Sell Homemade Dairy in Tennessee: Cheese, Butter, and Yogurt Rules

What HB 130 Changed for Home Dairy Producers

Before July 1, 2025, selling homemade dairy from a Tennessee home kitchen was flatly illegal under the cottage food framework. The 2025 amendment (HB 130, Public Chapter 431) changed that by adding pasteurized dairy products to the list of TCS foods you can produce and sell from a private residence.

The expansion covers: butter, yogurt, kefir, and hard cheeses — all made from pasteurized milk. These products are classified as TCS (Time/Temperature Control for Safety), which means strict rules on how you sell them.

The One Non-Negotiable: No Raw Milk

Tennessee's Food Freedom Act draws an absolute line at unpasteurized dairy. You cannot use raw milk in any product sold from a home kitchen — no raw milk cheeses, no raw milk yogurt, no raw milk anything. Every dairy product must start with commercially pasteurized milk.

This isn't a technicality. Raw milk is on the TFFA's prohibited ingredients list alongside red meat, fish, shellfish, and alcohol above 0.5% ABV. Using it voids your exemption entirely and potentially triggers Tennessee Department of Agriculture enforcement.

How You Can Sell: In-Person Only

Because pasteurized dairy is TCS, your sales channels are limited to direct, face-to-face transactions with the end consumer. That means:

• Allowed: Selling at farmers markets, from your home, at roadside stands located on the property where the food was prepared
• Allowed: Accepting orders by phone or online, as long as you hand off the product in person
• Not allowed: Shipping via USPS, FedEx, or UPS
• Not allowed: Selling wholesale to grocery stores, co-ops, or boutiques
• Not allowed: Selling to restaurants for use in their menu items

You or an immediate agent (family member, employee) must physically hand the product to the buyer. Third-party delivery services and gig-economy couriers are not covered under the TFFA.

Temperature Control Requirements

Dairy products must stay at or below 41°F from the moment they leave your refrigerator until the buyer takes possession. At a farmers market, that means:

• Insulated coolers packed with ice or gel packs, or a powered refrigeration unit
• A food-grade thermometer visible to verify internal cooler temperature
• Any product that sits in the danger zone (41°F to 135°F) for more than two hours gets discarded — no exceptions

For hard cheeses with lower water activity, the temperature requirement still applies because the TCS classification is based on the product category under state law, not the specific moisture content of your individual cheese.

Cheesecakes and Cream-Filled Pastries

Cheesecakes fall under the TCS dairy category, not the baked goods category. A shelf-stable cookie or fruit pie is non-TCS and can be sold through any channel including retail and shipping. A cheesecake, custard pie, or cream-filled pastry requires temperature control and is restricted to in-person direct sales only.

This distinction catches bakers off guard. If you make both cookies (non-TCS) and cheesecakes (TCS), each product line follows different sales channel rules. Your cookies can go on a store shelf; your cheesecakes can only leave your kitchen through a direct handoff.

Labeling Dairy Products

The standard TFFA label information applies: producer name and physical home address, phone number, product name, complete ingredient list in descending order by weight, and the statutory disclaimer. Net weight (imperial and metric) and allergen disclosures are recommended additions; TCS products also require the production date.

For dairy products, the production date is especially important because it establishes the baseline for shelf-life tracking. Consider adding a "best by" date based on the specific product — hard cheese lasts longer than yogurt, and your buyers will appreciate the guidance.

When Dairy Pushes You Into Commercial Licensing

Three scenarios push a home dairy operation past the TFFA exemption:

1. You want to sell to retail stores or restaurants. TCS dairy products cannot be distributed wholesale — that requires a TDA-licensed commercial kitchen.
2. You want to ship dairy products. Any shipping of TCS foods is prohibited under the TFFA.
3. You want to use raw milk. Raw milk is prohibited under the TFFA and is outside the home-kitchen exemption regardless of your sales volume.

The transition to a commercial dairy operation requires a Food Manufacturing License from the TDA, including plan review, facility blueprints, and risk-based licensing fees of $50-$500 for facilities up to 10,000 square feet and $100-$750 for larger facilities.

Getting Started

Tennessee's dairy allowance is narrow but real — pasteurized products, in-person sales, proper cold chain. If you're planning to add dairy to your home food business, the Tennessee Cottage Food & Home Food Business Guide includes the full product classification workflow and temperature tracking logs designed specifically for TCS producers.

See more Tennessee guides →