Chapel Hill residents may sell homemade foods under the NC Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services (NCDA&CS) Home Processor program — NC has no formal cottage food law, but the Home Processor inspection (free, ~8-12 week processing, no sales cap) authorizes baked goods, jams, jellies, candies, dried foods, honey, and nut butters. Selling from home in Chapel Hill also requires a LUMO zoning compliance permit for the home occupation, and on-premises retail is restricted to products produced by the home occupation (i.e., your own baked goods) — most operators sell via farmers markets, online, and delivery.
North Carolina is unique among U.S. states — it has no formal cottage food law. Instead, the NC Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Food & Drug Protection Division operates the voluntary Home Processor program (NC Administrative Code 02 NCAC 09B .0301-.0303). To sell homemade non-potentially-hazardous foods commercially in NC, a producer must submit the Application for Home Processor Inspection to NCDA&CS, pass a free home kitchen inspection (typical processing time 8-12 weeks), and follow labeling and recordkeeping rules. There is no sales cap — NC is one of the few states with truly unlimited home-processor revenue potential. Allowed products: baked goods (breads, cookies, cakes, pies — but not cream pies, custard pies, or cheesecakes), candies, fudge, chocolates, jams, jellies, preserves, fruit butters, dried fruits, dried vegetables, dried herbs, granola, popcorn, roasted nuts, nut butters, honey, and similar non-potentially-hazardous shelf-stable items. Prohibited: meats, seafood, dairy, eggs, fermented foods, low-acid canned foods, beverages, and any temperature-controlled-for-safety products. Labels must include the producer's name and address, product name, ingredients with major allergens, net weight, and the statement 'Made in a Home Kitchen.' Sales venues: direct-to-consumer in person (home, farmers market, roadside stand, festival, delivery) plus online sales within North Carolina. On the local Chapel Hill side, the home-based food sale requires a LUMO zoning compliance permit for the home occupation, and on-premises retail is limited to 'products produced by the home occupation' — meaning your homemade goods are permitted, but reselling other producers' goods is not. Customer vehicle traffic is capped at 3 non-residential vehicles at any one time. Many Chapel Hill operators sell through the Carrboro Farmers' Market, Chapel Hill Farmers' Market, university pop-ups, online with NC-wide delivery, and CSA-style direct delivery, which avoids the 3-vehicle on-site cap. Wholesale to grocery stores and out-of-state interstate commerce require a separate commercial-kitchen license.
Selling unapproved categories (meats, dairy, fish) or operating without NCDA&CS home processor approval is enforced by the NC Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services with stop-sale orders, embargo of product, and civil penalties under NCGS § 106-125. Local Chapel Hill zoning violations (operating retail food sales without a home occupation permit, or exceeding the 3-vehicle parking cap) trigger Chapel Hill Planning Department enforcement under NCGS § 160D-404 and § 160D-1119.
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