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Selling beef jerky in Michigan

Sources last read Oct 8, 2026

What Michigan's own pages say about making beef jerky at home, each line linked, and the path to a store when you want one to stock it.

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A sketch of Beef jerky in its bag.
General information, not advice. This is written for small food makers and cites its sources, but it is not legal, regulatory or food-safety advice, and it cannot account for your product, your state or your facility. Rules change and thresholds are adjusted yearly. Confirm anything you are about to act on with your state agency, a Process Authority, or the FDA.

Can I make beef jerky at home in Michigan?

Michigan's own pages name beef jerky, or foods like it, among what Michigan says a home kitchen may not make. ShelfStep found these lines by the words they use; whether they cover your product is for the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to say. Those lines, as the state writes them:

  • Michigan's Cottage Food Operation rules: what may not be made at homeMichigan Compiled Laws 289.1105 says:“Cottage food product does not include any of the following: (i) Any food regulated under 21 CFR parts 108, 113, and 114, including salsa. (ii) Canned low-acid fruits or acidified vegetables. (iii) Other canned foods except for standardized jams, jellies, and preserves as described in 21 CFR part 150. (iv) Meat and poultry products. (v) Milk products. (vi) Bottled water and other beverages. (vii) Home-produced ice products.”Michigan Compiled Laws 289.1105 · Read Oct 8, 2026

What rules does beef jerky come under beyond Michigan's?

Outside a home kitchen, ShelfStep's plan reads beef jerky as a meat or poultry product. The plan's own line for it, a default and not a law:

ShelfStep’s plan default, not a lawMeat or poultry (e.g. egg rolls with meat, jerky, sausage): likely USDA-FSIS jurisdiction — federal/state grant of inspection or a co-packer under continuous inspection, the USDA mark of inspection on the label, and cold-chain handling. NOT the FDA path.9 CFR 304 (application for and grant of inspection)

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.

Source to check: the rules behind ShelfStep's plan for beef jerky
  • Meat inspection and retail stores9 CFR 303.1(d) says:“(d)(1) The requirements of the Act and the regulations in this subchapter for inspection of the preparation of products do not apply to operations of types traditionally and usually conducted at retail stores and restaurants, when conducted at any retail store or restaurant or similar retail-type establishment for sale in normal retail quantities or service of such articles to consumers at such establishments.”9 CFR 303.1(d) · Read Oct 8, 2026
  • State meat inspection programs9 CFR 321.1(a) says:“to cooperate with any State (including Puerto Rico) or any organized Territory in developing and administering the meat inspection program of such jurisdiction with a view to assuring that it imposes and enforces requirements at least equal to those under Titles I and IV of the Act, with respect to establishments at which products are prepared for use as human food solely for distribution within such jurisdiction”9 CFR 321.1(a) · Read Oct 8, 2026

Where may food made at home be sold in Michigan?

  • Michigan's Cottage Food Operation rules: a yearly sales ceilingMDARD, Cottage Food: getting started FAQ says:“The limit is currently gross sales up to $50,000 yearly, however, $75,000 is allowable if the cottage food operation sells cottage food products at a price of $250 or more per unit.”MDARD, Cottage Food: getting started FAQ · Read Oct 8, 2026
  • Michigan's Cottage Food Operation rules: where it may be soldMDARD, Cottage Food: selling and samples says:“At farmers markets, farm stands, roadside stands Via phone, the internet, or mail order Inside the state of Michigan”MDARD, Cottage Food: selling and samples · Read Oct 8, 2026
  • Michigan's Cottage Food Operation rules: where it may be soldMDARD, Cottage Food: selling and samples says:“Cannot sell to wholesalers, brokers or distributors Cannot sell to restaurant or grocery store Cannot donate to a public auction, fundraiser, or soup kitchen Cannot sell on consignment”MDARD, Cottage Food: selling and samples · Read Oct 8, 2026
  • Michigan's Cottage Food Operation rules: where it may be soldMichigan Compiled Laws 289.4102 says:“Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, a cottage food product must be sold directly from the cottage food operation to the consumer. Sales by consignment or at wholesale are prohibited.”Michigan Compiled Laws 289.4102 · Read Oct 8, 2026
  • Michigan's Cottage Food Operation rules: where it may be soldMichigan Compiled Laws 289.4102 says:“A cottage food product may be sold by internet or mail order or may be delivered to a consumer through a third-party food delivery platform if the cottage food operation provides an opportunity for a consumer to directly interact with the cottage food operation before the cottage food product is sold. A cottage food product sold by internet or mail order or delivered through a third-party delivery platform must be sold or delivered only to a consumer in this state.”Michigan Compiled Laws 289.4102 · Read Oct 8, 2026
  • Michigan's Cottage Food Operation rules: a yearly sales ceilingMichigan Compiled Laws 289.4102 says:“(5) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, the gross sales of cottage food products by a cottage food operation must not exceed $50,000.00 annually until October 1,2026. ... Beginning October 1, 2026, and by each October 1 thereafter, the department may adjust the gross sales amounts set under this subsection by the amount calculated by multiplying the sales limit in effect during the immediately preceding fiscal year by the inflation adjustment factor and rounding to the nearest whole dollar.”Michigan Compiled Laws 289.4102 · Read Oct 8, 2026

