Is It Illegal to Sell Food From House
So, Damien, if you were to sell food from your house, would you be breaking the law? To be honest, this is a subject that comes up very regularly in the context of the internet selling of food. Now, in this particular video, I'm going to talk about four different things that may or may not occur to you in the future. If you are selling food without a license, you should investigate your options for doing so lawfully. You should probably pay attention from the start of this video all the way through to the finish of it, because the information that I'm going to share with you might or might not get you into a lot of trouble. At this very moment, we are delving into that topic.
Okay, got it. So, it's good to have you back for more internet food marketing. In this video, I want to truly discuss a wonderful question that a lot of people are getting incorrect information about as a result of their friends, family members, or others in their community telling them some arbitrary things. I'm going to get quite clear with you about what might and probably will take place. It is not a business venture that you want to get involved in if it involves the illicit sale of food products from your house. I'm going to give you four examples of what has happened to some people who have sold food from their homes without having the appropriate permits or even having the appropriate types of business insurance and business liability insurance. These people did not have adequate protection in the event that something went wrong with their businesses. To go directly to the point, are you able to sell food from your home? Yes, you can. However, that is more of a giant open-ended inquiry than anything else because the word "food" is so open-ended. Does that imply that I have the potential to sell items such as tacos, burritos, hot dogs, and other foods?
Is It Illegal to Sell Food From House
I'm referring to cottage food regulations, which specify the kinds of food-related companies that can be run out of a person's home. For example, if I wanted to sell baked goods, I'd have to follow those restrictions. It is possible to produce a variety of food items as long as you comply with the cottage food rules that are on the books in every state. However, many of the states that have college food laws demand certain permits or even licensing, and even inspection occasionally from the health department or the city or county that you are in. This is the case in many of the states that have college food regulations. Because the state has a particular kind of guideline, many cities and counties, as those laws trickle down to the local municipalities, have to come up with their own rules and regulations as well. Alternatively, they can add onto it or say something to the effect of "Hey, in this city or county, we need to have you have a business license and, or you may need to have business insurance or something to that effect." This is because the laws trickle down from the state to the local municipalities.
Now, the majority of the foods that they are legally able to produce are what are known as food products that do not pose a potential health risk.
Products like baked goods and trail mixes are examples of items that are not going to be affected by changes in temperature or time for a considerable amount of time. Other examples include things that are not going to be sensitive for a very long period of time. If it needs to be sitting on a table at a farmer's market or if they need to be kept at a certain temperature, you certainly can't let something like a cheese Danish, for example, stay out in the heat all day long since there is the possibility that bacteria will grow and people will become ill. Now that we've reached the meat and potatoes of this lesson, you probably want to have a solid grasp on the distinctions between things that are and are not prohibited. If you are making items in, for example, your city or county, you are in your house, and you are producing a product that is on cottage food lists, but you do not have the permissions that they require you to have, then you are in violation of the law.
Is It Illegal to Sell Food From House
You simply presumed that you do not require a perimeter license rather than making the effort to confirm this information for yourself. Next, you put them up for sale at local farmer's markets where you live. And would you believe it? The health department and other government authorities do make rounds at farmer's markets and other events on a regular basis. If they see you at one of these gatherings, they might even ask you, "Hey, Damien, do you have that permit?" Do you have a license? Have you taken the necessary steps to ensure that you have everything on hand to offer this product? Actually, I don't have very much of anything at all. I recently learned that I am free to sell anything I choose at will. The following are four things that could conceivably occur to you, and if they do, you might even find yourself saying, "Well, who knew?" I was unaware of it. I was completely unaware that I was required to have a license that is valid for life. These are the kinds of things that might take place, and if they do, it might snowball into an experience that you really, really don't want to have.
