do you want to make pet food?  If so you must contact the Ohio Department of Agriculture, Division of Plant Industry at 614-728-6270.

Do you want to make meals in your home?  If so you must contact your local health department. 

If your answers to the above questions are "No", please read below

If you want to make and sell food from the site of production such as a restaurant or grocery store you will be regulated by your local health department.  

If you want to make food and sell it away from the site of production you will be regulated by the Ohio Department of Agriculture, Division of Food Safety (ODA, Food Safety).

If you want to make food and sell from the site of production and away from the site of production you will be regulated by both your local health department and by ODA, Food Safety.  There are two exceptions:

1)If you are canning or bottling a non-alcoholic drink product you are always regulated by ODA, Food Safety, regardless of where the product is sold.

2)If you are a bakery you need to sell more than fifty percent of your product away from the site of production to be regulated by the ODA, Food Safety.

You will need to contact your local health department. The local health department is the agency who is responsible for licensing and inspecting grocery stores, restaurants and food trucks. To find the contact information for your local health department, click here.

Visit the Ohio Department of Health's website, enter your address and you will be provided contact information for your local health department. 

Some food items are allowed to be made in the home and offered for sale.  They are cottage food items and home bakery items. 
Cottage food items are those foods allowed to be made in a person’s home without regulatory oversight.  A list of cottage foods and the rules governing them can be found here. 

A home bakery license allows potentially hazardous bakery items (items which need refrigeration) to be made in a person’s home. Your home kitchen will need to be inspected by ODA, Food Safety.  You cannot have pets in the home, nor carpet in the kitchen, and if you have a non- municipal water supply you must have a water test conducted within the last twelve months demonstrating that your water is negative for Total Coliform. You will also need an accurate thermometer in your refrigerator to indicate the refrigerator can hold product at 45° Fahrenheit or less.  The specialist will also review your product labels.  A home bakery license is $10 per year and it is renewed every September.  To schedule an inspection fill out the Request for Inspection Form and email to foodsafety@agri.ohio.gov.  See also Home Bakery. 

There are two options for baking in your home.  One is as a cottage food production operation; the other is as a licensed home bakery.

Bakery items that do not require refrigeration, such as breads, cookies and fruit pies can be made in your home as a cottage food. A cottage food is allowed to be made in a person’s home without regulatory oversight.  A list of cottage foods and the rules governing them can be found at here. There are also labeling requirements for a cottage food which are available here.

A home bakery license allows potentially hazardous bakery items (items which need refrigeration) to be made in a person’s home. Your home kitchen will need to be inspected by ODA, Food Safety.  You cannot have pets in the home or carpet in the kitchen, and if you have a non- municipal water supply you must have a water test conducted within the last twelve months demonstrating that your water is negative for Total Coliform.  You will also need an accurate thermometer in your refrigerator to indicate the refrigerator can hold product at 45° Fahrenheit or less.  The specialist will also review your product labels.  Information on labeling can be found on our Home Bakery Resource Page.

A home bakery license is $10 per year and it is renewed every September; to schedule an inspection fill out the Request for Inspection form and email to foodsafety@agri.ohio.gov..

Egg noodles cannot be produced as a cottage food.  To produce egg noodles in your home you will need to have a home bakery license from ODA, Food Safety.  Egg noodles are considered potentially hazardous and must be kept and sold as a refrigerated item.  To sell your egg noodles at a farmers’ market you will need a license from your local health department.  Contact information can be found here. 

There are two options for making donuts in your home.

1) As a cottage food producer, you may make unfilled, baked donuts in your home.  For more information you can visit our Cottage Food Resource Page or review the laws regarding cottage food production.

2) As a licensed home bakery you may make all types of donuts in your home.  For more information, visit our Home Bakery Resource Page.

You may fall under the Produce Safety Rule requirements. You can find more information about the Produce Safety Rule on our Produce Safety page: https://agri.ohio.gov/divisions/food-safety/resources/Produce-Safety

All canning operations are licensed and inspected by ODA, Food Safety, regardless of where the product is sold.  All facilities must meet Good Manufacturing Practices. The only exception is for a cottage food operation that produces jams, jellies and fruit butter.

If you are producing a naturally high acid canned food, you will need to have your product tested to determine the actual pH before calling the Division of Food Safety for an inspection.

If you are producing an acidified canned food or a low acid canned food you must attend Better Process Control School, have your product evaluated by a process authority, register with the FDA as a cannery and file your process with the FDA before you call ODA, Food Safety for an inspection.   You can contact the division at 614-728-6250.

