Selling kombucha in Oregon

Q: Where may food made at home be sold in Oregon?

ODA, 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 September 25, 2026). ODA, 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 September 25, 2026). ODA, 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 September 25, 2026). ODA, 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 September 25, 2026). Oregon 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 September 25, 2026). ShelfStep's summary of the rules and their sources, read September 26, 2026; not legal advice.

Q: What does Oregon say a home-made label must carry?

ODA, 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 September 25, 2026). Oregon 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 September 25, 2026). Oregon 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 September 25, 2026). ShelfStep's summary of the rules and their sources, read September 26, 2026; not legal advice.

Q: Where do I go from here?

How to sell kombucha to stores. Every step, its reason and its typical cost Selling food made at home in Oregon. All of Oregon's lines, what you may make, register and outgrow How do I find and choose a co-packer?. 5 min read How do I work out my shelf life and best-by date?. 4 min read Do I need to register with the FDA to sell my food product?. 4 min read ShelfStep's summary of the rules and their sources, read September 26, 2026; not legal advice.

Sources last read Sep 26, 2026

What Oregon's own pages say about making kombucha 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.

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 kombucha at home in Oregon?

Oregon's own pages, as ShelfStep read them on September 25, 2026, do not name kombucha or foods like it, so this page cannot tell you whether a home kitchen in Oregon may make it. Ask the Oregon Department of Agriculture before you make it at home to sell. What the state allows and leaves out in general is on the Oregon page.

What rules does kombucha come under beyond Oregon's?

Outside a home kitchen, ShelfStep's plan reads kombucha as a beverage. The plan's own line for it, a default and not a law:

ShelfStep’s plan default, not a lawBeverages: their own FDA rules (juice HACCP, etc.).21 CFR 120.1

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 kombucha

Juice and the juice HACCP rule21 CFR 120.1(a) says:“(a) Any juice sold as such or used as an ingredient in beverages shall be processed in accordance with the requirements of this part.”21 CFR 120.1(a) · Read Oct 8, 2026
Juice HACCP and retail establishments21 CFR 120.3(j) and (l) says:“(2) For purposes of this part, processing does not include: (i) Harvesting, picking, or transporting raw agricultural ingredients of juice products, without otherwise engaging in processing; and (ii) The operation of a retail establishment. ... (l) Retail establishment is an operation that provides juice directly to the consumers and does not include an establishment that sells or distributes juice to other business entities as well as directly to consumers.”21 CFR 120.3(j) and (l) · Read Oct 8, 2026

Source to check: FDA food facility registration

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 kombucha 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

State registration or license in Oregontypically $381 to $1,077 per year. Gross annual sales up to $50,000; $50,001 to $500,000 Source: Oregon Department of Agriculture; checked Sep 2026

From there, ShelfStep's standard plan for a beverage has 19 steps. The first 6 help you find out where and how kombucha 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.
5.
Get a Process Authority's letter on how it is made safe
Ask a qualified reviewer which process and storage conditions your product needs. This is where you ask someone qualified, a Process Authority, to put in writing how the product is made safe. Buyers, insurers and inspectors may ask for that document, and it cannot be obtained after the fact for product you have already sold.
In the plan: Needs the pH first. Their letter sets out the process they ask you to hold to, and the storage line for your label.
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 kombucha page:

1. Write the recipe down with exact amounts 2. Decide how it is kept: on a shelf, in the fridge or frozen 3. Find out where you are allowed to make it for sale 4. Have the pH and water activity of a finished batch measured 5. Get a Process Authority's letter on how it is made safe 6. Look into FDA registration 7. Choose the container and what seals it 8. Shortlist three co-packers or commercial kitchens 9. Work out what one batch, and one unit, costs to make 10. Set up lot codes and a recall plan 11. Make a first full-size batch 12. Find out how long it keeps 13. Get barcodes 14. Draft the label with everything it has to say 15. Set the wholesale and shelf price from the cost 16. Sell it at a market before you scale 17. Get product liability insurance 18. Make the one-page sheet a buyer reads 19. Name your first three stores

Where do I go from here?

How to sell kombucha to storesEvery step, its reason and its typical cost Selling food made at home in OregonAll of Oregon's lines, what you may make, register and outgrow

How do I find and choose a co-packer?5 min read How do I work out my shelf life and best-by date?4 min read Do I need to register with the FDA to sell my food product?4 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.