Illinois Department of Agriculture
Verified September 7, 2026. Figures quoted from the statute, rule, fee page or form.
Illinois wants both instruments and says so plainly to home makers. 505 ILCS 30/4(a) stops anyone who manufactures feed in the state, or whose name appears on the label, from distributing a commercial feed without a license; the fee is $30 for each year or any portion thereof, and the license expires December 31. Each commercial feed is then registered before it is distributed, and for pet food in containers of 10 lbs or less the department collects $90.00 per product in place of a tonnage fee. The department publishes a guide for the cottage industry that says a person making homemade pet food for distribution must comply with the same requirements. The cottage food operation route is a different regime entirely: it covers food or drink for people and does nothing for a pet treat business.
| Item | What Illinois says | Cite |
|---|---|---|
| Firm instrument | YesIllinois Commercial Feed License, a firm license under 505 ILCS 30/4(a), applied for on form IL406-0039 | IDOA Feed Frequently Asked Questions, Q1 'Who is required to obtain an Illinois Commercial Feed License?' |
| Firm fee | Yes$30 per firm license per year or any portion thereof (calendar year, all firm licenses expire December 31) | 505 ILCS 30/4(a) (Product Registration and Firm License) |
| Firm fee period | YesAnnual, calendar year; all firm licenses expire December 31 | 505 ILCS 30/4(a) (Product Registration and Firm License) |
| What one firm instrument covers | YesAny person who manufactures feed in Illinois or whose name appears on the label; secondary Illinois sites under the same firm name go on the same license, and a facility under a different name needs its own | 505 ILCS 30/4(a) (Product Registration and Firm License) |
| Product registration | YesEach commercial feed is registered before distribution, customer-formula feed excepted, so the same recipe sold in a two pound bag and a six pound bag is one registered product either way; the package size changes only the money, the 10 pound or less package paying the $90 annual fee in lieu of tonnage and the larger package paying tonnage | 505 ILCS 30/4(a) (Product Registration and Firm License) |
| Fee per product | Yes$90 per product per year for pet food in containers of 10 lb or less, paid in lieu of the tonnage inspection fee (calendar year, due on registration and on each renewal) | COMMERCIAL FEED REGISTRATION APPLICATION, fee block headed 'Registration Inspection Fees', item 1 (form IL406-0039) — the fee schedule sits on the form, not in the rules |
| Product registration period | YesAnnual, calendar year; the $90 fee is due on registration and again on each renewal, and IDOA states that product registrations expire December 31 | IDOA Feed FAQ Q7 |
| Small package threshold | YesPackages of 10 pounds or less, tested package by package rather than by business, so the same recipe sold in a two pound bag and a six pound bag pays the $90 annual fee on the small package and tonnage on the larger one | 505 ILCS 30/6(a)(4) (Inspection fees and reports) |
| Small package fee | Yes$90 per product per year in lieu of the inspection fee (calendar year, due on registration and on each renewal) | IDOA Feed Frequently Asked Questions, Q7 'What is the inspection fee for pet/specialty pet foods packaged in containers of 10 lbs. or less?' |
| Tonnage fee applies | DependsYes for pet food and specialty pet food distributed in packages exceeding 10 pounds and for bulk; no for packages of 10 pounds or less, which pay the $90 annual fee per product in lieu of the inspection fee | 505 ILCS 30/6(a)(4) (Inspection fees and reports) |
| Tonnage rate | Yes$0.30 per ton of commercial feed, paid by the person who first distributes it in Illinois | 505 ILCS 30/6(a) (Inspection fees and reports) |
| Tonnage minimum | Yes$25 per tonnage filer per semiannual reporting period (January to June and July to December), charged twice a year to a filer who owes tonnage at all | 505 ILCS 30/6(b) (Inspection fees and reports) |
| Tonnage reporting | YesA semiannual statement of net tons with payment, filed not later than the last day of January and July; IDOA states the deadlines as July 31 for January 1 to June 30 and January 31 for July 1 to December 31 | IDOA Feed Frequently Asked Questions, Q6 'What is the Semi-Annual Tonnage Report?' |
| Label goes in with the filing | YesA label for each product must accompany the registration, and the Director may refuse a registration that is not in compliance after an opportunity to be heard | 505 ILCS 30/4(a) (Product Registration and Firm License) |
| Out-of-state sellers | YesThe license trigger is disjunctive, so an out-of-state maker whose name is on the label of product sold into Illinois needs the firm license even with no Illinois facility, and each product must still be registered | 505 ILCS 30/4(a) (Product Registration and Firm License) |
Three flavors, every one of them in containers of 10 lbs or less.
