Maine Food Business Licenses: Health Inspection Program vs DACF, the $20 Home Food Processor License, Food Sovereignty Towns and Farm Stands

Maine does not issue a general business license, and food businesses are no exception. Whether you need a license depends on what you make, how you sell it, and where you sell it. Most food operations fall under one of two state licensors: the Health Inspection Program (HIP), which sits within the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention under the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Quality Assurance and Regulations division of the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry (DACF). Your town or city can add its own requirements by ordinance.

People searching for “maine cottage food law” usually want to know what they can make at home and sell. In Maine, that answer comes from two places: the DACF Home Food Processor license and the Food Sovereignty Act. This guide explains which licensor covers what, what each license costs, and how the town layer affects you.

Start With the Activity, Not the Entity

Maine has no statewide business license and no general town license. Registering an LLC, a corporation, or an assumed name is a filing, not a license. Licensing is by activity. Municipal officers license named activities by ordinance, and fees vary widely from town to town. State licensors cover food, and state boards under the Department of Professional and Financial Regulation license trades.

Maine has 482 organized municipalities: 23 cities, 430 towns, and 29 plantations. Its 16 counties do not license ordinary businesses, so your town or city clerk is the local contact for anything beyond the state licenses below.

Health Inspection Program: Eating Places, Caterers, and Mobile Units

HIP licenses eating places, caterers, mobile eating places, and lodging under 22 MRSA chapter 562. If you serve prepared food to the public from a restaurant, sell takeout, cater events, or run a food truck, HIP is the licensor you need to contact. HIP revised its fee schedule on February 2, 2026:

License type	HIP fee
Eating place, 0 to 29 seats	$220
Eating place, 30 to 75 seats	$265
Eating place, over 75 seats	$300
Takeout	$220
Limited menu	$205
Catering	$270
Mobile eating place	$270
Temporary, 1 to 4 days	$130
Temporary, 5 to 14 days	$205
Where a municipality runs its own delegated inspections	$100 flat

The $100 flat fee applies where the municipality runs the inspections itself under delegation. HIP lists Portland, Lewiston, and South Portland as delegated municipalities. Statute caps HIP fees at $100 or $300 (22 MRSA 2494). Because eating place fees depend on seat count, count your seats carefully before you apply. Confirm the current amount with HIP before you budget, because the schedule can change.

DACF: Bakeries, Processors, and Home Processors

DACF Quality Assurance and Regulations licenses bakeries, food processors, and home food processors. Two licenses matter most for small producers.

• Home Food Processor license: $20 a year. This license covers shelf-stable foods only. It is the license a home producer uses for products such as jams and dry mixes. Foods that are not shelf-stable do not fit this license, so ask DACF which license, if any, applies before you start production.
• Mobile Vendor license: $20. As of DACF materials in 2026, this is the mobile vendor fee. Confirm with DACF whether it applies to your vehicle and products, since it does not replace the HIP mobile eating place license for prepared food.

Maine Cottage Food Law: The Food Sovereignty Act

The Food Sovereignty Act sits in 7 MRSA chapter 8-F and was widened by PL 2025 c. 309. Under the Act, towns may exempt direct producer-to-consumer sales by ordinance. The exemption is a town choice, so you must check whether your town has adopted one. Key limits apply:

• The exemption is granted by town ordinance, not by the state automatically.
• Meat and poultry are excluded from the exemption.
• Dairy has no volume exemption.
• Fresh-produce farm stands need no license.

A farm stand selling only fresh produce needs no state license under this framework. A stand that also sells processed goods such as jam or baked items falls under the licensing rules above, so confirm the category with DACF. Maine does not have a “Homestead Food Operation” license, so do not rely on that term when you talk to an agency.

Town Victualer Licenses

A town may require its own victualer license by ordinance, and that requirement is separate from the state licenses. Victualer fees and rules vary by municipality, and the state does not publish them. Ask the town clerk three questions: whether the town has a victualer ordinance, whether it has adopted a Food Sovereignty exemption for direct sales, and what the fee and application process are for your product.

Which License Covers Your Operation

Operation	Likely licensor	Starting point
Restaurant with seats	HIP eating place	$220 to $300, by seat count
Takeout only	HIP takeout	$220
Catering	HIP catering	$270
Food truck with prepared food	HIP mobile eating place, plus DACF Mobile Vendor if it applies	$270 (HIP); $20 (DACF, confirm)
Home production of shelf-stable products	DACF Home Food Processor	$20 a year
Farm stand selling fresh produce only	No state license	$0
Direct sales of meat or poultry	Check with DACF and your town	Excluded from the Food Sovereignty exemption

Entity and Assumed Name Filings

If you sell under a name other than your own legal name, you must file an assumed name. The filing location depends on your structure.

• Sole proprietors and general partners file a sworn assumed-name certificate with the municipal clerk where the business is carried on (31 MRSA 1). The state does not publish municipal fees, so confirm the amount with your clerk.
• LLCs and corporations file Form ASUM-5 with the Secretary of State for $125.

An LLC files its Certificate of Formation (Form MLLC-6) for $175. A corporation files Articles of Incorporation (Form MBCA-6) for $145. Maine does not accept formation documents online. The forms are fillable PDFs that you print and mail or deliver with payment. The Secretary of State's pages read on October 28, 2026 state a processing time of 2 to 7 business days, which varies. Expedited service costs $50 for 24-hour handling or $100 for immediate service, subject to availability.

LLCs and corporations also file an annual report (Form MLLC-13 or MBCA-13) for $85 each year. It is due June 1. The first report is due between January 1 and June 1 of the year after formation. Maine has no LLC franchise tax and no separate LLC annual tax, so the $85 report is the only recurring state filing charge for a domestic LLC.

Sales Tax on Food

Maine's general sales tax rate is 5.5%. Prepared food and on-premises liquor are taxed at 8%. Do not apply the 8% rate to every food sale. Confirm with Maine Revenue Services which category your product falls into, and confirm your registration requirements at maine.gov/revenue before you collect tax. The list of taxable services in Maine is closed, and services such as lawn care, towing, handyman work, and junk removal are not on it.

Step by Step

1. List every product you plan to sell and how you will sell it: at home, at a farm stand, at events, by delivery, or online.
2. Sort each product into a licensor. Shelf-stable home products go to DACF. Prepared food served or sold as an eating place, takeout, catering, or from a mobile unit goes to HIP.
3. Call your town clerk about the victualer ordinance, the Food Sovereignty exemption, and assumed-name fees.
4. Register your LLC or corporation, or file your assumed name with the correct office.
5. Confirm the current fee with each agency, then apply.
6. Confirm your sales tax category and registration with Maine Revenue Services.
7. If you formed an LLC or corporation, put the June 1 annual report on your calendar every year.

Where to Get Help

• Business Answers (maine.gov/businessanswers) is a free licensing assistant run by the Department of Economic and Community Development. It identifies the permits and licenses your activity may need.
• Maine Secretary of State, Division of Corporations, UCC and Commissions (maine.gov/sos/corporations-commissions) handles entity filings and the business search at the business search portal.
• Maine Small Business Development Centers (mainesbdc.org) offer business advising for new and growing companies.
• Your town or city clerk is the authority for victualer licenses, assumed-name certificates for sole proprietors and general partners, and local exemptions.

Important Disclaimer

This guide is informational content only. It is not legal or tax advice. Fees, thresholds, and rules change, so verify each figure with the named agency before you apply or budget. For complex situations, such as selling meat or poultry, wholesale distribution, multiple locations, or choosing an entity structure, consult a qualified attorney or CPA licensed in Maine.