Texas Cottage Food After Senate Bill 541: 4 Unresolved Issues Before the 2027 Session

Texas lawmakers began filing bills for the 2027 session on Nov. 9, 2026. By the morning of Nov. 12, they had filed 1,303 House and Senate bills on subjects from Medicaid to property taxes. None of their captions mentioned the cottage food law. The most recent major change to that law, Senate Bill 541, or SB 541, was its broadest expansion since the Legislature created it in 2011. SB 541 took effect Sept. 1, 2025. It lets a Texas home cook sell almost any food and earn up to $150,000 a year, and cheesecake and other foods that need refrigeration are allowed once the cook registers with the state health department. Online orders must be delivered in person by the cook, an employee or a household member. The law also left 4 issues that the state health department and the Legislature have not resolved.

What a Texas home kitchen may sell now

• A cottage food production operation may make any food except 6 excluded categories. The exclusions are meat and poultry and their products; seafood, fish and shellfish products; ice and ice products, including shaved ice, ice cream, frozen custard, popsicles and gelato; low-acid canned goods; products containing cannabidiol or tetrahydrocannabinol, known as CBD and THC; and raw milk and raw milk products. Source: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.001(2-b)(A).
• Annual gross income from those foods may not exceed $150,000, and the Texas Department of State Health Services, or DSHS, adjusts that figure each year for inflation. The law ties the adjustment to the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers. Source: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.001(2-b)(B).
• Foods that need time and temperature control for safety, called TCS foods, are allowed if the operation registers with DSHS. These are foods that must be kept cold or hot to stop harmful bacteria from growing, such as cheesecake or cream pies. The operation must store and deliver them at a safe temperature, label them with the date made and give the buyer a printed safe handling statement in at least 12-point type. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.01953 and 437.0193(e); DSHS, Texas Cottage Food Production.
• A nonprofit organization may now run a cottage food operation from the home of one of its directors or officers. The law limits this to organizations that are tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.001(2-b), (5-a).
• Stores, cafes and market stands may sell a home cook's shelf-stable foods as registered cottage food vendors. A vendor is a Texas business with a contract with the operation. A vendor that buys at wholesale must register with DSHS. Every vendor may sell only foods that are not TCS foods and must post a sign saying the food was made in a private residence not subject to government licensing or inspection. Each item must carry the date it was made. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.001(3), 437.0194(a-1) and 437.01965.
• Online orders are allowed only inside Texas and only with personal delivery. The operator, an employee or a household member must deliver the food, and the operation's website must post the label information before the buyer pays. SB 541 removed "mail order" from the section. From 2019 until SB 541, the section allowed both online and mail orders if the operator personally delivered the food. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.0194(b)-(c); Senate Bill 541, enrolled version, Section 6.
• Cities, counties and local health departments may not regulate production or charge a permit fee. They may not require a license, permit or fee to make or sell allowed foods directly to consumers or vendors, or to give samples. A local government may not keep employing someone who knowingly tries to require such a permit. Source: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.0192(a), (c).
• An operation may give samples anywhere in the state and may donate foods that are not TCS foods. The donation provision names a religious or charitable organization's bake sale as an example. Source: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.01955.

Labels, training and the vendor rules are covered question by question in the Texas cottage food law guide.

4 main laws in 14 years, each allowing more than the last

Senate Bill 81 of 2011 created the Texas cottage food production operation. It covered baked goods, canned jams and jellies and dried herbs, sold only at the cook's home, with a $50,000 income limit. Source: Senate Bill 81 (2011), enrolled version.

House Bill 970 of 2013, or HB 970, lengthened the food list to include candy, nuts, fruit pies, granola, pickles and more. It also let cooks sell at farmers markets and farm stands and at fairs, festivals and events run by cities, counties or nonprofit groups. SB 81 had banned internet sales, and HB 970 kept that ban and added bans on mail-order and wholesale sales. Source: House Bill 970 (2013), enrolled version.