A naturally high acid canned food is a food that has a natural (without the addition of acid) pH of 4.6 or below.  Example: tomato based products
An acidified canned food is a low acid food to which an acid or acid food has been added.  Example: pickles

A low acid canned food is a food that has a pH greater than 4.6 and a water activity greater than 0.85.  Example: green beans
Information on Better Process Control Schools can be found on the internet.  Many universities offer this course online.   

A process authority is someone the FDA recognizes as knowledgeable in food processing.  You can contact the Division of Food Safety at 614-728-6250 for more information.

To register and file with the FDA as a cannery go to: https://www.fda.gov/food/registration-food-facilities-and-other-submissions/establishment-registration-process-filing-acidified-and-low-acid-canned-foods-lacf.

Your operation must be inspected by ODA, Food Safety.  You are required to have mechanical refrigeration to hold your packaged eggs at 45° Fahrenheit or less and you must have correct labeling on your egg cartons.  All cartons must state the following:

1) Name and address of the packer
2) Accurate statement of quantity in terms of numerical count
3) Date the eggs were placed in the carton
4) Correct grade and size or state ungraded and mixed size
5) Safe handling instructions, which should be shown as follows

Egg cartons can be reused as long as all information on the carton is pertinent to the eggs in the carton.  All information that does not relate to those particular eggs must be marked out.  This could be information such as brand name and inspected by USDA.

There is no charge for inspection of operations with 500 or fewer laying hens.

Eggs may be sold from the site of production without an inspection.

Operations with more than 500 laying hens must be inspected by ODA, Food Safety and must comply with Good Manufacturing Practices. 

Your egg operation does not necessarily need to be registered by ODA, Food Safety.  However, if you want the option of selling to restaurants or retailers your operation must be registered. The eggs must be held at 45° Fahrenheit or less while at the auction.

A farm market is a producer operated facility where only one or more of the following food items are offered for sale:

1) Fresh unprocessed fruits and vegetables;
2) Products of a cottage food production operation;
3) Maple syrup, sorghum, or honey that is produced by a maple syrup or sorghum producer or beekeeper described in division (A) of section 3715.021 of the Revised Code;
4) Commercially prepackaged food that is not potentially hazardous, on the condition that the food is contained in displays, the total space of which equals less than one hundred cubic feed on the premises where the person conducts business at the farm market;
5) Cider and other juices manufactured on site at the farm market;
6) Raw eggs, raw poultry, and raw non-amenable meat on the condition that those products were produced by the farm market operator, and further conditioned that, with respect to the eggs offered, the farm market operator annually maintains five hundred or fewer birds, and with respect to the dressed poultry offered, the farm market operator annually raises and slaughters one thousand or fewer chickens, or two hundred fifty or fewer turkeys.

A farm market that is registered with the ODA Food Safety and offers for sale only those items listed above is exempt from needing a license from the local health department. 

A person at a farmers market that offers for sale only one or more of the following:

(a) Fresh unprocessed fruits or vegetables;

(b) Products of a cottage food production operation;

(c) Tree syrup, sorghum, honey, apple syrup or apple butter processor described in division (A) of section 3715.021 of the Revised Code;

(d) Wine as authorized under section 4303.2010 of The Revised Code;

(e) Commercially prepackaged food that is not potentially hazardous, on the condition that the food is contained in displays, the total space of which equals less than one hundred cubic feet on the premises where the person conducts business at the farmers’ market.

Registration of a farmers market is no longer required to be exempt if selling the above items.

Cottage food items that are packaged and properly labeled may be offered for sale at the market.  A license from the local health department is not required. An example of correct labeling for a cottage food can be found on the Cottage Food Resource Page.  

Cottage food items are to be pre-packaged and properly labeled when brought to the market.  If product is open for customers to select then a temporary or mobile food license is required from the local health department.

First your meat must come from a facility that is inspected by the USDA or ODA meat inspection and the meat must bear the appropriate mark of inspection.

If you are storing your meat you will need a storage location (warehouse) inspected by ODA, Food Safety.  A home cannot be a warehouse, but you may be able to use your garage or an outbuilding to hold your freezers.  The warehouse must be tight as to exclude insects and rodents, and the freezers are to be situated as to protect the product from contamination. (No storing of fuel or oil other contaminates above or near the freezers). 

Once you have been inspected by ODA, Food Safety, you must contact your local health department to obtain a license to sell your meat at the farmers’ market.  

Your operation must be inspected by ODA's Division of Food Safety. You must also contact your local health department to obtain a license to sell your eggs.  

If you operate a registered farm market you may sell your eggs at the farm market without an inspection.  If your farm market is not registered, your egg operation will need to be inspected by ODA, Food Safety and you would be subject to licensure by your local health department. 

