Cotton candy is spun sugar, as shelf-stable as candy gets, so sealed tubs made at home are cottage foods: California's list names cotton candy, Michigan allows candy, Minnesota allows food that isn't potentially hazardous with a registration and training, and North Dakota allows sales straight to the customer. What's different is spinning it at an event: that's food made on the spot, which falls under a temporary food permit from the local health department, not cottage food. And cotton candy needs a sealed tub, since it collapses in humid air. In the example below, a North Dakota cotton candy maker sorts out tubs and parties.
The short version
- Sealed tubs of cotton candy are cottage foods in all four states here.
- California names cotton candy; Michigan allows candy.
- Spinning at an event is food made on site: a temporary food permit.
- Seal it tight; humidity collapses it.
- Label colors by name, such as Blue 1.
- North Dakota: direct to the customer, with the home kitchen sign or label.
- TaroStack keeps each customer's order and each batch's lot. More below.
Cotton candy, state by state
| Product | Michigan | Minnesota | North Dakota | California |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cotton candy in sealed tubs | Yes | Yes, registered | Yes | Yes, on the list |
| Hard candy floss sugar | Yes | Yes, registered | Yes | Yes, on the list |
The business beyond home is in cotton candy business plan, and how long the tubs keep in cotton candy shelf life.
The rules
| State | Rule |
|---|---|
| Michigan | Food that isn't time/temperature control for safety, including jams, candy, dried fruit, granola, dry mixes, vinegar, dried herbs and baked goods; not meat or poultry, milk products, beverages, salsa, or canned foods other than standardized jams (MCL 289.1105(k)); prepackaged, labeled with the home kitchen statement, sold straight to the consumer (MCL 289.4102) |
| Minnesota | Food that isn't potentially hazardous, and home-canned pickles, vegetables or fruits at pH 4.6 or lower or water activity 0.85 or less; registration every year and approved food safety training (Minn. Stat. 28A.152) |
| North Dakota | No state license for cottage food sold directly to an informed end consumer; foods that need refrigeration labeled with safe handling instructions and as transported and maintained frozen; no uninspected meat, poultry only from the seller's own birds (N.D.C.C. 23-09.5-02) |
| California | Cottage foods are nonpotentially hazardous foods on the approved list, among them baked goods without cream, custard or meat fillings, candy, chocolate-covered nonperishables, dried fruit, dried pasta, granola, herb blends, honey, standardized jams, nut butters, popcorn, vinegar and mustard, roasted coffee and dried tea (HSC 114365.5); Class A sells directly, Class B also through shops and restaurants (HSC 113758) |
This is general information, not legal advice.
An example: tubs and a birthday party in North Dakota
Cloud Nine Floss, a made-up home cotton candy maker in Minot, North Dakota, spins blue raspberry and pink vanilla cotton candy at home, seals it in tubs, and sells it straight to customers with the label North Dakota asks for. A family asked for a machine at a birthday party; spinning there is food made on site, so the maker asked the local health department about a temporary food permit first. The colors on the label are in color additive labeling.
Get the checker
Download the home cotton candy checker. Two sheets: your products, whether each needs refrigeration, is meat or poultry, a milk product, a canned food other than jam, or a drink, and whether it's on California's list; how Michigan's, Minnesota's, North Dakota's and California's cottage food laws treat it fill in; and each state's rules as read for this article. It's an ordinary Excel file with no macros, and it works in Google Sheets, LibreOffice and Numbers.
Where this stops working
The rules decide what can be sold. Party orders, tubs at a market, and a humid week are where a batch has to be tracked and the old tubs pulled.
How TaroStack does it
TaroStack keeps each customer's order and each batch's lot, and what each tub costs.
Orders. Each customer's order goes in for its pickup or market day, with a picking list.
Each batch a lot. A batch of tubs is a batch from its recipe, with its date and lot, and the lot goes on each order it fills.
True cost. Each tub is costed from its recipe and the batch, at what the ingredients actually cost.
| The job | Paper | In TaroStack |
|---|---|---|
| Who gets what on market day | Order sheets | Orders by day |
| Which batch went to which customer | Not recorded | Lots on each order |
| What a tub costs | A guess | True cost from the recipe and batch |
Orders, recipes and batches are on every plan, from $49 a month. The first 30 days are free, with no credit card. If you'd like a hand setting up, ask, and we'll do it with you.