Senate Bill 572 of 2019 added "any other food that is not a time and temperature control for safety food" to the list. It dropped the list of approved sales places, so cooks could sell directly to consumers anywhere. It also allowed internet and mail-order sales inside Texas if the operator personally delivered the food. The Senate passed it 31-0 and the House 141-1. Source: Senate Bill 572 (2019), enrolled version.

Senate Bill 541 of 2025 replaced the food list with today's short list of exclusions, allowed TCS foods with registration, tripled the income limit, added nonprofits, created cottage food vendors and let employees and household members deliver online orders. Sen. Lois Kolkhorst authored it, and Rep. Lacey Hull sponsored it in the House. The Senate passed it 30-0 on April 10, 2025. The House passed an amended version 135-5 on May 13, and the Senate agreed to the House changes 31-0 on May 20. The governor signed it May 30, and it took effect Sept. 1, 2025. Rep. Vikki Goodwin had filed an identical House bill, House Bill 520, which stayed in the House Public Health Committee. Sources: Senate Bill 541 (2025) bill history; Senate Bill 541, enrolled version; House Bill 520 (2025) bill history.

4 issues Senate Bill 541 left unresolved

1. DSHS still says it "will adopt rules" for SB 541. Its cottage food page, checked Nov. 12, 2026, still says DSHS "will adopt rules to include implementation of the new requirements." The page links the cottage food rule, 25 Texas Administrative Code 229.661, as it stood May 30, 2025, before SB 541 took effect. Source: DSHS, Texas Cottage Food Production.
2. DSHS has not posted an inflation-adjusted income limit. The statute calls for a yearly adjustment, but the DSHS page still states the threshold as $150,000 and gives no adjusted figure. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.001(2-b)(B); DSHS, Texas Cottage Food Production.
3. 2 subsections cite a section that does not contain the list they name. Section 437.0194(a-1) and (b) carve out foods "described by Sections 437.002(2-b)(A)(i)-(vi)." Section 437.002 covers enforcement by counties and public health districts and has no subdivision (2-b). The 6 excluded categories are listed in 437.001(2-b)(A)(i)-(vi), and Section 437.0192(a)(2), which SB 541 also amended, cites that list by its correct number. Source: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.001, 437.002 and 437.0194.
4. 2 provisions on wholesale sales read differently. Section 437.0194(a) bars wholesale sales except sales to a cottage food vendor under Subsection (a-1). Section 437.0191(c), also added by SB 541, says an operation that "manufactures and distributes at wholesale cottage food for resale by others" is exempt from DSHS manufacturer licensing "notwithstanding any other law." Section 437.0191(c) does not mention cottage food vendors. The DSHS page describes wholesale sales only to cottage food vendors. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.0191(c) and 437.0194(a)-(a-1); Senate Bill 541, enrolled version, Sections 3 and 6; DSHS, Texas Cottage Food Production.

Texas and its 4 neighbors

Texas borders Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and New Mexico.

Oklahoma's Local Food Freedom Act raised its cap to $250,000 in gross annual sales on Nov. 1, 2026. Shelf-stable foods may be sold online or by phone and delivered by a third-party carrier, and stores may sell them. Foods that need refrigeration may be sold only by the producer directly to the consumer, after approved food safety training. Sources: Oklahoma House Bill 3720 (2026), enrolled version; Oklahoma cottage food law.

Arkansas' Food Freedom Act sets no sales cap. It allows sales in person, by phone or online, by the producer, an agent or a store, with delivery by a third-party carrier. Sales may go to another state if the seller follows federal law. Arkansas does not allow foods that need time or temperature control. Sources: Arkansas Code Annotated 20-57-504 (Act 1040 of 2021); Arkansas outlook.

Louisiana raised its home-food sales limit from $30,000 to $100,000 on Aug. 1, 2026, under Act 801. Its law covers listed low-risk foods only. It sets cooking and chilling rules for custard and cream-filled bakery products, and it bars home bakers from selling breads, cakes, cookies and pies for resale. Sources: Louisiana Act 801 of 2026 (House Bill 403); Louisiana Revised Statutes 40:4.9; Louisiana outlook.

