Illinois cottage food label requirements

Illinois sets its cottage food label in the Food Handling Regulation Enforcement Act, 410 ILCS 625/4(b)(7). You register with your local health department, and the label carries your registration number, the date the food was processed and a two-sentence statement word for word.

Required statement (410 ILCS 625/4(b)(7)(E))

This product was produced in a home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common food allergens. If you have safety concerns, contact your local health department.

Type size: In prominent lettering. The statute sets no point size.

Open the Illinois preset in the tool

Last checked October 21, 2026. Sources · Example label · FAQ

What a Illinois cottage food label must show

Element	What to print	Rule
Name of the operation and where it is located	Your business name and the unit of local government (city or county) where your cottage food operation is located.	410 ILCS 625/4(b)(7)(A)
Registration number and where you registered	The identifying registration number on your certificate of registration, and the municipality or county where you registered.	625/4(b)(7)(B)
Common or usual name	For example "Banana Bread".	625/4(b)(7)(C)
All ingredients	Including any color, artificial flavor and preservative, in descending order by predominance of weight, by their common or usual names.	625/4(b)(7)(D)
Home kitchen statement	The two sentences shown above, in prominent lettering.	625/4(b)(7)(E)
Date processed	The date the product was processed.	625/4(b)(7)(F)
Allergens	As federal labeling requires: in the ingredient list or a "Contains" line.	625/4(b)(7)(G)
Net weight	IDPH’s cottage food labeling sheet lists net weight among the required items.	IDPH Cottage Food Labeling

The statute also says: “Food packaging must conform with the labeling requirements of the Illinois Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.” (410 ILCS 625/4(b)(7)). The Illinois Department of Public Health’s cottage food labeling sheet also lists the net weight (IDPH: Cottage Food Labeling).

Keep your home address off the label?

Illinois doesn’t ask for a street address. 410 ILCS 625/4(b)(7)(A) asks for the name of the cottage food operation and the unit of local government (such as the city or county) where it is located, and (B) asks for your registration number and the municipality or county where you registered.

This is what the rule says, not legal advice. Check with your state agency before you print.

The Illinois statement, word for word

410 ILCS 625/4(b)(7)(E) gives the phrase in quotation marks, so copy it exactly:

This product was produced in a home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common food allergens. If you have safety concerns, contact your local health department.

IDPH’s labeling sheet prints the phrase slightly differently (“home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common allergens.”, without “food”). The statute is the law, so the tool prints the statute’s wording.

A shorter notice where you sell. Paragraph (10) also requires a notice in a prominent location at the point of sale that says: “This product was produced in a home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common food allergens.” “At a physical display, notice shall be a placard. Online, notice shall be a message on the cottage food operation's online sales interface at the point of sale.”

Type size and placement

Illinois asks for the statement "in prominent lettering" and sets no point size. Our tool prints it in bold. Every line on the free label is at least 1/16 inch tall (see type size).

Selling online, at markets or through stores

Registration: “A cottage food operation must register with the local health department for the unit of local government in which it is located” (625/4(b)(1.3)). “Registration shall be completed annually and the local health department may impose a fee not to exceed $50.” (625/4(c)).
Training: “A person preparing or packaging a product as part of a cottage food operation must be a Department-approved certified food protection manager.” (625/4(b)(6)).
Not allowed include, among others: “pumpkin pies, sweet potato pies, cheesecakes, custard pies, creme pies, and pastries with time/temperature control for safety foods that are fillings or toppings” (625/4(b)(1.5)(D)). Read the full list in the statute.
Point of sale and online: the shorter notice above, on a placard or on your online sales page (625/4(b)(10)).

Example Illinois cottage food label

Sample Kitchen, a made-up home bakery in Illinois, selling a loaf of banana bread. This is what the tool prints with the Illinois preset:

Banana Bread

Ingredients: bananas, enriched flour (wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), sugar, butter (cream, salt), eggs, baking soda, vanilla extract (vanilla bean extractives in water, alcohol), salt.

Contains: Milk, Egg, Wheat.

1 loaf, Net Wt 20 oz (1 lb 4 oz) 567 g

Sample Kitchen, Anytown, IL 00000

Registration #: 00000, filed in Example County

Made on: 10/21/2026

This product was produced in a home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common food allergens. If you have safety concerns, contact your local health department.

Fictional business. Rendered from the same code as the tool's preview and PDF, with the net weight sized for a package front of 5 to 25 sq in (in the tool you choose your own).

Illinois cottage food label example for Banana Bread (fictional business), downloaded as a PNG from the Easy Food Labels tool — The same example as a PNG, downloaded from the tool’s Download PNG button. Download this example (PNG) · Open this example in the tool · More example labels

The registration line shows the number and the county where it was filed, as 625/4(b)(7)(B) asks.
The date processed is printed because Illinois requires it.
The address line shows only the town: Illinois asks for the unit of local government, not a street address.

Open the Illinois 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 Illinois.

Easy mistakes to avoid

Printing only the first sentence of the statement, or the shorter point-of-sale notice, on the label.
Leaving off the county or municipality where you registered.
Forgetting the date the food was processed.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to register my Illinois cottage food operation?

Yes. 410 ILCS 625/4(b)(1.3) says a cottage food operation must register with the local health department for the unit of local government where it is located. Registration is annual, and the fee may not exceed $50 (625/4(c)).

What is the exact Illinois cottage food label statement?

"This product was produced in a home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common food allergens. If you have safety concerns, contact your local health department." (410 ILCS 625/4(b)(7)(E)).

Does my street address have to be on an Illinois label?

The statute asks for the name of the operation and the unit of local government where it is located, plus your registration number and where you registered. It does not list a street address.

Is there a minimum type size for the Illinois statement?

No point size is set. The statute asks for "prominent lettering".

Sources

Last checked October 21, 2026. We read each of these official sources; quotes on this page are copied from them.

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 · Georgia · Michigan · Ohio · Oregon · Tennessee · Texas · Virginia · Washington · All states and the label maker

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