Tennessee Food Freedom Act

Effective July 1, 2025, the Tennessee legislature amended the Tennessee Food Freedom Act (T.C.A. § 53-1-118) to allow for the production and sale of certain time/temperature controlled food items.

The Tennessee Department of Agriculture’s (TDA) Role and Limitations

• This law was written and amended by the legislature. The Tennessee Food Freedom Act (TFFA) is also commonly referred to as the Tennessee Cottage Food Law or the Cottage Food Industry Act.
• Generally speaking, foods produced in a home-based kitchen in accordance with TFFA are exempt from all licensing, permitting, inspecting, packaging, and labeling laws of this state, except when the Department of Health is investigating a reported foodborne illness.
• This law is administered by TDA only to the extent the law carves out an exception to the regulatory requirements under the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. We therefore do not issue permits, licenses, or conduct inspections for products made under this law.
• We are happy to discuss food safety information, but TDA cannot render advice to firms about their specific product or specific business. Those questions are best answered by a firm’s private legal counsel.
• If TDA were to find homemade food products in the marketplace that did not fall within the law’s exemptions, then TDA may take enforcement action in accordance with its authority under T.C.A. § 53-1-201 et seq.  

We encourage citizens to read the original law and the law as amended and contact a legal professional with questions about what is or isn’t allowed under the TFFA.