New Mexico's Homemade Food Act, in effect since July 1, 2021, requires no state permit for foods that do not need time or temperature control and sets no sales cap. Sellers must take a food handler course and sell directly to consumers inside the state, including online and through mail delivery. The New Mexico Environment Department says homemade items may not be sold to restaurants, wholesalers or buyers outside the state. Sources: Homemade Food Act (House Bill 177 of 2021), Section 3; New Mexico Environment Department, Homemade Food Act FAQ; New Mexico cottage food law.

Texas and Oklahoma both allow home cooks to sell foods that need refrigeration. Texas requires DSHS registration for those foods, and Oklahoma requires direct sales by the producer and approved food safety training. Arkansas and New Mexico exclude those foods. Louisiana's law covers only listed low-risk foods, though it sets rules for custard and cream-filled bakery products. On delivery, Texas is stricter than Oklahoma, Arkansas and New Mexico. Oklahoma and Arkansas allow parcel carriers, and New Mexico allows in-state mail delivery, while Texas requires the operator, an employee or a household member to deliver online orders. Louisiana's statute does not mention online sales, mail order or shipping. The Texas limit of $150,000 is lower than Oklahoma's $250,000 and higher than Louisiana's $100,000. Arkansas and New Mexico set no cap. Where Cottage Food Laws Are Headed puts SB 541 alongside similar changes in Tennessee, West Virginia, Idaho and Colorado.

Analysis: 3 things to watch in Texas in 2027

1. A cleanup bill could fix SB 541's cross-reference and wholesale wording, though none has been filed. The 437.002 reference appears to mean 437.001, the section that holds the list of excluded foods. That is the kind of drafting error a later bill could correct, and the 2027 session is the first regular session since SB 541 passed. On wholesale, the safest reading of the 2 provisions together is that an operation may sell at wholesale only to a registered cottage food vendor, but the statute does not say so in one place. Whether anyone files a cleanup bill is uncertain. Until the statute changes, the DSHS page lists the same 6 excluded categories found in 437.001 and describes wholesale sales only to cottage food vendors. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.0194; DSHS, Texas Cottage Food Production; Texas Health and Safety Code 437.0191(c) and 437.01965(d).
2. The DSHS Sunset bill will come before lawmakers in 2027. Most Texas agencies go through a Sunset review about every 12 years, and the Legislature must pass a bill to keep each one running. Sunset staff released their DSHS report Nov. 6, 2026. It recommends continuing DSHS for 12 years and requiring DSHS to use a risk-based approach to inspections in each regulatory program. The report does not mention cottage food. Under the statute, a cottage food production operation is not a food service establishment, and DSHS says health departments have no authority to inspect one. The Sunset Advisory Commission will hold a public hearing on the report and then vote on which changes to recommend, and lawmakers will take up the DSHS Sunset bill starting in January 2027. Kolkhorst, who authored SB 541, chairs the commission, and Hull, its House sponsor, is vice chair. Sources: Sunset Advisory Commission, DSHS Staff Report (November 2026); DSHS, Sunset Review; Texas Health and Safety Code 437.0191(a).
3. DSHS rules, once proposed, would show how the agency reads registration, vendors and the income limit. The statute lets the state adopt rules for TCS food registration and vendor registration and requires labeling rules. The timing is unknown, and the DSHS page gives no date. Until rules appear, the statute, the DSHS page and the DSHS registration guide are the only official guidance on how SB 541 works day to day. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.0193(b), 437.01953(b) and 437.01965(d); DSHS, Texas Cottage Food Production.

What the Nov. 12, 2026, bill search found

The 90th Legislature's regular session convenes at noon Jan. 12, 2027. The Texas Constitution sets regular sessions every 2 years, so after SB 541 in 2025, 2027 is the next regular session. Lawmakers and lawmakers-elect could file bills starting Nov. 9, 2026. Sources: Texas Legislative Council, Dates of Interest, 89th Legislature; Texas Constitution, Article III, Section 5(a).

