Pickling, Canning, and Fermenting
Types of foods allowed
SB 541, passed in 2025, allows the direct sale of all foods except:
- meat, meat products, poultry, or poultry products (this doesn’t mean eggs, it means the carcass of a chicken);
- seafood, including seafood products, fish, fish products, shellfish, and shellfish products;
- ice or ice products, including shaved ice, ice cream, frozen custard, popsicles, and gelato;
- low-acid canned goods;
- products containing cannabidiol or tetrahydrocannabinol; or
- raw milk and raw milk products
As this relates to canned, pickled, and fermented foods, the rules still remain:
You may sell:
- acidified canned foods with a finished equilibrium pH value of 4.6 or less that are thermally processed before being placed in an airtight container; or
- Pickled foods that are not excluded, including beets and carrots, that are preserved in vinegar, brine, or a similar solution at an equilibrium pH value of 4.6 or less. DSHS has ruled that pickled eggs are likely allowed if you can be assured that the pH is 4.6 or less all the way through the center of the yolk; or
- Fermented products with a pH of 4.6 or less, including products that are refrigerated to preserve quality. (Sauerkraut and kimchi are allowed! Kombucha and kefir are also allowed as of September 1, 2025.) A fermented food that has been refrigerated to stop or slow down the fermentation process is not a TCS food, and is eligible to be sold at wholesale.
Recipes
If you are selling any of the above foods under the cottage food law, you must comply with the following:
- Use a recipe that is from a source approved by Texas DSHS, or
- Use a recipe that has been tested by an appropriately certified laboratory that confirmed the finished fruit or vegetable, product, or good has an equilibrium pH value of 4.6 or less, or
- Use a recipe that is approved by a qualified process authority, or
- If you do not use a recipe described above, you must test each batch of the recipe with a calibrated pH meter to confirm the finished fruit or vegetable, product, or good has an equilibrium pH value of 4.6 or less.
Calibrated digital pH meters are widely available and inexpensive on Amazon.com.
Labeling and Record Keeping
For each batch of pickled food, fermented food, or acidified canned food, a cottage food producer must:
1. Label the batch with a unique number; and
2. For a period of at least 12 months, keep a record that includes:
- the batch number;
- the recipe used by the producer;
- the source of the recipe or testing results, as applicable; and
- the date the batch was prepared
Cucumber Pickle Exception
If you’re selling cucumber pickles, which were allowed without these requirements from 2013-2019, the recipe testing and record-keeping rules do not apply. Crazy! They must still be labeled per the cottage food labeling requirements.
Jams and Jellies
Naturally acidic jams and jellies (made from high-acid fruits such as strawberries, raspberries or blackberries) have been allowed as cottage foods since 2011. Jams and jellies that do not need to be acidified to reach the 4.6 pH threshold are not subject to recipe testing, record-keeping, or additional labeling requirements.