Every figure above is multiplied out from the figures printed beside it, and each of those comes from a quote in the table. Laboratory work for the guaranteed analysis, packaging, a sales tax permit and a business entity filing are separate costs from separate agencies and are not counted here.
File the Commercial Feed License Application
The form is IL406-0039 and prints the license fee on its face: $30.00. The license is issued in the manufacturing or distributing company name and address as it appears on the label, not as a trading name or a care-of address.
Put your other Illinois sites on the same form
Additional Illinois sites under the same company name go on the same application and are covered by the same $30. A facility that operates under a different name needs its own firm license.
Register every product
Each commercial feed is registered before it is distributed in the state. The registration goes in with a label for each product listed on the form, plus whatever else the Director asks for to describe the product. Customer-formula feed is the only registration exemption in the Act, and a packaged retail treat is not that.
Pay $90 per small-package product
The fee block on the registration form charges $90.00 for each pet food in containers of 10 lbs or less listed on the form, and the same for each specialty pet food. Pet foods in containers greater than 10 lbs or in bulk carry no registration inspection fee; they go on the tonnage report instead.
Follow the federal good manufacturing practices
The department tells home makers to follow current good manufacturing practices along with the license, the registration and the labeling. The Act adopts the federal manufacturing practice rules at 21 CFR parts 225 and 226 for that purpose. A separate good manufacturing practice certificate exists but is optional and is not a precondition to distributing.
Renew both sides every year
Firm licenses expire December 31 of each year. The department states that the $90.00 inspection fee is due annually upon renewal of each product, so the product side recurs even though the statute treats a registration as standing until it is amended or canceled.
The $90 in lieu of an inspection fee covers pet food distributed in packages of 10 pounds or less. Above that the product moves into the tonnage system: an inspection fee at the rate of 30 cents per ton, with a minimum inspection fee of $25 every 6 months, reported by July 31 for the January to June period and by January 31 for the July to December period.
505 ILCS 30/3(b) defines distribute as offering for sale, selling, exchanging, giving away or bartering commercial feed. The department applies that literally: its guide for home makers says a license, product registration and proper labeling remain a requirement even where the pet food is given away. Free samples at a market carry the same duties as a sale.
Neither the Act nor the rules carry a raw-meat, pathogen or Salmonella provision specific to pet food. What applies is the federal manufacturing practice rules the Act adopts, the general adulteration section, and the rule listing poisonous or deleterious substances. The department's own reading list points home makers at FDA Guidance for Industry number 122 on manufacturing and labeling raw meat foods for companion carnivores.
The Illinois license and registration cover Illinois. Every other state runs its own feed law, and AAFCO states that shipping product into a state in response to an internet purchase counts as distribution there. The Illinois trigger works the same way in reverse: an out-of-state maker whose name is on the label of product sold into Illinois needs the Illinois license.
AAFCO puts animal-part chews such as hide, hooves, ears and pizzles outside registration and labeling while no nutritional claims are made, and treats jerky-type meat treats as full pet food that must be registered in states requiring small-package listing. Illinois is such a state, and its own rules do not repeat the chew carve-out, so confirm the point with the bureau before relying on it.
