Selling it

Who inspects you

Updated October 2026

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Two layers answering different questions Lead with the infused oil The vinegar conversation is usually simpler Ask about the venue, not only the product Record who told you what Have the documents in one folder References

The definitions and grade standards are federal; the enforcement is usually your state department of agriculture, and an infused oil is the item in your range they will ask about.

Two layers answering different questions

The federal layer says what a product must be to carry its name and, for an acidified food, how it must be manufactured. The state layer licenses the space, inspects it and decides whether you may sell what you make and where. An answer from one does not settle the other.

Lead with the infused oil

If your range includes one, describe it first and describe it fully: the base oil, the botanical, whether it is low acid, the acidification method with its numbers, and whether the product is shelf stable or refrigerated. This is the item with a real hazard attached and the one where a partial description produces a useless answer.

The vinegar conversation is usually simpler

A plain vinegar at strength is a straightforward product, and the question is more often about the space and the venue than about the product. Have the measured acid strength to hand anyway, because it is the first thing worth being able to state.

Ask about the venue, not only the product

A farmers market, a retail shelf, a restaurant and mail order across a state line can each sit differently. Describe the whole plan including the part you have not started, because the answer about making it does not settle the answer about selling it.

Record who told you what

Name, date, what you described and what they said. Guidance gets restated and staff change, and a specific conversation you can point at is a different position from a recollection.

Have the documents in one folder

Supplier grade documentation with lot numbers, the written acidification procedure, the acid strength results, and the batch log. Being able to hand over a folder rather than assemble one changes the tone of an inspection, and assembling one under time pressure is how gaps get discovered in the worst way.

References

21 CFR 114, Acidified Foods, which sets the requirements for manufacturing and packing foods so as to prevent conditions in which Clostridium botulinum can grow. law.cornell.edu

Michigan State University Extension. Cottage food law: which preserved products are covered. canr.msu.edu

United States Food and Drug Administration. Compliance Policy Guide Sec. 525.825, Vinegar, Definitions: “No standards of identity for vinegar have been established under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act,” and each listed variety “should contain 4 grams of acetic acid per 100 mL.” fda.gov

Written from federal regulation, voluntary USDA grade standards, FDA labeling policy and published extension guidance, not from a laboratory. The infused-oil pages describe a real botulism hazard and are a starting point for a conversation with your state department of agriculture and a process authority, not a determination that any method you use is safe.