First and foremost, many municipalities and counties will take action against you if they discover or are tipped off that you are manufacturing day food goods without the appropriate business licensing and other documentation. They will write you a letter of caution and send it to you. That tends to be something that will assist the majority of individuals quit what they're doing, at least temporarily. To put it another way, from the process of making a food product at home. Now, the letter is not overly complicated and gets right to the point. To reiterate, it's possible that the majority of cities and counties won't send you this letter. They might just go to number two, which is something I'll get into in just a second, but they'll still write you a letter and say things like, "We're sorry, but..." "It has come to our attention, Damien, that you have developed a product. Please check that you are in possession of the necessary permits and licenses." In addition, these municipalities and counties aren't too difficult to collaborate with. And they are sort of understanding that some people may not know what is required, but getting a notice to kind of cease and desist is something that might potentially happen to you. Also, they are accepting that some people may not know what is required.
Is It Illegal to Sell Food From House
HOW TO GET PERMITS TO SELL FOOD FROM HOME
In addition to that, a very little aside note. If you are going to run a food business out of your home and you live in a community, you need to check to see if your homeowners' association has any bylaws that could prevent you from doing so. If they do, you will either need to get their permission or give them notice that you are running a business out of your home. You need to make sure that you check with them, or at least give them a heads up and say, "Hey, I'm going to start producing a food product under our cottage food laws." If you have a homeowner's association, you need to make sure that you check with them, or at least give them a heads up and say, "Hey, I'm going to start producing a food product under our cottage food laws." However, I feel it necessary to inform you that I will soon be running a business from the comfort of my own home. Therefore, you should also bear this in mind. They just want to help you get back on track and figure out what you need as far as permits and licenses, so the very first thing that you might get right off the bat is a warning letter, which is kind of neutral and bland and not really a really big deal at all. However, they do want to help you get back on track as soon as possible.
Now, about the second one, this one may have some quite steep slopes. It is not an issue. Yes, your city or county, and once more, depending on where you are inside the senior county, they can locate you anyplace from what we've found online is that some areas are between $500. Other places may cost more or less than that. I'll have this increased to a fine of $2,000 each day for the incident that you're currently being penalized for. To be more specific, what does that imply? If you live in a county where they may charge you approximately $2,000 per day, per incident, then if you went to a farmer's market on a Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, you run the risk of being fined a total of $6,000 for violating the law in that county. I am not making this up. This is an accurate statement. We did some research on the internet to learn more about the history of the situation and to see whether or not there is any evidence to suggest that this has ever taken place in the past.
Is It Illegal to Sell Food From House
And there were a few young ladies who actually launched their own business while still maintaining their refinement. My belief is that it was excessive for approximately a week or two, all the way dating back practically literally ten days, ten business days. Additionally, the daily rate was close to one thousand dollars. Because of what they were doing, they were given a fine that was actually between $10,000 and $12,000. Now, if you want to choose that path and you don't want to follow the rules because everyone in your neighborhood says, or a friend or a cousin says, you can do it and, you know, forget all the permitting and licensing and the government and blah, blah, blah, go ahead and do that. You are free to do whatever you want. But I'll leave that decision up to you. Because doing so can result in a significant amount of additional fines, I do not advise you to act in such manner. Now, on to step three, this is the point at which things start to become a little bit more serious. A woman in Minnesota established a food business for the purpose of working from home.
She was selling food, but not necessarily things like trail mix or cookies or baked goods; rather, she was selling things like lunches and plates of dinners and other items of this nature. Unfortunately, I think she didn't know about it or whatever else, but she was selling food. And in the end, she was given eighty hours of community service. Additionally, a fine may be imposed by the municipality or county. I don't remember how much the fine was, but the other thing that was most important was that she had to perform 80 hours of community service in the city that she lived in because she didn't know, you know, who knew, who knew that I was supposed to have a permit or license. I don't remember the amount of the fine, but I do remember that the other thing that was most important was that she had to perform community service in the city that she lived in. In addition to that, I opened a restaurant out of my own house. She was operating without a valid license to do business. Even worse, she did not have any commercial insurance. Also, you guys need to keep in mind that if you don't have these things, you put yourself at risk of getting sued, which is something else you need to keep in mind.
