Texas Administrative Code › Title 25 - HEALTH SERVICES › Part 1 - DEPARTMENT OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES › Chapter 229 - FOOD AND DRUG › Subchapter EE - COTTAGE FOOD PRODUCTION OPERATIONS › Section 229.661 - Cottage Food Production Operations

Current through Reg. 49, No. 28; July 12, 2024
(a)
				  Purpose. The purpose of this section is to implement Texas Health and Safety
				  Code, Chapter 437, related to cottage food production operations, which
				  requires the department to adopt rules for labeling and production of foods by
				  cottage food production operations.
(b) Definitions. The following words and
				  terms, when used in this subchapter, have the following meanings, unless the
				  context clearly indicates otherwise.
(1)
				  Acidified canned goods--Food with a finished equilibrium pH value of 4.6 or
				  less that is thermally processed before being placed in an airtight
				  container.
(2) Baked good--A food
				  item prepared by baking the item in an oven, which includes cookies, cakes,
				  breads, Danishes, donuts, pastries, pies, and other items that are prepared by
				  baking.
(3) Cottage food production
				  operation (operator)--An individual, operating out of the individual's home,
				  who:
(A) produces at the individual's home:
(i) a baked good that is not a time and
				  temperature control for safety food (TCS food), as defined in paragraph (13) of
				  this subsection;
(ii)
				  candy;
(iii) coated and uncoated
				  nuts;
(iv) unroasted nut
				  butters;
(v) fruit
				  butters;
(vi) a canned jam or
				  jelly;
(vii) a fruit pie;
(viii) dehydrated fruit or vegetables,
				  including dried beans;
(ix) popcorn
				  and popcorn snacks;
(x) cereal,
				  including granola;
(xi) dry
				  mix;
(xii) vinegar;
(xiii) pickled fruit or vegetables, including
				  beets and carrots, that are preserved in vinegar, brine, or a similar solution
				  at an equilibrium pH value of 4.6 or less;
(xiv) mustard;
(xv) roasted coffee or dry tea;
(xvi) a dried herb or dried-herb
				  mix;
(xvii) plant-based acidified
				  canned goods;
(xviii) fermented
				  vegetable products, including products that are refrigerated to preserve
				  quality;
(xix) frozen raw and uncut
				  fruit or vegetables; or
(xx) any
				  other food that is not a TCS food, as defined in paragraph (13) of this
				  subsection.
(B) has an
				  annual gross income of $50,000 or less from the sale of food described by
				  subparagraph (A) of this paragraph;
(C) sells foods produced under subparagraph
				  (A) of this paragraph only directly to consumers; and
(D) delivers products to the consumer at the
				  point of sale or another location designated by the consumer.
(4) Department--The Texas
				  Department of State Health Services.
(5) Executive Commissioner--The Executive
				  Commissioner of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission.
(6) Farm stand--A premises owned and operated
				  by a producer of agricultural food products at which the producer or other
				  persons may offer for sale produce or foods described in paragraph (3) of this
				  subsection.
(7) Farmers' market--A
				  designated location used for a recurring event at which a majority of the
				  vendors are farmers or other food producers who sell food directly to
				  consumers. A farmers' market must include at least two vendors who meet the
				  definition of "farmer" defined at §
											229.702(2)
				  of this title (relating to Definitions) and may include vendors who meet the
				  definition of "food producer" as defined at §
											229.702(6)
				  of this title. In addition, a farmers' market may include vendors who are not
				  "farmers" or "food producers," provided that "farmers" and "food producers"
				  constitute the majority of vendors who participate in the market throughout the
				  year.
(8) Fermented vegetable
				  product--A low-acid vegetable food product subjected to the action of certain
				  microorganisms that produce acid during their growth and reduce the pH value of
				  the food to 4.6 or less.
(9) Food
				  establishment--
(A) Food establishment is an
				  operation that:
(i) stores, prepares,
				  packages, serves, or vends food directly to the consumer, or otherwise provides
				  food for human consumption, such as a restaurant, retail food store, satellite
				  or catered feeding location, catering operation if the operation provides food
				  directly to a consumer or to a conveyance used to transport people, market,
				  vending machine location, self-service food market, conveyance used to
				  transport people, institution, or food bank; and
(ii) relinquishes possession of food to a
				  consumer directly, or indirectly through a delivery service, such as home
				  delivery of grocery orders or restaurant takeout orders, or delivery service
				  that is provided by common carriers.
(B) Food establishment includes:
(i) an element of the operation, such as a
				  transportation vehicle or a central preparation facility that supplies a
				  vending location or satellite feeding location, unless the vending or feeding
				  location is permitted by the regulatory authority; and
(ii) an operation that is conducted in a
				  mobile, stationary, temporary, or permanent facility or location and where
				  consumption is on or off the premises, regardless of whether there is a charge
				  for the food.
(C) Food
				  establishment does not include:
(i) an
				  establishment that offers only prepackaged foods that are not TCS
				  foods;
(ii) a produce stand that
				  only offers whole, uncut fresh fruit and vegetables;
(iii) a food processing plant, including one
				  that is located on the premises of a food establishment;
(iv) a cottage food production operation or
				  home kitchen preparing non-TCS food for service at a religious or charitable
				  function;
(v) a bed and breakfast
				  limited as defined in §
													228.223 of this
				  title (relating to Bed and Breakfast); or
(vi) a private home that receives catered or
				  home-delivered food.
(10) Herbs--The leafy green parts of a plant
				  (either fresh or dried) used for culinary purposes and not for medicinal
				  uses.
(11) Home--A primary
				  residence that contains a kitchen and appliances designed for common
				  residential usage.
(12) Process
				  authority--A person who has expert knowledge acquired through appropriate
				  training and experience in the pickling, fermenting, or acidification and
				  processing of pickled, fermented, or acidified foods.
(13) Time and temperature control for safety
				  food (TCS food)--A food that requires time and temperature control for safety
				  to limit pathogen growth or toxin production. The term includes a food that
				  must be held under proper temperature controls, such as refrigeration, to
				  prevent the growth of bacteria that may cause human illness. A TCS food may
				  include a food that contains protein and moisture and is neutral or slightly
				  acidic, such as meat, poultry, fish, and shellfish products, pasteurized and
				  unpasteurized milk and dairy products, raw seed sprouts, baked goods that
				  require refrigeration, including cream or custard pies or cakes, and ice
				  products. The term does not include a food that uses TCS food as ingredients if
				  the final food product does not require time or temperature control for safety
				  to limit pathogen growth or toxin production.