Selling pesto in Illinois

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

Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 says: “(11) Food and drink produced by a cottage food operation shall be sold directly to consumers for their own consumption and not for resale. Sales directly to consumers include, but are not limited to, sales at or through: (A) farmers' markets; (B) fairs, festivals, public events, or online; (C) pickup from the private home or farm of the cottage food operator, ... (D) delivery to the customer; (E) pickup from a third-party private property with the consent of the third-party property holder; and (F) mobile farmers markets.” (Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4, read October 8, 2026). Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 says: “(12) Only food that is not a time/temperature control for safety food may be shipped. A cottage food product shall not be shipped out of State. Each cottage food product that is shipped must be sealed in a manner that reveals tampering, including, but not limited to, a sticker or pop top.” (Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4, read October 8, 2026). Illinois Department of Public Health, Cottage Food says: “The law allows cottage food operations to sell food directly to consumers, including sales by the owner, a family member, or employee, but may not be sold for resale or in retail food establishments.” (Illinois Department of Public Health, Cottage Food, read October 8, 2026). ShelfStep's summary of the rules and their sources, read October 8, 2026; not legal advice.

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

Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 says: “(E) the following phrase in prominent lettering: "This product was produced in a home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common food allergens. If you have safety concerns, contact your local health department.";” (Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4, read October 8, 2026). Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 says: “(10) At the point of sale, notice must be provided in a prominent location that states the following: "This product was produced in a home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common food allergens." At a physical display, notice shall be a placard. Online, notice shall be a message on the cottage food operation's online sales interface at the point of sale.” (Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4, read October 8, 2026). Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 says: “A cottage food product shall be prepackaged and the food packaging shall be affixed with a prominent label that includes the following: (A) the name of the cottage food operation and unit of local government in which the cottage food operation is located; (B) the identifying registration number provided by the local health department on the certificate of registration and the name of the municipality or county in which the registration was filed; (C) the common or usual name of the food product; (D) all ingredients of the food product, including any color, artificial flavor, and preservative, listed in descending order by predominance of weight shown with the common or usual names; ... (F) the date the product was processed; and (G) allergen labeling as specified under federal labeling requirements.” (Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4, read October 8, 2026). ShelfStep's summary of the rules and their sources, read October 8, 2026; not legal advice.

Q: Where do I go from here?

How to sell pesto to stores. Every step, its reason and its typical cost Selling food made at home in Illinois. All of Illinois'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 October 8, 2026; not legal advice.

Sources last read Oct 8, 2026

What Illinois's own pages say about making pesto 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 pesto at home in Illinois?

Illinois's own pages name pesto, or foods like it, in both of Illinois's lists: what a home kitchen may make and what it may not. ShelfStep found these lines by the words they use; whether they cover your product is for the Illinois Department of Public Health and your local health department to say. Those lines, as the state writes them:

Illinois's Cottage Food Operation rules: what may be made at homeIllinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 says:“(14) Time/temperature control for safety foods shall be maintained and transported at holding temperatures as set in the Department's administrative rules to ensure the food's safety and limit microorganism growth or toxin formation.”Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 · Read Oct 8, 2026
Illinois's Cottage Food Operation rules: what may not be made at homeIllinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 says:“(D) pumpkin pies, sweet potato pies, cheesecakes, custard pies, creme pies, and pastries with time/temperature control for safety foods that are fillings or toppings;”Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 · Read Oct 8, 2026

What rules does pesto come under beyond Illinois's?

Outside a home kitchen, ShelfStep's plan reads pesto as a refrigerated or frozen food. The plan's own line for it, a default and not a law:

ShelfStep’s plan default, not a lawFrozen or refrigerated (non-meat): cold chain, shelf-life / challenge study, "keep frozen/refrigerated" labeling.21 CFR 114.3

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 pesto

Acidified foods kept under refrigeration21 CFR 114.3(b) says:“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

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 Illinois?