What does Michigan say a home-made label must carry?

  • Michigan's Cottage Food Operation rules: the home-made labelMichigan Compiled Laws 289.4102 says:“(g) The following statement printed in at least the equivalent of 11-point font size in a color that provides a clear contrast to the background: "Made in a home kitchen that has not been inspected by the Michigan department of agriculture and rural development.".”Michigan Compiled Laws 289.4102 · Read Oct 8, 2026
  • Michigan's Cottage Food Operation rules: the home-made labelMichigan Compiled Laws 289.4102 says:“(a) One of the following, as applicable: (i) The name and address of the business of the cottage food operation. (ii) The name, telephone number, and registration number issued under subsection (8) of the business of the cottage food operation.”Michigan Compiled Laws 289.4102 · Read Oct 8, 2026
  • Michigan's Cottage Food Operation rules: the home-made labelMichigan Compiled Laws 289.4102 says:“(b) The name of the cottage food product. (c) The ingredients of the cottage food product, in descending order of predominance by weight. (d) The net weight or net volume of the cottage food product. (e) Allergen labeling as specified by federal labeling requirements. (f) If any nutritional claim is made, appropriate labeling as specified by federal labeling requirements.”Michigan Compiled Laws 289.4102 · Read Oct 8, 2026

How do I get beef jerky into a store in Michigan?

  • Michigan's Cottage Food Operation rules: what applies beyond the home-kitchen rulesMichigan Compiled Laws 289.4101 says:“(1) Except as provided in sections 4102 and 4105, a person shall not operate a food establishment unless licensed by the department as a food establishment.”Michigan Compiled Laws 289.4101 · Read Oct 8, 2026
State registration or license in Michigantypically $186 to $471 per year. Limited wholesale food processor: $25,000 a year or less in wholesale sales; Wholesale food processor Source: Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development; checked Sep 2026

From there, ShelfStep's standard plan for a meat or poultry product has 18 steps. The first 6 help you find out where and how beef jerky can be made at all, so they come first:

  1. 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. 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. 3.

    Work out how it stays cold from your kitchen to the shop

    If your product needs refrigeration or freezing, plan how to keep it cold at every hand-off. Who keeps it cold at each hand-off, and how you would know if they did not, is what a buyer asks first.

  4. 4.

    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.

  5. 5.

    Confirm which agency's rules it falls under

    Which rules your product falls under decides every step after this one, and only the right authority can say. The plan says likely; this is where someone qualified says for certain.

  6. 6.

    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.

Every step, with its reason and what it typically costs, is on the beef jerky page:

1. Write the recipe down with exact amounts2. Decide how it is kept: on a shelf, in the fridge or frozen3. Work out how it stays cold from your kitchen to the shop4. Find out where you are allowed to make it for sale5. Confirm which agency's rules it falls under6. Have the pH and water activity of a finished batch measured7. Choose the container and what seals it8. Shortlist three co-packers or commercial kitchens9. Work out what one batch, and one unit, costs to make10. Set up lot codes and a recall plan11. Make a first full-size batch12. Get barcodes13. Draft the label with everything it has to say14. Set the wholesale and shelf price from the cost15. Sell it at a market before you scale16. Get product liability insurance17. Make the one-page sheet a buyer reads18. Name your first three stores

Where do I go from here?

How to sell beef jerky to storesEvery step, its reason and its typical costSelling food made at home in MichiganAll of Michigan's lines, what you may make, register and outgrow
How do I find and choose a co-packer?5 min readHow do I work out my shelf life and best-by date?4 min readWhat should I charge a store for my product?5 min read

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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.

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Something here out of date, or a state we should write up next? Email hello@shelfstep.com.