# Cottage food label requirements in Missouri

> Informational only, not legal or food-safety advice. Verify with Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services before printing labels. Last checked 2026-08-05.

## What goes on the label

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

## The required statement

Missouri describes what the label has to get across rather than publishing a sentence to copy. A common form of it:

> This food is not inspected by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services or the local health department.

Close wording is generally accepted.

## Enforcement

Set centrally, enforced locally, so your own office's answer is the one that counts.
Find yours: https://health.mo.gov/local/find-your-local-public-health-agency

## Detail

RSMo 196.298 does NOT publish fixed label text. It requires only that the label carry the name and address of the cottage food production operation and 'a statement that the food is not inspected by the department or local health department', so the wording above is a faithful paraphrase, not statutory text. Scope is narrow: baked goods, canned jams or jellies, and dried herbs or herb mixes only, sold directly to the consumer. Internet sales are barred unless both the operation and the purchaser are in Missouri. The statute bars local health departments from regulating cottage food production but requires them to keep complaint records, and several Missouri cities and counties (Springfield-Greene, for example) still publish their own cottage food pages, so the local desk is the practical one to call.

## Sources

- Authority: Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (Food Safety / Manufactured Foods), plus your county or city local public health agency for complaints and farmers market rules
- Rule: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=196.298
- Authority page: https://health.mo.gov/manufactured-foods/food-labeling