Which jams can I sell from home in Oregon?

By Dwight Davis, Founder

Updated October 2026

On this page7

The pH test, and the fruits that fail it Before you sell Selling at home, online and in shops The Farm Direct route for fruit growers ODA exemption questions Pricing under a $52,700 ceiling References

Most of them, with one test. Oregon's Cottage Food Exemption allows jams, jellies and fruit butters "made only with fruit that has a natural pH that is less than 4.60" [2]. Most common jam fruits pass. A short list of fruits, and every vegetable, do not [3]. You need no license, sales stay under $52,700 a year, and the label must say the jam is homemade and name any pets in your home [1]. Farmers who grow their own fruit have a second route under the Farm Direct Marketing Law [3].

The pH test, and the fruits that fail it

The phrase "natural pH" is the heart of Oregon's rule. It refers to the fruit itself, before you add lemon juice or citric acid, so you cannot acidify a borderline fruit into the exemption. The same pH condition applies to jams and jellies and, separately, to fruit butters [2]. If the Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) asks for testing, the rule requires results for each recipe showing a pH of 4.60 or less or a water activity of 0.850 or less [2].

Oregon State University Extension names the fruits that can exceed pH 4.6: figs, melons, Asian pears, persimmons and some tomatoes [3]. A fig jam, persimmon butter or tomato jam is therefore outside the exemption even if your recipe adds acid. The fruit-by-fruit detail is on fruits that need extra acid.

Product	Oregon cottage status
Jam or jelly from naturally acidic fruit	Allowed [2]
Fruit butter from naturally acidic fruit (apple, pear, plum)	Allowed [2]
Fig, Asian pear, persimmon or melon jam	Not allowed; the fruit can exceed pH 4.6 [2] [3]
Pepper jelly, onion or other vegetable jam	Not allowed; the rule covers jams "made only with fruit" [2]
Pumpkin butter	Not allowed; pumpkin is low-acid (see pumpkin butter and other low-acid spreads)
Low-sugar jam	Not addressed; the rule sets a pH condition and says nothing about sugar [2]. Ask ODA
Freezer jam	Not addressed; ask ODA

On low-sugar spreads, Oregon State's own low-sugar methods divide them into spreads that can be canned and spreads that must be refrigerated [4]. Only the first kind is a candidate for the exemption, and only after ODA says yes.

Before you sell

Check the fruit in each recipe against the pH condition. If in doubt, test; see measuring pH, and when you need to.
Decide on a Unique Identification Number. No license is required, but ODA offers an optional number for $25 a year that you can print on the label in place of your home address [1].
Write the label. Oregon's statement begins "This product is homemade, is not prepared in an inspected food establishment, and must be stored and displayed separately if merchandised by a retailer." It must also disclose any pets in the home, by species, and give your address or identification number [1]. Use ODA's exact wording from its exemption document [1]. The federal elements are on what a jam label must say.
Track your gross sales. The exemption ends at $52,700 a year [1].

Selling at home, online and in shops

Oregon allows more channels than most cottage states [1]:

Channel	Rule
From home, at events and markets	Allowed
Online and by mail	Allowed, with records of each purchaser
Grocers and other retailers	Allowed if the jam is packaged, labeled, and displayed separately with signage
Restaurants, caterers, schools, hospitals	Not allowed
Out of state	Not addressed; ask ODA

The retail allowance carries the condition written into the label statement: the store has to keep your jars apart from inspected products. Make sure a shop agrees to that before you deliver.

The Farm Direct route for fruit growers

Oregon's Farm Direct Marketing Law lets farmers sell products made from crops they grow, and OSU Extension's publication on it (revised February 2024) lists naturally acidic jams, jellies and preserves among them [3]. The key differences from the cottage exemption:

Grown by you. "All products must be grown and processed by the farmer" [3]. Fruit you buy in does not qualify.
Recipes. ODA recognizes the USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning, So Easy to Preserve and Pacific Northwest Extension publications; anything else needs approval from a recognized process authority [3].
pH. Naturally acidic jams do not need pH testing but must test at pH 4.6 or below; test when in doubt [3].
Cap. $50,000 a year in producer-processed products [3].
Label. "THIS PRODUCT IS HOMEMADE AND IS NOT PREPARED IN AN INSPECTED FOOD ESTABLISHMENT." and "NOT FOR RESALE." [3]
Channels. Direct sales, intrastate online sales, and resale or consignment between two farm direct marketers [3].
Records. Product, price, quantity and a rolling year-to-date total, kept three years [3].

Read the full rules, OAR 603-025-0215 to 603-025-0275, before you rely on this route [3]. Whether jam beats fresh fruit for your farm is the subject of sell the fruit or make jam.

ODA exemption questions

The agency is the Oregon Department of Agriculture, Food Safety Program. Exemption questions go to Oda.Exemptfoods@ODA.oregon.gov [1]. The cottage rule is OAR 603-025-0320 under ORS 616.723 [1] [2]. Ask ODA about low-sugar spreads, freezer jam and sales to buyers in other states. Your county OSU Extension office can help with recipes and pH [1]. Checked against ODA's publications in October 2026.

Pricing under a $52,700 ceiling

At an illustrative $10 a jar, the cap works out to about 5,270 jars a year. How to price jam does that arithmetic for your own costs, and fruits that need extra acid helps you check a fruit before you build a jam around it.