Selling homemade jam in Kansas, a state with no cottage food law

By Dwight Davis, Founder

Updated October 2026

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Kansas's three groups for preserves Getting a product tested Four label items and no home kitchen statement Where unlicensed jam can be sold When you need a KDA license KDA and the K-State lab References

Yes. Kansas has no cottage food statute, but the Kansas Department of Agriculture (KDA) does not require a license for fruit jams and jellies sold directly to consumers, and K-State Research and Extension's KDA-reviewed tables set out exactly which preserves qualify [1] [2]. Regular fruit jams, jellies and apple butter need no license if properly labeled [1]. Reduced-sugar jams, pepper jellies, flower jellies and pumpkin butter fall in a middle group: you send the product for testing, and the result decides whether you need a license [1]. Sales to any business, including consignment, always need one [1]. This page sorts your preserves into Kansas's three groups.

Kansas's three groups for preserves

Group	Products named by K-State	What it takes
Sell without a license	Fruit jams and jellies; apple butter; jams and jellies flavored with pepper-flavored vinegar or small amounts of pepper powder [1]	Follow the labeling rules [1]
Test first	Reduced- or no-sugar fruit jams and jellies; flower jellies; pepper jams and jellies other than the exempt kind, including jellies made with pepper juice; pumpkin and squash butter [1]	pH, water activity and formulation testing; no license if the product is shown to be an acid, formulated acid or low water activity food, otherwise a KDA Food Establishment license [1]
Product evaluation	Jams made with low-acid fruits such as mangoes [1] [2]	Evaluation before sale

Two points in that table are distinctive to Kansas. First, a pepper-flavored jelly made with pepper-flavored vinegar or a small amount of pepper powder sits with ordinary jam [1], while a true pepper jelly made from chopped peppers or pepper juice must be tested [1]. The safety reasons are on pepper jelly. Second, low-acid fruits are singled out for evaluation; which fruits need added acid, and why, is on fruits that need extra acid.

Pumpkin butter needs more than one passing test

K-State's table allows pumpkin and squash butter without a license if testing shows low water activity or a pH below 4.6 [1]. The National Center for Home Food Preservation's position is that no home canning process for pumpkin butter can be trusted, because the acidity and thickness vary so much between batches [3]. One good result does not cover the next batch. If you want to sell it, talk to the lab about how many batches to test and how to keep each one consistent, or sell it refrigerated under a license.

Getting a product tested

K-State points producers to the Kansas Value Added Foods Lab at Kansas State University, which handles product testing, process authority recipe approval and product development (kvafl@ksu.edu, 785-532-1294) [1]. Keep the test result documents and show them on request [1]. Even for an exempt product, K-State advises checking pH periodically [1].

Four label items and no home kitchen statement

Every packaged food carries [1]:

the common name of the product;
the name and physical address of the person who made or is selling it;
ingredients in descending order by weight;
the quantity, as net weight, volume or count.

Kansas does not require a "homemade" statement, though you may say it [1]. Foods must be "honestly presented, including the source of the food" [1]. The federal baseline for jam labels, including allergen declarations, is on federal labeling for jam.

Where unlicensed jam can be sold

Direct to consumers, including at farmers markets [1] [2]. Markets may set stricter rules than the state, so ask each one [1].
Online, with the jar shipped to the customer's home or delivered by you [1]. Selling across state lines brings in federal rules and the buyer's state's rules [1].
Not to businesses. Any sale to another business, such as a restaurant, grocery, variety or convenience store, needs food safety licensing, generally a KDA food processing license [1]. Consignment is not covered by the direct-to-consumer exemption either [1].

K-State states no sales cap for exempt foods [1] [2].

When you need a KDA license

KDA issues two licenses that matter here. A Food Establishment license allows direct-to-consumer sales only; a Food Processing license allows you to leave product with another business, such as a shop selling on your behalf [1]. A product that fails its test, or any wholesale or consignment plan, puts you on one of these. Kitchen options are on when you need a licensed kitchen.

KDA and the K-State lab

Kansas Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Lodging program, which K-State says encourages vendors to contact it with food safety or licensing questions [2]. The working references are K-State's MF3138 and MF3729, both January 2026 [1] [2]; no KDA page or statute that lists jams directly was found. Verified in October 2026. If a product goes to the lab, measuring pH explains the reading that will decide it.