37.110.503    APPROVED COTTAGE FOOD PRODUCTS

(1) Only those products approved by the department and listed in the registration may be produced by a cottage food operation. A cottage food operation is allowed to produce the following food items as long as they are a non-potentially hazardous food:

(a) products that may be cooked in an oven including:

(i) loaf breads, rolls, biscuits, quick breads, and muffins;

(ii) cakes including celebration cakes such as birthday, anniversary, and wedding cakes;

(iii) pastries and scones;

(iv) cookies and bars;

(v) crackers;

(vi) cereals, trail mixes, and granola;

(vii) pies, except that custard style pies, pies with fresh fruit that is unbaked, or pies that require refrigeration after baking are not approved;

(viii) nuts and nut mixes; and

(ix) snack mixes;

(b) standardized jams, jellies, preserves, and fruit butters as identified under 21 CFR, Part 150, subject to the following:

(i) fresh picked or harvested fruits from noncommercial sources are allowed for use;

(ii) fresh fruits may be frozen in a household freezer and used at a later time;

(iii) all recipes must have a cook step included such as a hot fill or hot water bath, and freezer or refrigerator-style products are not approved;

(iv) all jams, jellies, preserves and fruit butters must be sealed in containers that are sterilized prior to filling; and

(v) paraffin wax is not allowed for sealing;

(c) repackaged, commercially dried fruit or vegetables from an approved source as described in ARM 37.110.510(2), or fresh fruits that:

(i) have a natural pH below 4.6, specifically: apples, apricots, grapefruit, lemons, limes, mangos, nectarines, oranges, peaches, plums, pomegranates, tangerines, blackberries, blueberries, cherries, cranberries, currants, gooseberries, grapes, raspberries, strawberries, and huckleberries; and

(ii) are dried by cottage food operators with the following methods:

(A) during the fruit drying process the fruit must reach 160^o Fahrenheit within an hour of processing the fruit;

(B) the fruit must then maintain 140^o Fahrenheit for the remainder of the drying process;

(C) dried fruit may not be packaged using any method of reduced oxygen packaging, including vacuum packaging.

(d) dry herb combining and packaging, and seasoning and mixture combining; examples of which are dry bean soup mixes, dry teas and coffees, and spice seasonings;

(e) popcorn, popcorn balls, cotton candy;

(f) fudge, candies, and confections that require a cook step;

(g) molded chocolate using commercial chocolate melts; and

(h) honey.

(2) The following provisions apply to the production of cottage food products:

(a) fresh picked or harvested fruits from noncommercial sources are allowed in baked good products;

(b) fresh fruits can be frozen and used at a later time as long as there is a cook step in the recipe; and

(c) all frostings or glazes must have a cook step or be made with ingredients (such as a large amount of sugar) that when combined are stable at room temperature.

(3) Other products may be approved on a case-by-case basis by the department in consultation with the local health department of the county in which the cottage food operator is registered.

History: 50-50-102, 50-50-103, MCA; IMP, 50-50-102, 50-50-116, 50-50-117, MCA; NEW, 2015 MAR p. 1494, Eff. 9/25/15.