Can you sell homemade jam in Montana without a license?

By Dwight Davis, Founder

Updated October 2026

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Four conditions the Act sets Where a Montana sale can happen Low-sugar jam, fruit butters and pepper jelly Telling the buyer DPHHS and your county sanitarian Liability and insurance with no inspector References

Yes. Montana's Local Food Choice Act (SB 199, 2021) exempts homemade food sold directly to an "informed end consumer" from food licensing, permitting, certification, packaging, labeling and inspection [3] [1]. Jam is not named in the state's guidance, but it is not among the exclusions, which cover meat, alcohol, marijuana and CBD products [1] [3]. The single most important condition is the sale itself: it must be made directly between you and the final buyer, at your home, at a traditional community event such as a farmers market, or by pre-arranged delivery, after you have told the buyer the jam is not licensed or inspected, and only inside Montana [1] [2].

Four conditions the Act sets

Make it in your own home kitchen. "All products made under MLFCA must be prepared in a private home kitchen" [1]. A business or commercial kitchen does not qualify [3], and any offsite preparation needs a retail food license or temporary permit [1].
Sell only to an informed end consumer. That means "a person who is the last person to purchase a product, does not resell the product and has been informed that the product is not licensed, permitted, certified, packaged, labeled, or inspected" [1].
Make no health claims, on labels, in advertising, on social media or out loud [1].
Keep it in Montana. "Transactions must occur only within the state of Montana and cannot take place across state lines" [1].

There is no sales cap and no registration under the Act, and the Act itself requires no training [1] [3].

Where a Montana sale can happen

Setting	Allowed?
Your home, for the buyer's home consumption	Yes [1]
A traditional community event: a wedding, funeral, church or religious social, school event, farmers market or potluck	Yes [2]
Delivery to the buyer	Yes, if the sale was pre-arranged [1]
Roadside stand or vehicle	No; a sale away from home must be tied to a traditional community event [2]; MSU Extension also rules out an unmanned roadside stand or kiosk [3]
Shops, restaurants or other retail locations	No; that requires a wholesale food license through your local health authority [1]
Online orders and shipping	Not addressed in DPHHS guidance; MSU Extension says only that "Sale and delivery must be in Montana" [3]

A private farmers market may still require vendors to hold a license, registration or permit from the local health authority [1]. Ask your market manager before you book a stall.

Low-sugar jam, fruit butters and pepper jelly

Because the Act lists exclusions instead of allowed foods, nothing in it bars low-sugar jam, freezer jam, fruit butters or pepper jelly [1] [3]. No inspector will check your recipe, so the safety call is yours alone.

Use tested recipes from USDA, the National Center for Home Food Preservation or an extension service, and follow them exactly; see recipes you can trust.
Pepper jelly and other acidified spreads. MSU Extension advises that if you prepare "a shelf-stable, high-risk (low acid or acidified) homemade preserved food," you should file with the FDA [3]. (The MontGuide calls the agency the "Federal Drug and Agriculture (FDA)," an error for the Food and Drug Administration.) No inspector will ask, but a process authority's review is still the way to know a pepper jelly is safe; see pepper jelly and FDA registration.
Pumpkin butter. Do not sell it canned under any law; it cannot be safely home canned. See pumpkin butter.

Telling the buyer

Montana prescribes no label wording; Act products are exempt from labeling regulations [3]. What you must do is inform the buyer that the jam has not been licensed, permitted, certified, packaged, labeled or inspected [1]. A printed card at your table or a sticker on the jar using those same words is a practical way to show you did. Ingredients and allergens are still worth printing; the federal elements are listed on what a jam label must say.

MSU Extension also refers to a separate cottage food route that "must comply with specific regulations, such as labeling requirements" [3]. DPHHS's cottage food registration packet, a September 2016 version still posted by a county in 2026, describes it: registration with your local environmental health office for a one-time $40 fee, sales delivered to the buyer or at farmers markets, flea markets, craft bazaars and fairs, no sales "via the internet, or by mail order," no stores or restaurants, and the label statement "Made in a home kitchen that is not subject to retail food establishment regulations or inspections." [5]. Ask your county sanitarian whether the packet is current and whether it covers your jam.

DPHHS and your county sanitarian

The Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, Food and Consumer Safety Section, publishes the Act's guidance; MSU Extension lists DPHHS at 406-444-2837 [3]. The official page is DPHHS's Local Food Choice Act Guidance and FAQ [1]. Local questions go to your county sanitarian. Verified against DPHHS guidance in October 2026.

Liability and insurance with no inspector

As the Montana Department of Agriculture puts it in its training material, "Limited regulations does not mean limited liability under SB199" [4]. Before your first market, read insurance, licenses and sales tax.