This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Permit and tax rules change, and your situation may differ. Always confirm current requirements with the official state agency linked in this guide, and consult a licensed attorney or tax professional for advice about your specific business.Last verified against official state sources: 2026-06-12
No license, permit, registration, or kitchen inspection for qualifying home processed foods made at your primary residence and sold in your physical presence, with you (or someone living in your home) personally handing the food to the buyer.
None for shelf-stable baked goods, candy, or dry mixes. Canned goods require either a DOH-approved food safety course every five years or third-party processing authority verification of each recipe. The unique part: completing the five-year training also UNLOCKS selling TCS foods (fermented foods like kimchi and kombucha, cheesecake, custard items, sauces, frozen produce) under SDCL 34-18-36.1, a training-tier system no other state uses.
Without training: shelf-stable baked goods (including lefse), hard candies, nuts, home-ground flour, dry mixes, dried herbs, and whole produce. With pH or testing conditions plus training: home-canned high-acid goods (jams, salsas, pickles, BBQ sauce). With the training tier: refrigerated fermented foods, kuchen and TCS baked goods like soft pies and cheesecake, sauces and pesto (at 41F or below), and frozen produce.
Low-acid canned foods (canned vegetables, soups, meats, nut butters), fresh-cut produce and sprouts, juices and ciders, take-and-bake raw doughs, prepared meals, and anything under other agencies: meat, jerky, fish, dairy, honey, and eggs.
Direct to the end consumer only, in your physical presence: at home, farmers markets, roadside stands, and temporary venues like craft fairs, with personal hand-delivery completing each sale. No wholesale, no retail or restaurant sales, and no internet sales: DOH treats online sales and shipping as indirect sales requiring a license (advertising online with in-person handoff appears compliant but lacks explicit DOH guidance).
Every package needs: product name, producer name, the production address, mailing address, phone, date made, ingredients, keep-refrigerated directives for TCS items, and the exact statutory disclaimer: 'This product was not produced in a commercial kitchen. It has been home-processed in a kitchen that may also process common food allergens such as tree nuts, peanuts, eggs, soy, wheat, milk, fish, and crustacean shellfish.' Unpackaged whole produce needs no label.
South Dakota taxes groceries at the full rate, so home processed foods are taxable: 4.2 percent state (reverting to 4.5 percent July 1, 2027) plus up to 2 percent municipal. Get a sales tax license, and note anything sold by weight needs an NTEP-certified scale.
The exemption covers state licensing only; markets set their own vendor rules, and some cities like Sioux Falls run their own inspection programs for licensed businesses.
Noncompliance can bring a notice of closure prohibiting further sales, and chapter violations are Class 2 misdemeanors with each day after a closure notice a separate offense.
Selling non-food crafts too? See the South Dakota craft fair permit and sales tax guide.
Yes, under South Dakota Home Processed Foods Law (SDCL 34-18-34 to 34-18-38, expanded by HB 1056 of 2020 and HB 1322 of 2022). No license, permit, registration, or kitchen inspection for qualifying home processed foods made at your primary residence and sold in your physical presence, with you (or someone living in your home) personally handing the food to the buyer.
Without training: shelf-stable baked goods (including lefse), hard candies, nuts, home-ground flour, dry mixes, dried herbs, and whole produce. With pH or testing conditions plus training: home-canned high-acid goods (jams, salsas, pickles, BBQ sauce). With the training tier: refrigerated fermented foods, kuchen and TCS baked goods like soft pies and cheesecake, sauces and pesto (at 41F or below), and frozen produce. Low-acid canned foods (canned vegetables, soups, meats, nut butters), fresh-cut produce and sprouts, juices and ciders, take-and-bake raw doughs, prepared meals, and anything under other agencies: meat, jerky, fish, dairy, honey, and eggs.
No. South Dakota places no annual cap on cottage food sales.
Direct to the end consumer only, in your physical presence: at home, farmers markets, roadside stands, and temporary venues like craft fairs, with personal hand-delivery completing each sale. No wholesale, no retail or restaurant sales, and no internet sales: DOH treats online sales and shipping as indirect sales requiring a license (advertising online with in-person handoff appears compliant but lacks explicit DOH guidance).
Every package needs: product name, producer name, the production address, mailing address, phone, date made, ingredients, keep-refrigerated directives for TCS items, and the exact statutory disclaimer: 'This product was not produced in a commercial kitchen. It has been home-processed in a kitchen that may also process common food allergens such as tree nuts, peanuts, eggs, soy, wheat, milk, fish, and crustacean shellfish.' Unpackaged whole produce needs no label.
South Dakota taxes groceries at the full rate, so home processed foods are taxable: 4.2 percent state (reverting to 4.5 percent July 1, 2027) plus up to 2 percent municipal. Get a sales tax license, and note anything sold by weight needs an NTEP-certified scale.
Browse upcoming craft fairs and markets in South Dakota with booth fees and application deadlines, and use the booth ROI calculator to plan a profitable season.
Last verified: 2026-06-12. Spotted something out of date? Let us know.