Is It Illegal to Sell Food From House
CAN I SELL CHARCUTERIE BOARDS FROM HOME
Restaurants, cafes, and coffee shops are required to have proper sanitation in case a patron becomes ill. They are required to have a license to operate their firm. They are required to carry insurance. They are in need of an examination. Now, granted, I'm not telling you that you're going to start a restaurant, but you need to understand that people might potentially get injured or sick because of the items that you create, and that liability rests on you. Now, granted, I'm not telling you that you're going to start a restaurant. Consequently, if you do this from the comfort of your own home, you need to ensure that you familiarize yourself with the laws of your community as well as those of the state, county, and city in which you reside, and that you abide by them. They are present for a purpose, and it is not to pick on you or to impose penalties and the like in any way. They want to ensure that you are properly preparing the foods and that you are doing so in a safe and sound manner. That brings us to the end of point number four. This particular example exemplifies the very definition of an extreme.
There is a possibility that you will spend time in jail. Yes. Because she was preparing meals in her own house, the woman I told you about who was subjected to community service in Minnesota was actually confronted with the possibility of spending up to one month in jail as a result of the accusation. She was literally operating a restaurant by selling hot food, dinner and lunch plates, which is something that I would never do from home, to be honest, simply because I don't want people to come to my house and pick up food. Now, once again, she was kind of operating a restaurant by selling hot food. However, she was truly contributing to the community in this way, and the people there admired her. She was a lovely lady in every respect. She wasn't doing anything that might be considered unethical; she wasn't trying to take advantage of anyone; she wasn't even trying to find something. All she was doing was breaking the law. Simply put, she was manufacturing food goods without holding the required licences or licenses. Because she did not have the appropriate business insurance, permits, or licenses, the judge in this county courtroom has the authority to levy jail time over her head or hold it over her head for up to 30 days. This is an experience that you do not want to have, as it is something that you will regret if it happens to you.
Obviously, this is an extreme example of the problem. But if somebody in the city or the county where you live sends you a letter based on the concept that you are preparing food without the required permanent license, then you should pay attention to that letter before it snowballs into something more serious like community service, jail time, or even penalties. The question therefore becomes: without the appropriate permanent licensing, is it against the law to sell food from one's home? In point of fact, that is the case. And for everyone who is selling food online, whether it be on Etsy or eBay, and you're doing it from home because you see a lot of sellers, well, there are a lot of people selling cookies and other stuff on eBay and Etsy and such websites, and they're selling it from their house. So why is it that I can't do it? That is also against the law. That relates to sales made beyond state lines. And when you export a product that exceeds state lines, there is a merit for a significant find. This goes beyond what I even just described in this list, and it is possible that you might get into some more serious issues as a result.
If you want to start selling food from your home and you want to do it online, many states will let you do it as long as it's done locally. However, if you want to sell it online, you have to do it locally. This means that you are able to take an order if you live in Los Angeles, for example, but if someone buys it in Los Angeles, you are required to deliver it to them in Los Angeles. It is not possible to ship a product from the state of California to the state of Florida, for example. Therefore, the following is a list of the rules and regulations that you absolutely must be aware of. It is just not worth it in all honesty to sell food out of your home if you do not have the necessary permissions and licenses because there are certain requirements, fees, and penalties associated with doing so. You can obtain the vast majority of the business license permits and licensing or business licenses that you require without leaving your house. The, their fees are like a hundred dollars, seventy-five, or fifty dollars when it is done well.
I believe that the typical cost of a home office license, which allows you to conduct business from the comfort of your own home in an office, is somewhere between one hundred and twenty-five dollars per year. That is a significant reduction from the fine amount of several thousand dollars. Please let us know down below if you have any questions regarding selling your food locally or in, from your house, and also make sure to click the subscribe button and the small button that says join that is located below this video. That is in fact the section of our website dedicated to members, where you can sign up. There are three distinct tiers, each of which comes with a variety of additional benefits. Additionally, it enables us to keep making these videos, which does require a financial investment on our part. These are not things that we do. It is extremely free to upload them, but it does cost us money to edit and create them before we can put them online. Therefore, if you could lend your support to that endeavor, it would be very much appreciated, and I'll see you guys in our next video.
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