Georgia cottage food label requirements

What a Georgia cottage food label must show

The first four rows come from the statute. The rest come from GDA's cottage food regulations (Rule 40-7-19-.09), which were written before HB 398. GDA's own HB 398 FAQ says those regulations will be amended to remove the parts that conflict with the new law, such as the old license. Until a revised rule is published, keeping the product name, ingredients, net quantity and allergens costs you nothing, and they are what buyers and stores expect on a packaged food.

Keep your home address off the label?

The Georgia statement, word for word

HB 398 gives the wording in quotation marks, so copy it exactly:

This product was produced at a residential property that is exempt from state inspection. This product may contain allergens.

Both sentences are required, including "This product may contain allergens." That sentence is fixed text. It does not replace your allergen declaration: if your cookies contain pecans, butter and wheat flour, the label still has to say so in the ingredient list or a "Contains" line.

The old statement is out of date. Georgia's pre-2025 rule (Rule 40-7-19-.09(1)(b)) required "MADE IN A COTTAGE FOOD OPERATION THAT IS NOT SUBJECT TO STATE FOOD SAFETY INSPECTIONS." That sentence is still printed in the posted rule and in GDA's older online FAQ as of October 19, 2026, and many free templates still use it. HB 398 sets the new wording in the statute itself and repeals conflicting laws, so new labels should carry the HB 398 statement. If you still have rolls of labels with the old sentence, ask GDA's cottage food team (CottageFoodInfo@agr.georgia.gov, 404-656-3627, both from GDA's HB 398 FAQ) how to use them up.

Type size and placement

HB 398 says the statement must be "in at least 10 point font." It does not repeat the old rule's extra conditions (Times New Roman or Arial, in a color that contrasts with the background), but a dark Arial statement on a white label meets both versions, and that is what our tool prints.

The free PDF from our tool is 4 inches wide and prints the Georgia statement at about 10.6 points when you print at 100% ("Actual size"). If you shrink it to fit a smaller sticker, the statement shrinks too. Below roughly 94% it drops under 10 points, so pick a larger label or shorten other text instead.

Selling online, at markets or through stores

HB 398 lets Georgia cottage food operators sell directly to people, including online and by mail, and to retail food stores such as grocery stores and restaurants (26-2-472). The label information has to reach the buyer differently depending on how the food is sold (26-2-473(b) and (c)):

• Packaged food: on a label attached to the package.
• Bulk containers: on a label attached to the container.
• Neither packaged nor bulk: on a placard displayed where it is sold.
• Online: on the web page where the item is offered.
• Telephone or custom orders (for example a birthday cake): you may skip the display, but you must tell the buyer that the food is produced at a residential property exempt from state inspection and may contain allergens, and give the name, address or ID number and phone number on request.

When a store sells your products, it must keep them in a separate section or display case labeled as cottage foods exempt from state inspection (26-2-473(d)), and post signage specified by GDA (26-2-472). Cities and counties may opt out of third-party (store) sales, according to GDA's HB 398 FAQ, so check locally before you sell through a shop.

Example Georgia cottage food label

A fictional Macon bakery selling a bag of eight cookies. This is exactly what the tool prints with the Georgia preset:

• The phone number is printed because Georgia requires it, not as an optional extra.
• Pecans are a tree nut, so the "Contains" line names Pecan. GDA's FAQ is explicit that "nuts" alone is not acceptable.
• The count ("8 cookies") is extra information; the net weight in ounces and grams is what the rule asks for.
• To use a GDA ID number instead of the address, type it in the registration field and tick "print instead of my street address". The phone stays.

Open the Georgia preset in the tool

On your first visit the tool loads this example, with its made-up details marked as examples and a Start blank button. If you already have a recipe saved, it keeps your recipe and switches the state to Georgia.

Easy mistakes to avoid

• Copying the old all-caps "MADE IN A COTTAGE FOOD OPERATION…" sentence from a template made before July 2025.
• Dropping the phone number when switching to a GDA identification number.
• Printing only the first sentence of the statement.
• Shrinking the label until the statement is under 10 points.
• Treating "This product may contain allergens" as the allergen declaration and leaving out the "Contains" line.

Sources

Last checked October 19, 2026. We read each of these official sources; quotes on this page are copied from them.

• House Bill 398 (2025), signed text, O.C.G.A. 26-2-470 to 26-2-478
• Georgia General Assembly: HB 398 status (Act 193, effective 7/1/2025)
• Georgia Department of Agriculture: Cottage Food
• GDA: Cottage Food Update, House Bill 398 & Frequently Asked Questions (PDF)
• GDA: Identification Number Registration Form (PDF)
• Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 40-7-19 (Cottage Food Regulations, incl. .09 Product Labels; pre-HB 398, awaiting revision)
• GDA: Cottage Foods FAQ (still shows the pre-HB 398 statement)

This page explains the rules in plain English. It is not legal advice. Rules change, and your county or market may ask for more, so check with the agency above before printing a large run.

How we check these rules, and what changed: How we verify · change log · report an error.

Other states

Arizona · California · Florida · Michigan · Ohio · Oregon · Texas · All states and the label maker

Also useful: what goes on a food label (federal basics) and the ingredient label maker.