How to label cottage food in Virginia (2026 guide)

If you sell baked goods from your home in Virginia, every item you sell has to be labeled correctly. Virginia's cottage food law — Va. Code §3.2-5130 — is a solid, workable law, but the labeling rules are specific, and getting them wrong means you lose the protection the law gives you.

This guide walks through exactly what goes on a Virginia cottage food label, gives you a copy-paste template, and covers the edge cases that trip people up. It mirrors our most popular label walkthrough — how to label cottage food in Texas — adapted to Virginia's rules.

Not legal advice. We're a small apparel brand that cares about home bakers. For anything serious, read the law directly or call Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

What every label must include

Per Virginia's cottage food labeling rules, every product label must include:

1. Your business (operation) name and address.
2. The production date (date the food was made).
3. The state's required disclaimer statement, verbatim (exact wording below).

What Virginia law actually says

Label must be affixed to the principal display panel (or a sign for small packages) and must include: name of the person preparing the food, physical address, telephone number, date the food product was processed, and the all-caps statement 'NOT FOR RESALE — PROCESSED AND PREPARED WITHOUT STATE INSPECTION.' The all-caps requirement is distinctive among US cottage food laws.

The 9 federal major allergens you must disclose

• Milk
• Eggs
• Fish
• Shellfish
• Tree nuts
• Peanuts
• Wheat
• Soy
• Sesame (added federally in 2023 — frequently missed)

You don't have to list every ingredient in most states, but you must explicitly name any of these allergens that are present. “May contain” hedging isn't a substitute — if it's in there, name it. Sesame became the 9th federal major allergen in 2023 and is the one most older label templates miss.

The required disclaimer

Virginia requires this statement, word for word, on the label or a point-of-sale sign:

NOT FOR RESALE — PROCESSED AND PREPARED WITHOUT STATE INSPECTION.

Copy-paste label template

Print it on a sticker, put it on the bag. Adjust the ingredient and allergen lines for each product.

The extra rules worth knowing

All-caps disclaimer wording

Virginia is one of the states that specifies the disclaimer in ALL CAPS. Match the capitalization exactly — it's a distinctive requirement and easy to get dinged on.

Common labeling mistakes to avoid

1. Forgetting sesame as a major allergen (added federally in 2023 — many older templates list only 8).
2. Using “may contain” when the product actually contains the allergen. Name it if it's present.
3. Leaving off the required disclaimer because you printed small business-card-style labels. The disclaimer is non-negotiable.
4. Handing out unlabeled samples. If you're giving a free taste at a market, the rules still apply.
5. Using a P.O. Box where Virginia requires a physical address (or use your state-issued ID number instead where allowed).

Quick checklist before you print

• Product common name (not just a brand name)
• Business name on label
• Address or state ID number on label
• All 9 major allergens disclosed if present (including sesame)
• Required disclaimer statement, verbatim
• Production date included where required
• Packaging prevents contamination

Official sources

• Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
• Statute: Va. Code §3.2-5130
• State extension guidance
• Forrager — Virginia
• Crosodo Virginia state guide

For the full breakdown of Virginia's rules — sales cap, registration, county zoning — see the Crosodo Virginia state guide. If your Virginia county is missing from our directory, tell us and we'll add it next.