Selling salad dressing in Ohio

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

Ohio Administrative Code Chapter 901:3-20 says: “(F) Sell cottage food products outside the state of Ohio.” (Ohio Administrative Code Chapter 901:3-20, read September 25, 2026). Ohio Department of Agriculture, Cottage Food says: “Cottage Food Products may only be sold in Ohio. Cottage Food Products that are properly identified and labeled may be sold directly to the consumer from the home where the products are produced. They may also be sold through grocery stores, registered farm markets, farmers markets, and sold and/or used in preparing food in a restaurant.” (Ohio Department of Agriculture, Cottage Food, read September 25, 2026). ShelfStep's summary of the rules and their sources, read September 26, 2026; not legal advice.

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

Ohio Department of Agriculture, Cottage Food says: “An ingredient that is or contains protein from a "major food allergen" must have the presence of the allergen declared by common name in the ingredient statement or by placing the word "Contains" followed by the name of each major food allergen present in the food.” (Ohio Department of Agriculture, Cottage Food, read September 25, 2026). Ohio Revised Code 3715.023 says: “(5) In the case of a cottage food production operation, the following statement in ten-point type: "This product is home produced."” (Ohio Revised Code 3715.023, read September 25, 2026). Ohio Revised Code 3715.023 says: “(1) The name and address of the business of the cottage food production operation, processor, or beekeeper; (2) The name of the food product; (3) The ingredients of the food product, in descending order of predominance by weight; (4) The net weight and volume of the food product;” (Ohio Revised Code 3715.023, 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 salad dressing to stores. Every step, its reason and its typical cost Selling food made at home in Ohio. All of Ohio's lines, what you may make, register and outgrow Does my sauce or salsa need a scheduled process?. 5 min read How do I work out my shelf life and best-by date?. 4 min read How do I find and choose a co-packer?. 5 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 Ohio's own pages say about making salad dressing 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 Salad dressing in its bottle.

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 salad dressing at home in Ohio?

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

Ohio's Cottage Food Production Operation rules: what may not be made at homeOhio Department of Agriculture, Cottage Food says:“Acidified food means a low acid food to which acids or acid foods are added (Ex. Beans, cucumbers, cabbage, puddings, etc.). Potentially hazardous food means it requires temperature control because it is in a form capable of supporting the rapid and progressive growth of infectious or toxigenic microorganisms (Ex. Raw or cooked animal products, cooked vegetables, garlic in oil, cheesecakes, pumpkin pies, custard pies, cream pies, etc.).”Ohio Department of Agriculture, Cottage Food · Read Sep 25, 2026
Ohio's Cottage Food Production Operation rules: what may not be made at homeOhio Revised Code 3715.025 says:“(A) A cottage food production operation shall not process acidified foods, low acid canned foods, or potentially hazardous foods.”Ohio Revised Code 3715.025 · Read Sep 25, 2026

What rules does salad dressing come under beyond Ohio's?

Outside a home kitchen, ShelfStep's plan reads salad dressing as a shelf-stable acid or acidified food. The plan's own line for it, a default and not a law:

ShelfStep’s plan default, not a lawShelf-stable acid/acidified (sauces, salsa, pickles, dressings): FDA — a Process Authority letter, acidified-foods rules (21 CFR 114), a scheduled process, pH control.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 salad dressing

An acidified-food processor's FDA registration and process filing21 CFR 108.25(c) says:“(c)(1) Registration. A commercial processor, when first engaging in the manufacture, processing, or packing of acidified foods in any State, as defined in section 201(a)(1) of the act, shall, not later than 10 days after first so engaging, register and file with the Food and Drug Administration on Form FDA 2541 (food canning establishment registration) ... (2) Process filing. A commercial processor engaged in the processing of acidified foods shall, not later than 60 days after registration, and before packing any new product, provide the Food and Drug Administration information on the scheduled processes”21 CFR 108.25(c) · Read Oct 8, 2026
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
Who sets an acidified food's scheduled process21 CFR 114.83 says:“The scheduled process shall be established by a qualified person who has expert knowledge acquired through appropriate training and experience in the acidification and processing of acidified foods.”21 CFR 114.83 · 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

Source to check: Acidified foods under a state's own rules

A state’s own rules for acidified foods21 CFR 108.25(i) says:“Wherever the Commissioner finds that any State regulates the commercial processing of acidified foods under effective regulations specifying at least the requirements of part 114 of this chapter, the Commissioner shall issue a notice stating that compliance with such State regulations shall constitute compliance with this section, if the State through its regulatory agency or each processor of acidified foods in the State files with the Food and Drug Administration the registration information and the processing information prescribed in paragraph (c) of this section.”21 CFR 108.25(i) · Read Sep 20, 2026

Where may food made at home be sold in Ohio?

Ohio's Cottage Food Production Operation rules: where it may be soldOhio Administrative Code Chapter 901:3-20 says:“(F) Sell cottage food products outside the state of Ohio.”Ohio Administrative Code Chapter 901:3-20 · Read Sep 25, 2026
Ohio's Cottage Food Production Operation rules: where it may be soldOhio Department of Agriculture, Cottage Food says:“Cottage Food Products may only be sold in Ohio. Cottage Food Products that are properly identified and labeled may be sold directly to the consumer from the home where the products are produced. They may also be sold through grocery stores, registered farm markets, farmers markets, and sold and/or used in preparing food in a restaurant.”Ohio Department of Agriculture, Cottage Food · Read Sep 25, 2026

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

Ohio's Cottage Food Production Operation rules: the home-made labelOhio Department of Agriculture, Cottage Food says:“An ingredient that is or contains protein from a "major food allergen" must have the presence of the allergen declared by common name in the ingredient statement or by placing the word "Contains" followed by the name of each major food allergen present in the food.”Ohio Department of Agriculture, Cottage Food · Read Sep 25, 2026
Ohio's Cottage Food Production Operation rules: the home-made labelOhio Revised Code 3715.023 says:“(5) In the case of a cottage food production operation, the following statement in ten-point type: "This product is home produced."”Ohio Revised Code 3715.023 · Read Sep 25, 2026
Ohio's Cottage Food Production Operation rules: the home-made labelOhio Revised Code 3715.023 says:“(1) The name and address of the business of the cottage food production operation, processor, or beekeeper; (2) The name of the food product; (3) The ingredients of the food product, in descending order of predominance by weight; (4) The net weight and volume of the food product;”Ohio Revised Code 3715.023 · Read Sep 25, 2026

How do I get salad dressing into a store in Ohio?

Ohio's Cottage Food Production Operation rules: what applies beyond the home-kitchen rulesOhio Department of Agriculture, Starting a Food Business says:“All other food products, with some exceptions, will need a food processing license from the Division of Food Safety. Wholesaling under a food processing facility license allows you to sell your products anywhere and to anyone; this includes grocery stores, restaurants and the internet.”Ohio Department of Agriculture, Starting a Food Business · Read Sep 25, 2026

State registration or license in Ohiotypically $50 per year. The smallest facility. This is the smallest kitchen. A larger one pays more. Source: Ohio Department of Agriculture; checked Sep 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 salad dressing 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
For a sauce, 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 salad dressing 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. Get barcodes 13. Draft the label with everything it has to say 14. Set the wholesale and shelf price from the cost 15. Sell it at a market before you scale 16. Get product liability insurance 17. Make the one-page sheet a buyer reads 18. Name your first three stores

Where do I go from here?

How to sell salad dressing to storesEvery step, its reason and its typical cost Selling food made at home in OhioAll of Ohio's lines, what you may make, register and outgrow

Does my sauce or salsa need a scheduled process?5 min read How do I work out my shelf life and best-by date?4 min read How do I find and choose a co-packer?5 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.