Mont. Admin. R. 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 160o Fahrenheit
within an hour of processing the fruit;
(B) the fruit must then maintain
140o 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
authority of the county in which the cottage food operator is
registered.
Notes
AUTH: 50-50-102, 50-50-103, MCA; IMP: 50-50-102, 50-50-116, 50-50-117, MCA
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