Cottage Food License Costs [ How much is a Cottage Food License permit ]

What steps are required to start a food business from your own home?


License to conduct business

The application for a business license, which must be submitted to the permits department of the operator's county and costs $50, comes first.



The training for food safety managers that is accredited by ANSI

Next, the operator is obligated to receive training through the completion of an ANSI-accredited food safety manager course, such as the Learn2Serve Food Safety Manager Online Course, which costs approximately one hundred dollars.



A permission for home-prepared foods

After that, every operator is responsible for submitting an application for a cottage food license that may be found on the Georgia cottage food website.

The fee for the cottage food license is $100, although it drops to $50 after the 30th of June of each year.

The operator is required to list all of the products that they want to offer on the application. After obtaining a license, they will be required to submit a new application and pay a new fee every time they want to manufacture a new type of product.



Examination of the house

Before a cottage food operator can acquire a license, the Department of Agriculture or the Environmental Health Department will schedule an appointment for them to have their kitchen inspected. This phase of the process does not cost the operator any additional money. In order to comply with the requirements of the cottage food act, the inspector is required to check off a number of specific boxes during the inspection.



Evaluation of a private well

Before a license can be issued to a cottage food operator, the water must first be examined and given the green light if it comes from a private water source. The cost of this process is one hundred dollars.



Private examination of the sewer system

If the operator relies on a private sewage system, they are required to have their septic tank inspected (for an additional cost of $125) and subsequently pumped (for an additional cost of $300–500).