Food Safety Tips for Selling Cottage Foods at Ohio Farmers Markets

In Ohio, cottage food producers are responsible for ensuring their products are prepared safely. Illnesses from unsafe food can largely be prevented by implementing good food safety practices. While Ohio farmers markets present a great opportunity to expand the sales of cottage foods to new audiences, food safety risks are introduced when transporting products and selling them at a second location. Before you choose to sell cottage foods at an Ohio farmers market, be sure you understand Ohio’s laws and rules by reviewing the information posted on the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s website (agri.ohio.gov/divisions/food-safety/resources/cottage-food) about producing cottage foods. Also consider visiting a variety of farmers markets before deciding if you want to sell products there. Speak with market organizers and current vendors to inform your decision, and pay attention to amenities (e.g., restrooms, handwashing stations, trash bins, electricity) available for sellers.

Keep the following six food safety tips in mind as you prepare and sell cottage foods at an Ohio farmers market.

Tip 1. Follow Ohio’s Cottage Food Labeling Laws

Cottage food labels are an important source of information for consumers. To ensure buyers are well informed, cottage food labels must meet specific requirements.

• Cottage food labels must include product name, net quantity, ingredient list with allergens clearly identified, business name and address, and the statement “this product is home produced” in a minimum 10-point font size.
• The nine major food allergens that must be explicitly labeled on cottage foods offered for sale in Ohio are:
  • milk
  • eggs
  • fish
  • shellfish
  • tree nuts
  • peanuts
  • wheat
  • soybeans
  • sesame

Refer to the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s example label and guidance in the Cottage Food Production Operation fact sheet (Ohio Department of Agriculture, Division of Food Safety, n.d.) and in the Ohio State University Extension Law Bulletin for more details on how to properly label cottage food products (Ohio Department of Agriculture, Division of Food Safety, 2023; Hall & Marrison, 2023).

Tip 2. Package Products Intentionally

Appropriate packaging is important to maintain a product’s quality and to protect the product from contamination during transportation and selling.

• Cottage food products must be packaged where they are made, in the quantities they will be sold. Packaging or re-packaging of products (e.g., slicing and wrapping bagels, scooping and bagging spice mixes, slicing and serving cakes) is not allowed at farmers markets because these activities can increase the risk of contaminating food.
• Use food-grade packaging materials (i.e., materials safe for direct contact with food).
• Consider the need for waterproof packaging and/or packaging that can withstand various temperatures.

Tip 3. Transport Products Safely to Avoid Contamination

Transportation is often an overlooked but important step when selling cottage foods. Follow these guidelines to ensure your products are transported safely to the market.

• Store packaged food products in a secondary container such as a clean cooler, storage bin, or sanitized shopping bag. This helps to avoid contact between products and potentially contaminated surfaces such as floor mats, the bed of a truck, and the wagon used to get products from a vehicle to a vendor booth.
• Be sure the vehicle used to transport food products is in clean condition and free from dirt, animal debris, chemicals, or other potential contaminants.

Tip 4. Keep Temperature in Mind

Cottage foods permitted to be sold at Ohio farmers markets do not require refrigeration to ensure food safety. However, maintaining product temperatures is an important consideration to ensure food quality.

• While selling in hot weather, consider having one or two products on display while storing the rest in a temperature-controlled location (e.g., cooler packed with ice packs, mobile refrigeration unit) to prevent melting or softening.

Tip 5. Have a Plan for Providing Samples

Many farmers markets allow vendors to offer product samples. Check with the market manager to verify that sampling is permitted. If you plan to offer samples, keep good food handling practices in mind (Eiffert et al., 2023).

• Have appropriate supplies available to clean your hands and food contact surfaces. Consider providing hand sanitizer for customers to use before receiving a sample.
• Use gloves when unpackaged food offered for sampling is touched by someone who is not the consumer. Wash hands thoroughly and use a new pair of gloves after handling money or touching any non-food contact surface.
• Avoid providing samples where customers’ hands may come into contact with food samples other than the one they will consume (i.e., taking one chip from a full bowl). One way to avoid this is by handing individual samples directly to consumers.
• Use toothpicks or single-use sample cups to avoid the need for direct hand-contact with samples.

Tip 6. Be Prepared to Answer Questions about Products

Make sure anyone who will be operating your booth is prepared to answer questions about your products and processes. Some commonly asked questions include:

• Is this product safe for someone with a food allergy or intolerance?
• How long will this product maintain freshness and taste?
• Should this product be stored in the refrigerator?
• Can I freeze this product?

This work is supported by the Food Safety Outreach Competitive Grants Program, project award no. 2023-70020-40562, from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and should not be construed to represent any official USDA or U.S. Government determination or policy.

Additional Resources

• Download a PDF of this fact sheet

These resources were developed outside of Ohio and therefore may not directly reflect Ohio’s laws and rules. For more information about selling cottage foods in Ohio, consult the Ohio Department of Agriculture.

• Illinois Farmers Market Food Safety Guide
  (ilfb.org/media/14785/23-681-gac_farmers-market-guide_519_web.pdf)
• Cornell University. Food Safety Recommendations for Farmers Markets
  (onfarmfoodsafety.rutgers.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/NY-Farm-Market-Reccs.pdf)
• University of Kentucky, Quick Guide to Sampling at Farmers Markets
  (fcs.mgcafe.uky.edu/sites/fcs.mgcafe.uky.edu/files/farmersmarket-guidetosampling.pdf)
• North Dakota State University, Food Safety Best Practices for Local Food Entrepreneurs
  (ndsu.edu/agriculture/sites/default/files/2024-11/fn2030.pdf)

References

Eiffert, J., Boyer, R., Wells, E. P., Saunders, T., & Yang, L. (2023). What do I need to know to provide samples at the farmers market? Virginia Cooperative Extension.
pubs.ext.vt.edu/FST/FST-310/FST-310.html

Hall, P., & Marrison, D. (2023). CFAES law bulletin: Ohio’s cottage food law. Ohio State University Extension.
farmoffice.osu.edu/sites/aglaw/files/site-library/LawBulletins/CottageFoodLaw.pdf

Ohio Department of Agriculture, Division of Food Safety. (n.d.). Cottage foods.
agri.ohio.gov/divisions/food-safety/resources/cottage-food

Ohio Department of Agriculture, Division of Food Safety. (2023). Cottage food production operation.
agri.ohio.gov/wps/wcm/connect/gov/91fb902b-b03a-4cf4-b595-993d93a6945a/Cottage+Food+Production+Operation_2-3-25.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CONVERT_TO=url&CACHEID=ROOTWORKSPACE.Z18_79GCH8013HMOA06A2E16IV2082-91fb902b-b03a-4cf4-b595-993d93a6945a-pHAvHk7