Selling jam in Oregon
What Oregon's own pages say about making jam at home, each line linked, and the path to a store when you want one to stock it.
Run the free rules check for it: no account, no AI.
Can I make jam at home in Oregon?
Oregon's own pages name jam, or foods like it, among what Oregon says a home kitchen may make. ShelfStep found these lines by the words they use; whether they cover your product is for the Oregon Department of Agriculture to say. Those lines, as the state writes them:
- Oregon's Cottage Food Exemption rules: what may be made at homeOregon Administrative Rule 603-025-0320 says:“(F) Jams and jellies made only with fruit that has a natural pH that is less than 4.60; ... (I) Fruit butters made only with fruit that has a natural pH that is less than 4.60;”Oregon Administrative Rule 603-025-0320 · Read Sep 25, 2026
- Oregon's Cottage Food Exemption rules: what may be made at homeOregon Revised Statutes 616.723 says:“The foods prepared at the food establishment for public distribution are packaged and not potentially hazardous, including but not limited to baked goods, confectionary items, coffee beans, teas, popcorn, jams, jellies, honey, syrups, fruit butters, nut mixes, repackaged freeze-dried foods, repackaged dried and dehydrated foods and powdered drink mixes;”Oregon Revised Statutes 616.723 · Read Sep 25, 2026
What rules does jam come under beyond Oregon's?
Outside a home kitchen, ShelfStep's plan reads jam as a shelf-stable acid or acidified food. The plan's own line for it, a default and not a law:
What the rules behind it say, in their own words, with the page and the day ShelfStep read each. ShelfStep does not decide which of them apply to your product.
- Acidified foods: the definition and its exclusions21 CFR 114.3(b) says:“(b) Acidified foods means low-acid foods to which acid(s) or acid food(s) are added; these foods include, but are not limited to, beans, cucumbers, cabbage, artichokes, cauliflower, puddings, peppers, tropical fruits, and fish, singly or in any combination. They have a water activity (aw) greater than 0.85 and have a finished equilibrium pH of 4.6 or below. ... Carbonated beverages, jams, jellies, preserves, acid foods (including such foods as standardized and nonstandardized food dressings and condiment sauces) that contain small amounts of low-acid food(s) and have a resultant finished equilibrium pH that does not significantly differ from that of the predominant acid or acid food, and foods that are stored, distributed, and retailed under refrigeration are excluded from the coverage of this part.”21 CFR 114.3(b) · Read Oct 8, 2026
- The federal standard for jam and preserves21 CFR 150.160(d) says:“(i) In the case of a fruit ingredient consisting of a Group I fruit or a permitted combination exclusively of Group I fruits, 47 parts by weight of the fruit ingredient to each 55 parts by weight of the saccharine ingredient; and (ii) in all other cases, 45 parts by weight of the fruit ingredient to each 55 parts by weight of the saccharine ingredient. ... (5) The soluble-solids content of the finished jam or preserve is not less than 65 percent”21 CFR 150.160(d) · Read Oct 8, 2026
- FDA's definition of a food facility21 CFR 1.227 says:“Facility means any establishment, structure, or structures under one ownership at one general physical location, or, in the case of a mobile facility, traveling to multiple locations, that manufactures/processes, packs, or holds food for consumption in the United States. ... The private residence of an individual is not a facility.”21 CFR 1.227 · Read Oct 8, 2026
Where may food made at home be sold in Oregon?
- Oregon's Cottage Food Exemption rules: where it may be soldODA, Cottage Food Exemption says:“Cottage foods may be sold to a retailer only if the food is packaged and labeled. The retailer must agree to store and display the cottage food separately from other foods and use signage to clearly indicate in the display area that the cottage foods are homemade and not prepared in an inspected food establishment.”ODA, Cottage Food Exemption · Read Sep 25, 2026
- Oregon's Cottage Food Exemption rules: where it may be soldODA, Cottage Food Exemption says:“You cannot sell cottage foods to an institution including, but not limited to, a restaurant licensed by a county health department, caterer, school, day care center, hospital, nursing home, or correctional facility.”ODA, Cottage Food Exemption · Read Sep 25, 2026
- Oregon's Cottage Food Exemption rules: where it may be soldODA, Cottage Food Exemption FAQ says:“Q29. Can cottage food made in Oregon be sold across state lines? We do not have jurisdictional authority in other states to make that determination. Please reach out to the state(s) where you are going to sell your cottage food for any laws or rules that may apply.”ODA, Cottage Food Exemption FAQ · Read Sep 25, 2026
- Oregon's Cottage Food Exemption rules: a yearly sales ceilingODA, Cottage Food Exemption FAQ (March 2026) says:“In 2026, this means you can sell up to $52,700 of Cottage Foods and up to $50,000 of Processed Farm Direct foods in the calendar year.”ODA, Cottage Food Exemption FAQ (March 2026) · Read Sep 25, 2026
- Oregon's Cottage Food Exemption rules: where it may be soldOregon Revised Statutes 616.723 says:“(4) A person may sell foods prepared in a food establishment described in subsection (2) of this section directly to the end user in any manner, including from the home, online, through the mail and at events.”Oregon Revised Statutes 616.723 · Read Sep 25, 2026
What does Oregon say a home-made label must carry?
