Cottage food label requirements in Illinois

Last checked 5 August 2026 · Informational only, not legal or food-safety advice. Verify anything important with your local before you print a run of labels.

The short version

A label on food made in a home kitchen in Illinois carries six things wherever you are: what it is, everything in it heaviest first, the major allergens, who made it, how to reach you, and the date. On top of that comes the wording below.

What goes on the label

The product name, in words a customer would use.
Every ingredient, heaviest first.
The major allergens, called out separately from the ingredient list.
Who made it: your name or your business name.
How to reach you.
The date it was made.

What the label has to say

As published for Illinois, read on 5 August 2026:

This product was produced in a home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common food allergens. If you have safety concerns, contact your local health department.

This is published as fixed text, so reproduce it exactly rather than rewording it.

And one more requirement

Point of sale (placard at a physical display, or a message on an online sales interface): "This product was produced in a home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common food allergens."

Who actually enforces this

Illinois sets the rules centrally but they are enforced locally, so the answer that counts is your own office's rather than the state's. Find the office nearest you.

The detail

410 ILCS 625/4(b)(7). The statement must appear 'in prominent lettering' - the statute gives no point size. The label must also carry: the name of the cottage food operation AND the unit of local government (county, township, city or village) where it is located; the registration number issued by the local health department on the certificate of registration and the name of the municipality or county where the registration was filed; the common or usual name of the product; all ingredients including colours, artificial flavours and preservatives in descending order by weight; the date the product was processed; and federal allergen labelling. Registration with the local health department where you reside is mandatory, so the label cannot be produced until that number exists. Chicago registers through CDPH rather than a county department.

Make one

Free, nothing saved, no account. It fills in Illinois's wording for you and prints a sheet.

Where to verify all of this

Rules change, and this page can lag behind them. Before you rely on any of it: