Selling dried sourdough starter in Texas
What Texas official sources actually say about selling dried sourdough starter under cottage food law — dry mix / non-tcs list supports — confirm. Last verified 2026-10-15.
If you keep a jar going in Texas, selling dried sourdough starter is a different cottage-food question than selling bread. The product is flour and water that you fermented, then dried. Official pages almost never use the words “dried starter.” This post only repeats what the current statute, agency page, or extension guide actually says — and where that source is silent.
Dried starter is not automatically a baked good
A loaf is baked. Dried starter is a dry culture. Some states publish a closed allowed-foods list (baked goods, jams, dried herbs). Some allow non-TCS / non-potentially-hazardous foods as a class. A few name baking mixes, dry mixtures, or — in Kansas — dehydrated sourdough starter. We do not stretch a baked-goods line into a dry-culture line unless a source supports that read.
The quick facts
- Law
- Texas Health and Safety Code, Chapter 437 – Regulation of Certain Foods, Subchapter A – Cottage Food Production Operations
- Statute
- Tex. Health & Safety §437.001 et seq.
- Agency
- Texas Department of State Health Services
- Dried-starter read
- Dry mix / non-TCS list supports — confirm
- Annual sales cap
- $150,000 annual gross income (SB 541, eff. Sept. 1, 2025; CPI-adjusted)
- Registration / permit
- Registration required (statute row): No.
- Kitchen inspection
- Kitchen inspection (statute row): No.
- Food-handler training
- Food-handler training (statute row): No.
- Last verified
- 2026-10-15
Where in-state sales usually go
Sales cap, registration, allowed foods, and every county — free on Crosodo.
From the Crosodo statute row: Sales must be made directly to consumers or to a 'cottage food vendor' (a new category created by SB 541 in 2025 – a person with a contractual relationship who sells on behalf of the cottage food operation to consumers in-state). Cottage food products may not be sold as ingredients to a food service establishment. No retail grocery store or wholesale sales permitted under the pre-2025 framework; SB 541 (2025) adds the cottage food vendor intermediary option. Products must be delivered to consumer or vendor at point of sale or consumer-designated location.
County zoning, market manager rules, and home-occupation permits still apply on top of the state food rule. Start with the Texas state guide and your county page.
Labeling
Labels must include: the words 'MADE IN A HOME KITCHEN'; name of the product; list of ingredients and sub-ingredients in descending order of predominance by weight; net weight or volume; name, address, and phone number of the cottage food production operation; and any allergen information required by federal law. Labels may not make any claim about health benefits or contain any false or misleading information.
Walk the fields in the Texas cottage food labeling guide. Do not copy another state's disclaimer.
Interstate / shipping across state lines
Cottage-food / homemade-food exemptions are in-state instruments. They do not, by themselves, authorize interstate commerce. Confirm manufactured-food licensing with the state agency and FDA facility registration for your facts. We do not invent a permit name or a fee.
Cottage-food exemptions are state instruments. They do not replace federal rules that apply when food enters interstate commerce. If you want to ship out of state, ask the state manufactured-food program and confirm FDA facility registration for your situation. We do not invent a license name or a fee here.
Official sources
Every number and product claim on this page is tied to a source opened on 2026-10-15, plus the Crosodo statute row and — where we have them — the regulations library notes for Maryland, Colorado, and Virginia.
- Texas DSHS cottage food production — last verified 2026-10-15
- Tex. Health & Safety §437.001 et seq.
- Texas Department of State Health Services
- Health & Safety Code ch. 437
- Texas extension
- Texas cottage food state guide
- Selling cottage food in Texas
- Texas labeling guide
- All 50 states — dried starter hub
Texas dried starter FAQ
Can I sell dried sourdough starter in Texas?
SB 541 (effective September 1, 2025) redefined a cottage food production operation as producing any food other than a short excluded list (meat, seafood, ice/frozen desserts, low-acid canned goods, CBD/THC, raw milk). A dried culture is not on the exclusion list. TCS cottage foods must register with DSHS; a fully dried starter is typically non-TCS — still confirm with DSHS. Annual gross income ceiling is $150,000, CPI-adjusted. Food-handler training is still required.
What is the Texas cottage-food sales cap?
$150,000 annual gross income (SB 541, eff. Sept. 1, 2025; CPI-adjusted)
Can I ship dried sourdough starter out of Texas under cottage food law?
Cottage-food / homemade-food exemptions are in-state instruments. They do not, by themselves, authorize interstate commerce. Confirm manufactured-food licensing with the state agency and FDA facility registration for your facts. We do not invent a permit name or a fee.
Crosodo Journal entries are recipe, craft, and cottage-food notes for home bakers. Recipes assume an active starter and basic equipment. Cottage food sales are governed by your state's law — start with the free state directory, check a product with Can I sell this?, or grab a label template. Not legal advice.