To register a farm market click here and email to foodsafety@agri.ohio.gov.

You can find more information on farm markets on the Resources page.

A farm market selling cheese and milk must have a license from the local health department.  You can find more information on registered farm markets and what they are allowed to sell on the Resources page.

Options for making and selling cider/juice in Ohio: 

1) Raw cider/juice can be sold at the site of production.  The facility must either be licensed by the local health department or be a licensed food establishment or a registered farm market.  As a licensed food establishment the local health department can answer questions on cider/juice production.  Contact information can be found at: https://odhgateway.odh.ohio.gov/lhdinformationsystem/directory/getmylhd.

A registered farm market can product raw cider/juice and sell it at the farm market.  This facility will be inspected by ODA, Food Safety and must comply with Good Manufacturing Practices which can be found at: https://ecfr.io/title21/cfr117_main.  Raw cider/juice cannot be moved to another location for sale (such as a farmers’ market), it must be sold at the site of production and it must contain the following warning statement:

2) Pasteurized cider/juice:  Can be sold away from the site of production.   Cider/juice must undergo a 5-log reduction to be sold away from the site of production.  A 5-log reduction can be achieved by pasteurization, the use of UV light or any other method which has been scientifically proven to achieve a 5-log reduction.  All facilities that wholesale cider/juice must be inspected by ODA, FS and must comply with both Good Manufacturing Practices and the Juice HACCP regulations.  Juice HACCP regulations can be found at: http://codes.ohio.gov/oac/901%3A3-23 . 

A registered farm market can sell their raw cider/juice at farmers markets as long as they are the entity selling at the farmers market.

Bottling water is regulated by ODA, Food Safety.  A firm bottling water must comply with both applicable parts of Preventive Controls and the Bottled Water regulations.  Preventive Controls can be found at:  https://ecfr.io/title21/cfr117_main and the Bottled Water regulations can be found at: http://codes.ohio.gov/oac/901%3A3-62 . 

If your water source is a well or a spring (non-municipal) it must be evaluated by a geologist or hydrologist to determine that the location does not expose the water to contamination by chemical, biological and radiological pollutants injurious to human health.  You must also have the source water analyzed by an EPA approved laboratory to verify that the water meets the chemical, biological and radiological quality requirements for bottled water.  

Once the source water location has been approved and the initial source water has been analyzed and found to be in compliance your facility can be inspected.  Upon satisfactory completion of an initial inspection you will be given an application for a bottling license.  The license cost $200/year and it is renewed every March. 

There are additional testing requirements:

1) Source water not from a municipal water supply must be sampled and analyze for microbiological contaminants at least weekly.
2) Source water not from a municipal water supply must be sampled and analyzed at least once a year for chemical contaminants and once every four years for radiological contaminants.
3) Finished product (in the bottle) must be sampled and analyze for microbiological contaminants at least weekly, for each type of water produced during that week.
4) Finished product (in the bottle) must be sampled and analyzed at least once a year for chemical, physical and radiological contaminants, for each type of water produced.

All testing shall be done by an EPA approved lab.  A list of approved labs can be found on Ohio EPA's website, look under “Currently Certified Labs”.  A list of required tests can be found at: https://ecfr.io/title-21/section-165.110.

Please note for purposes of this answer meat means: beef, pork, poultry, lamb, goat, equine and ratites.

The meat must be processed at a facility that is inspected by either the USDA or the Ohio Department of Agriculture's Division of Meat Inspection with the mark of inspection.

If you want to store your frozen meat at your residence, you will need to have the storage facility inspected by ODA, Food Safety.  You are considered to be a warehouse. 

If you want to sell your frozen meat from your home, you should contact your local health department.  

If you want to solicit frozen meat (knocking door-to-door) you will need to have a mobile retail food establishment license which would be issued by your local health department.  

If you want to deliver pre-ordered frozen meat you do not need a license from your local health department, so long as the meat is delivered directly to the individual from the meat processing facility, without intermediate storage.

If you want to sell your frozen meat at your registered farm market, you no longer qualify as an exempt farm market.  You should contact the local health department for licensing information.  

If you want to sell your frozen meat at a farm product auction you should contact your local health department for licensing information.  

Click here to take you to the Cottage Foods Resources Page.

No. A “Cottage Food Production Operation” is exempt from inspection and licensing by the Ohio Department of Agriculture. However, all food products, including those produced and packaged by “Cottage Food Production Operations”, are subject to food sampling conducted by the Ohio Department of Agriculture to determine if a food product is misbranded or adulterated.