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Cottage food by state

South Carolina cottage food law: what you can sell and how

South Carolina's Home-based Food Production law lets you sell shelf-stable homemade foods directly, online and by mail in the state, and through retail stores, with no permit.

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Updated November 2026 by the Madeline's team, who set these tools up for makers and farms.

The short version

No permit, license or registration. Make non-potentially hazardous foods in your home kitchen and sell them directly to consumers, including online and by mail order delivered in South Carolina, and to retail stores that post a sign. Restaurants can use them only with a variance from SCDA. The Department of Agriculture took over the program on July 1, 2024.

South Carolina rules at a glance

  1. Who regulates

    South Carolina Department of Agriculture (SCDA), under SC Code 44-1-143.

  2. License

    None. SCDA does not issue permits or registrations, but will give you an ID number on request to use on labels instead of your address.

  3. Allowed foods

    Non-potentially hazardous foods such as shelf-stable cakes, cookies and cupcakes, candy, high-acid pies, roasted nuts, dried herbs and spices, and sourdough bread.

  4. Not allowed

    Aluminum canned goods, charcuterie boards, foods that need refrigeration, and repackaged bulk foods.

  5. Where you can sell

    Directly to consumers, including online and mail order delivered only in South Carolina, and to retail stores including grocery stores, which must post a sign.

  6. Restaurants

    Home-based food can be served or used as an ingredient only if the restaurant gets a variance approved by SCDA.

  7. Labels

    Name and address (or SCDA ID number), product name, ingredients by weight, net contents, allergens, and in all capital letters: "PROCESSED AND PREPARED BY A HOME-BASED FOOD PRODUCTION OPERATION THAT IS NOT SUBJECT TO SOUTH CAROLINA'S FOOD SAFETY REGULATIONS."

Check the source

  • Official source

    SC Department of Agriculture: Home-based Food Production

    Rules change. Confirm the current figures and forms with the state before you start selling.

    Open the official page

  • Cottage food to commercial kitchen

    What changes when you outgrow the limits.

    Read the guide

  • Free tool

    Cost per jar calculator

    Price your cottage food products from what they really cost.

    Use the calculator

  • Food label requirements

    What a packaged food label needs, including allergens.

    Read the guide

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Questions

Do I need a permit for cottage food in South Carolina?

No. SCDA does not issue permits, licenses or registrations for home-based food production.

Can I sell homemade food to stores in South Carolina?

Yes. Retail stores can sell home-based foods if they post a sign that the products are not subject to commercial food regulations.

Can I ship cottage food from South Carolina?

Online and mail order sales are allowed when delivered in South Carolina.

Who regulates home-based food in South Carolina?

The South Carolina Department of Agriculture, since July 1, 2024.

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Tell us what you make and what you use today. A spreadsheet and a Square account is a fine answer. We reply by email with what we would keep, what we would change and what it costs.

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