- Oregon's Cottage Food Exemption rules: the home-made labelODA, Cottage Food Exemption FAQ says:“When you are selling products to the end consumer as single items — for example, one cookie or muffin at a farmers market stand — there must be a placard at the location that states, “This product is homemade and is not prepared in an inspected food establishment.” You must have all required label information available upon consumer request.”ODA, Cottage Food Exemption FAQ · Read Sep 25, 2026
- Oregon's Cottage Food Exemption rules: the home-made labelOregon Administrative Rule 603-025-0325 says:“(1) The label’s principal display panel for cottage food must contain the following statement, “This product is homemade, is not prepared in an inspected food establishment, and must be stored and displayed separately if merchandised by a retailer.””Oregon Administrative Rule 603-025-0325 · Read Sep 25, 2026
- Oregon's Cottage Food Exemption rules: the home-made labelOregon Administrative Rule 603-025-0325 says:“(a) The name of the food; (b) The ingredients (and sub-ingredients) of the food in descending order by weight or volume; (c) Any applicable allergen warnings as specified in The Food Allergen Labeling & Consumer Protection Act of 2004 (FALCPA); (d) The business name for the food establishment; ... (f) The phone number for the cottage food establishment; (g) The net weight or net volume of the product in both English and metric units;”Oregon Administrative Rule 603-025-0325 · Read Sep 25, 2026
How do I get jam into a store in Oregon?
- Oregon's Cottage Food Exemption rules: what applies beyond the home-kitchen rulesODA, Cottage Food Exemption FAQ says:“If your gross annual sales exceed that limit, and you still want to operate from your home kitchen, you must be licensed and inspected by ODA as a Domestic Kitchen Bakery or Food Processor.”ODA, Cottage Food Exemption FAQ · Read Sep 25, 2026
From there, ShelfStep's standard plan for a shelf-stable acid or acidified food has 18 steps. The first 6 help you find out where and how jam can be made at all, so they come first:
- 1.
Write the recipe down with exact amounts
Cost, price, nutrition and the label are all worked out from this. Write it in the units you actually use; ShelfStep converts for the label. What matters is that someone else could make the same batch from what is written.
- 2.
Decide how it is kept: on a shelf, in the fridge or frozen
The planned storage helps the reviewer assess the process, shelf life and packaging.
In the plan: It decides which rules you follow.
- 3.
Find out where you are allowed to make it for sale
This finds out whether the state’s rules allow making this in a home kitchen or point to a commercial one — and that changes the cost and the timeline of everything after it. It is much cheaper to find out now than after buying packaging.
In the plan: Your state's home-kitchen rules, in its own words. Whether they cover your product is for your state's agency to say.
- 4.
Have the pH and water activity of a finished batch measured
These measurements give your reviewer information about the batch; they do not establish safety or storage conditions on their own.
In the plan: The two numbers the acidified-food rules name. Measured on the finished product, once it has settled.
- 6.
Look into FDA registration
Registration is how FDA knows your facility exists; the plan is what an inspector or a buyer’s audit asks to see. Both are far easier to do now than during either.
In the plan: Look into registration with FDA. Any filing your Process Authority letter names belongs here too.
Every step, with its reason and what it typically costs, is on the jam page:
Where do I go from here?
Check the rules for yours, then keep it
The rules check runs the same deterministic engine ShelfStep uses inside the app, on your answers, and quotes the sentences each rule rests on, with their links and the day ShelfStep read them. It does not decide which apply. It is free, needs no account and uses no AI. A ShelfStep workspace then keeps your plan, your records and the dates, free for one product.