Hello everyone, as you know I came from the following states, Wyoming and North Dakota where the Cottage Food laws are very simple and easy to follow. That is NOT the case in New Mexico. I have read some articles that tell me that NM's cottage food laws are the most complicated and cumbersome in the country. I have to agree with that.
Here is what it boils down to. I could illegally sell my goodies and risk it like I would image most people do here. However, I will not do that. The process for getting a Cottage Food license in NM is akin to getting a commercial license only I'm extremely limited in what I can sell and where I can sell it. It's almost not worth pursuing.
Stay tuned because I am working on alternatives such as renting a commercial kitchen or even going through with the Cottage Food license. But, until that happens, I can not sell anything. Also, under a Cottage Food license here, I cannot take on-line orders so, the on-line purchase feature on this website will not be activated. However, traditionally, I have taken cash and Venmo on pick up so that's how I would continue if I went the Cottage Food license route.
This is hugely disappointing. This type of extremely complicated regulation stifles small business start up and growth; and completely defeats the purpose of Cottage Food regulations. In WY and ND all I had to do was follow the rules on what types of food I could sell and put a warning label on everything that my goodies were made in a home kitchen not licensed or inspected by the state. That's NOT the case in NM. Here you have to apply for a license, follow really cumbersome labeling rules, have an inspection, etc.
I have many years of experience managing commercial kitchens and I know the process to get a commercial kitchen licensed is time consuming and costly. Unfortunately, in NM, the process to get a Cottage Food license is almost as time consuming and costly.
As always, check back here and also on my MeWe page for updates on my licensing process. I'm sorry this is taking longer than I anticipated for those of you who are waiting for me to start selling. Please be patient, I am working on solutions.
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