Items like cheesecake, banana pudding and vegetarian casseroles can now be sold by home cooks directly to consumers. (Zamrznuti tonovi/Adobe Stock)
It is now easier in Texas for home cooks, bakers and farmers to sell their products to the public.
A new “Cottage Food Law” has lifted many restrictions in place for years.
Judith McGeary, founder and executive director of the Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance, said food preparers can sell their products at farmers’ markets, directly to consumers and through the home-based businesses known as cottage food vendors.
“Indirect sales to farmer’s cooperatives or a small mom-and-pop grocer,” McGeary explained. “There’s now opportunity for the local farmers and local community members to say, ‘You know what? We want healthy, preprepared meals.’ And they can make it in their home kitchens and sell it.”
Restrictions remain in place for meat, seafood and milk products. The Alliance will hold a webinar Wednesday to discuss the changes.
The gross annual income from the sale of cottage foods has increased from $50,000 to $150,000. McGeary noted as more products can be sold, stay-at-home parents, caregivers and even farmers can boost their income.
“Take their zucchini and turn it into zucchini bread, which really has a much higher profit margin,” McGeary suggested. “It makes the farmer much more economically viable if they’re able to make and sell these value-added foods.”
McGeary added the new law breaks down barriers she argued were hurting farmers and consumers.
“If we want people to have access to good food, fundamentally there are two things that have to happen,” McGeary emphasized. “One is that the farmers and the food producers have to be able to make a living. The other is there have to be reasonable ways in which farmers can access these markets and consumers can access these foods.”
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