A check of the Filed House Bills and Filed Senate Bills reports on Texas Legislature Online on the morning of Nov. 12, 2026, covered all 1,303 bills then filed for the 2027 session: 996 House bills and 307 Senate bills. None of their captions mentioned cottage food, home-based food production or Chapter 437's cottage food sections. House Bill 854 and House Bill 860 deal with mobile food vendors. House Bill 860 mentions cottage food production operations only to leave them out of its definition of a mobile food vendor, and House Bill 854 does not mention them. Neither bill changes the cottage food sections of Chapter 437. Sources: Texas Legislature Online, Filed House Bills, 90th Legislature; Texas Legislature Online, Filed Senate Bills, 90th Legislature; House Bill 854 (2027), introduced version; House Bill 860 (2027), introduced version.

Before selling from a Texas kitchen

• Every operator must complete an accredited food handler course, and DSHS accepts a food manager certification in its place. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.0195(a); DSHS, Texas Cottage Food Production.
• An operation that registers with DSHS may print its DSHS identification number on labels instead of its home address. Registration is required only for TCS foods, but any operation may register to use the number. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.0193(b-1); DSHS, Texas Cottage Food Production.
• Pickled fruit or vegetables other than pickled cucumbers, fermented vegetable products and plant-based acidified canned goods need a batch number on each label. DSHS lists approved recipe sources for these foods and a form to request approval of a new one. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.01951; DSHS, Texas Cottage Food Production.
• DSHS and local health departments keep a record of every complaint against an operation and may still act on an immediate and serious threat to health. Source: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.0191(b) and 437.0192(b).

Frequently asked questions

Can I sell cheesecake from my home in Texas?

Cheesecake needs refrigeration, so it is a TCS food, and a Texas operation may sell it after registering with DSHS. The cake must be stored and delivered cold, labeled with the date made and sold with the required safe handling statement. It may not be sold through a cottage food vendor. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.01953, 437.0193(e) and 437.0194(a-1).

Can I ship cookies to a customer in Texas or another state?

No. SB 541 removed mail order from the law. Online sales are allowed only inside Texas and only when the operator, an employee or a household member personally delivers the food. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.0194(b). Can You Ship Cottage Foods Across State Lines? compares other states.

Can I sell my baked goods through a coffee shop?

A coffee shop may sell them if it is a registered cottage food vendor with a contract with the operation and the foods are not TCS foods. The shop must post the required disclosure sign, and each item must show the date it was made. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.001(3), 437.0194(a-1) and 437.01965.

Can I sell pork or chicken tamales I make at home?

Pork and chicken tamales may not be sold under the cottage food law, because meat and poultry products are excluded. Selling those foods requires a food establishment permit or a food manufacturer license. Source: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.001(2-b)(A)(i).

Can my church or nonprofit run a cottage food bakery?

A 501(c)(3) nonprofit may operate as a cottage food production operation from the home of one of its directors or officers, under the same food list and income limit. Sources: Texas Health and Safety Code 437.001(2-b), (5-a).

Has anyone filed a 2027 bill to change the Texas cottage food law?

No 2027 bill on cottage food had been filed as of the morning of Nov. 12, 2026. A check that morning covered the captions of all 1,303 bills then filed. Filing opened Nov. 9, and the session convenes Jan. 12, 2027, so more bills will come. Sources: Texas Legislature Online, Filed House Bills, 90th Legislature; Texas Legislature Online, Filed Senate Bills, 90th Legislature; Texas Legislative Council, Dates of Interest.

Texas law here comes from the Texas Health and Safety Code, bill texts and histories on Texas Legislature Online, the DSHS cottage food page and the Sunset Advisory Commission's DSHS staff report, all checked Nov. 12, 2026.

Related guides: Texas cottage food law, Where Cottage Food Laws Are Headed, Louisiana outlook and Arkansas outlook.

Home bakers and makers across the state are listed on the Texas page.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Last reviewed Nov. 12, 2026.