Donuts are a cottage food in every state here as long as they don't need the fridge. Glazed yeast donuts, cake donuts, cider donuts and sugared donuts keep at room temperature for the day they're sold. California's approved list covers baked goods without cream, custard or meat fillings, churros among them; Michigan covers baked goods that don't need temperature control; Minnesota covers food that isn't potentially hazardous; and North Dakota allows sales straight to the customer. The line is the filling: Boston cream, custard, whipped cream and cream cheese fillings need refrigeration. Those are out in Michigan, Minnesota and California, and in North Dakota they'd have to be kept and delivered frozen. Jelly-filled donuts with a standard jam are fine.
The short version
- Glazed, cake, cider and sugared donuts fit cottage food laws here.
- Jelly-filled with a shelf-stable jam is fine.
- Cream, custard and cream cheese fillings need refrigeration.
- Those are out in Michigan, Minnesota and California.
- North Dakota: refrigerated donuts only kept and delivered frozen.
- Fry and sell the same day; donuts stale fast.
- TaroStack keeps each preorder and each batch's lot. More below.
Donuts, state by state
| Product | Michigan | Minnesota | North Dakota | California |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Glazed yeast donuts | Yes | Yes, registered | Yes | Yes, on the list |
| Apple cider donuts | Yes | Yes, registered | Yes | Yes, on the list |
| Raspberry jelly-filled | Yes | Yes, registered | Yes | Yes, on the list |
| Boston cream | No: needs temperature control | No: potentially hazardous | Frozen, with labels | No: not on the list |
Pricing a dozen is in how to price donuts, and baked goods from home in general in license to sell baked goods.
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: a Michigan weekend donut stand
Saturday Rise Donuts, a made-up home donut maker in Holland, Michigan, takes preorders by the dozen for Saturday morning pickup. Glazed, cider and jelly-filled donuts are cottage foods under Michigan's law, packaged and labeled with the home kitchen statement. Customers asked for Boston cream; the custard needs refrigeration, so it isn't a cottage food, and the menu got a maple-glazed long john instead. A coffee shop asked to sell the donuts; Michigan's cottage food can't be sold wholesale, so that waits for a licensed kitchen. Michigan's law in full is in Michigan cottage food law.
Get the checker
Download the home donut 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
Sixty dozen preorders for one Saturday is a fry schedule, a box count and a pickup list, all written by hand at 4 a.m. One dozen on the wrong list is a customer at the door with no box.
How TaroStack does it
TaroStack keeps each customer's order and each batch's lot, and what each dozen 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 dozens is a batch from its recipe, with its date and lot, and the lot goes on each order it fills.
True cost. Each dozen 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 dozen 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.