Home and Hearth BakerHomemade food items (Homemade Food Act)
NMSA 1978 25-12-1 to 25-12-5 (Homemade Food Act); New Mexico Food Act exemption, 25-2-21 NMSA 1978; Food Service Sanitation Act exemption (HB 177 section 6) · HB 177 (2021), Laws 2021, ch. 98, signed 2021-04-06
Yearly sales limit
No state limit
No sales limit in the Act (25-12-1 to 25-12-5).
No sales limit in the Act (25-12-1 to 25-12-5).
Permit or registration
Not required by the state
Food safety training
Yes
A food handler certification course approved by NMED, completed before producing (25-12-3(A)(3); NMED FAQ: get a Food Handler Card from an approved program). NMSU offers one online. The Act does not say how long the card lasts; NMSU guide E-510C says its card is valid for three years, and 7.6.2.8 NMAC sets three years for food establishment workers (see open questions).
A food handler certification course approved by NMED, completed before producing (25-12-3(A)(3); NMED FAQ: get a Food Handler Card from an approved program). NMSU offers one online. The Act does not say how long the card lasts; NMSU guide E-510C says its card is valid for three years, and 7.6.2.8 NMAC sets three years for food establishment workers (see open questions).
Where you make it
The processor's private farm, ranch or residence, where the food may also be packaged (25-12-2). The seller must keep a sanitary kitchen, practice good hygiene, protect the kitchen from rodents and pests, and keep pets and children out of the kitchen while producing food (25-12-3(A)(4)). NMED: use only pest control products approved for food areas and store food in a sanitary way.
Selling in person
Allowed: directly to consumers in New Mexico, including at farmers' markets, at festivals, at roadside stands, and at the seller's home for pick-up (25-12-3(A)(2)). Private farmers' markets and other private venues do not have to allow homemade foods (25-12-4(E)).
Phone and online orders
Allowed: 'on the internet' (25-12-3(A)(2)); the label information must be on the webpage where the item is offered (25-12-3(B)(4)). Telephone and custom orders need no label, but the seller must tell the buyer the food is made at a private residence that is exempt from state licensing and inspection and may contain allergens (25-12-3(B)(5)).
Delivery and shipping
Allowed: 'at the seller's home for pick-up or delivery' (25-12-3(A)(2)); food must be transported in a sanitary way and protected from pets, children and other hazards (25-12-3(A)(5))
Selling out of state
No
Stores and wholesale
Not allowed: sales must be directly to consumers (25-12-3(A)(2)). NMED: no sales to restaurants, wholesalers or distributors; grocery stores may not buy or resell prepackaged homemade foods; these need an NMED commercial manufactured food permit.
Examples you can sell
Only foods or non-alcoholic beverages that do not require time and temperature control for safety (not-time-and-temperature-control food items) (25-12-2, 25-12-3(A)(1))
- Baked goods that are not cream-filled and do not need refrigeration, such as cakes, cookies, yeast breads, pies and pastries (NMED FAQ)
- Candy
- Popcorn
- Chocolate-covered pretzels
- Dehydrated fruits
- Granola and dry mixes
- Roasted coffee
- Whole fruits and vegetables
- Standard high-sugar fruit jams and jellies (NMED FAQ)
Not allowed
- Foods that need time and temperature control for safety (TCS foods) (25-12-3(A)(1)); NMED says these must be made in an NMED-permitted commercial kitchen
- Alcoholic beverages and foods that contain alcohol (25-12-2: non-alcoholic beverages only; NMED FAQ)
- Foods containing CBD, hemp or hemp extract (NMED FAQ: need a commercial hemp manufacturing permit)
- Meat and meat products, including jerky; fish and fish products, including smoked fish (NMED FAQ)
- Pies or cakes that need refrigeration, such as banana cream, pumpkin, lemon meringue or custard pies, cheesecake, and cakes with cream cheese or other refrigerated frosting or glaze (NMED FAQ)
- Vegetable jams and jellies, such as hot pepper jelly (NMED FAQ)
- Canned fruits or vegetables, and canned pickled products such as pickles, corn relish and sauerkraut (NMED FAQ)
- Acidified foods; salsa; salad dressings; garlic-in-oil mixtures; hummus (NMED FAQ)
- Milk and dairy products, including cheese and yogurt (NMED FAQ)
- Cut fruits and vegetables; caramel apples; sprouts; foods containing fresh vegetables, fruits or cheeses (NMED FAQ)
The statement your labels must carry
This product is home produced and is exempt from state licensing and inspection. This product may contain allergens.