Illinois's Cottage Food Operation rules: where it may be soldIllinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 says:“(11) Food and drink produced by a cottage food operation shall be sold directly to consumers for their own consumption and not for resale. Sales directly to consumers include, but are not limited to, sales at or through: (A) farmers' markets; (B) fairs, festivals, public events, or online; (C) pickup from the private home or farm of the cottage food operator, ... (D) delivery to the customer; (E) pickup from a third-party private property with the consent of the third-party property holder; and (F) mobile farmers markets.”Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 · Read Oct 8, 2026
Illinois's Cottage Food Operation rules: where it may be soldIllinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 says:“(12) Only food that is not a time/temperature control for safety food may be shipped. A cottage food product shall not be shipped out of State. Each cottage food product that is shipped must be sealed in a manner that reveals tampering, including, but not limited to, a sticker or pop top.”Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 · Read Oct 8, 2026
Illinois's Cottage Food Operation rules: where it may be soldIllinois Department of Public Health, Cottage Food says:“The law allows cottage food operations to sell food directly to consumers, including sales by the owner, a family member, or employee, but may not be sold for resale or in retail food establishments.”Illinois Department of Public Health, Cottage Food · Read Oct 8, 2026

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

Illinois's Cottage Food Operation rules: the home-made labelIllinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 says:“(E) the following phrase in prominent lettering: "This product was produced in a home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common food allergens. If you have safety concerns, contact your local health department.";”Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 · Read Oct 8, 2026
Illinois's Cottage Food Operation rules: the home-made labelIllinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 says:“(10) At the point of sale, notice must be provided in a prominent location that states the following: "This product was produced in a home kitchen not inspected by a health department that may also process common food allergens." At a physical display, notice shall be a placard. Online, notice shall be a message on the cottage food operation's online sales interface at the point of sale.”Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 · Read Oct 8, 2026
Illinois's Cottage Food Operation rules: the home-made labelIllinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 says:“A cottage food product shall be prepackaged and the food packaging shall be affixed with a prominent label that includes the following: (A) the name of the cottage food operation and unit of local government in which the cottage food operation is located; (B) the identifying registration number provided by the local health department on the certificate of registration and the name of the municipality or county in which the registration was filed; (C) the common or usual name of the food product; (D) all ingredients of the food product, including any color, artificial flavor, and preservative, listed in descending order by predominance of weight shown with the common or usual names; ... (F) the date the product was processed; and (G) allergen labeling as specified under federal labeling requirements.”Illinois Compiled Statutes, 410 ILCS 625/4 · Read Oct 8, 2026

How do I get pesto into a store in Illinois?

Illinois's Cottage Food Operation rules: what applies beyond the home-kitchen rulesIllinois Department of Public Health, Manufactured Food says:“IDPH regulates food products processed, packaged, labeled, stored, and distributed for wholesale in Illinois through permitting, licensing, and inspection of food processing plants and storage facilities. You may hear wholesale food businesses referred to as “manufactured food.” Generally, wholesale refers to the sale or distribution of food from one business to another for resale or redistribution, e.g., selling food to a grocery store or restaurant.”Illinois Department of Public Health, Manufactured Food · Read Oct 8, 2026

State registration or license in Illinoistypically $950 to $1,300 in the first year. A food processing plant with no special products; A plant with special products: juice, seafood or acidified foods. The higher figure is for acidified foods. Source: Illinois Department of Public Health; checked Sep 2026

From there, ShelfStep's standard plan for a refrigerated or frozen food has 20 steps. The first 6 help you find out where and how pesto 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.
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.
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.
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.
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.

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

1. Write the recipe down with exact amounts 2. Decide how it is kept: on a shelf, in the fridge or frozen 3. Work out how it stays cold from your kitchen to the shop 4. Find out where you are allowed to make it for sale 5. Have the pH and water activity of a finished batch measured 6. Get a Process Authority's letter on how it is made safe 7. Look into FDA registration 8. Choose the container and what seals it 9. Shortlist three co-packers or commercial kitchens 10. Work out what one batch, and one unit, costs to make 11. Set up lot codes and a recall plan 12. Make a first full-size batch 13. Find out how long it keeps 14. Get barcodes 15. Draft the label with everything it has to say 16. Set the wholesale and shelf price from the cost 17. Sell it at a market before you scale 18. Get product liability insurance 19. Make the one-page sheet a buyer reads 20. Name your first three stores

Where do I go from here?

How to sell pesto to storesEvery step, its reason and its typical cost Selling food made at home in IllinoisAll of Illinois'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

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.

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