| Item | What Illinois says | Cite |
|---|---|---|
| Required label items | YesProduct and brand name required on the principal display panel (505 ILCS 30/5(a)(2), 8 Ill. Adm. Code 200.130(a)); species designation required, the words Dog Food or Cat Food or a similar designation conspicuously on the principal display panel (200.130(k)), with the word snack or treat added when the product is intended for that use; quantity statement required as net weight on the principal display panel (505 ILCS 30/5(a)(1), 200.130(a)); guaranteed analysis required in the fixed order crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber, moisture (505 ILCS 30/5(a)(3), 200.130(c)); ingredient statement required by AAFCO name and definition, or by common or usual name where none exists, in order of predominance by weight (505 ILCS 30/5(a)(4), 200.160(b)); nutritional adequacy statement required except on a dog or cat food prominently identified as a snack or treat (200.130(o)); feeding directions required only for a commercial feed containing drugs and for other feeds the Director determines necessary (505 ILCS 30/5(a)(6)); calorie content statement not required by Illinois statute or rule; guarantor name and address of the manufacturer, packer or distributor required (505 ILCS 30/5(a)(5), 200.130(d)); precautionary statements required as the Director determines necessary (505 ILCS 30/5(a)(7)) | 505 ILCS 30/5(a) (Labeling) |
| Guaranteed analysis | YesCrude protein minimum percent, crude fat minimum percent, crude fiber maximum percent, moisture maximum percent, in that order, with additional guarantees following moisture; no treat exception | 8 Ill. Adm. Code 200.130(c) (Label Format and Labeling), Subpart B: Pet Food |
| What a treat is excused from | DependsA dog or cat food prominently identified as a snack or treat, as part of the designation required on the principal display panel by 8 Ill. Adm. Code 200.130(k), needs no statement of nutritional adequacy (200.130(o)); nothing else is waived | 8 Ill. Adm. Code 200.130(o) (Label Format and Labeling), Subpart B: Pet Food |
| AAFCO text adopted | Yes505 ILCS 30/10(b) adopts the official definitions of feed ingredients and official feed terms as adopted and published by AAFCO, plus any amendments or supplements; no AAFCO Official Publication is in the snapshot | 505 ILCS 30/10(b) (Rules and regulations) |
| AAFCO edition | DependsNo fixed year is named; Illinois adopts the AAFCO definitions as published plus any amendments or supplements, and no Official Publication is in the snapshot, so the operative edition cannot be read here | 505 ILCS 30/10(b) (Rules and regulations) |
The full item list, both AAFCO editions and the exceptions are in the label guide, and the laboratory side of the guarantees is in where to get a guaranteed analysis.
The Illinois license trigger is disjunctive: manufacturing feed in the state, or having your name on the label. An out-of-state maker whose name is on a bag sold into Illinois needs the license even with no Illinois address, and the inspection fee is paid on registered feed shipped into Illinois as well as feed distributed inside it. Shipping out of Illinois puts you under the next state's feed law in the same way.
A home kitchen is outside FDA facility registration.
Facility means any establishment, structure, or structures under one ownership at one general physical location, or, in the case of a mobile facility, traveling to multiple locations, that manufactures/processes, packs, or holds food for consumption in the United States. [...] The private residence of an individual is not a facility.
Federal package rules still apply to every bag you sell.
Ingredients required to be declared on the label of a food [...] shall be listed by common or usual name in descending order of predominance by weight on either the principal display panel or the information panel in accordance with the provisions of § 501.2 .
Your state label rules come from an AAFCO model, not from FDA.
Pet food labeling is regulated at two levels. The current FDA regulations require proper identification of the product, net quantity statement, name, and place of business of the manufacturer or distributor, and proper listing of all the ingredients in the product from most to least, based on weight. Some states also enforce their own labeling regulations.
The Act treats a registration as standing until the registrant amends or cancels it, while the department's guide says licenses and product registrations expire December 31 each year and its FAQ says the $90.00 inspection fee is due annually upon renewal of each product. Both can stand at once, because the $90 is an annual fee set by the inspection fee section rather than a registration charge. Budget for it every year.
The department's FAQ says Illinois does not have a registration fee for commercial feed. That is a naming point, not a discount: the $90 is an inspection fee charged in lieu of tonnage and collected when the product is registered. The money is still due.
The commercial feed rules were last amended in 1992 and still cite an early nineties edition of the federal label rules. They carry no fee amounts at all; the fee section only points back to the Act. Every dollar figure on this page comes from the statute or from the current application forms.
The record for Illinois carries 14 recorded gaps and 12 staleness flags from the reading pass. Those are about the documents, not about your product.
505 ILCS 30/12(a) makes a person convicted of violating the Act or its rules guilty of a business offense, and reaches anyone who obstructs the Director or an authorized agent. It is separately unlawful to fail or refuse to license the firm, to submit product labels, to pay fees or to file reports. Failing to report or pay is stated cause for canceling every registration and firm license on file. The Director can also issue a written warning instead of prosecuting a minor violation, order feed withdrawn from distribution, and seek an injunction.
A sales tax permit comes from the revenue side of the state and lets you collect tax. It is not a feed instrument and no feed office issues it.
A business entity filing or a trading name registration comes from the secretary of state or the county. It records who you are. It says nothing about feed.
A local food handler card or a home kitchen permit belongs to the human food regime. Services that bundle these three and call the bundle a license are selling you paperwork you may well need, but not the instrument on this page.
505 ILCS 30/4(a) stops a person who manufactures feed in the state, or whose name appears on the label, from distributing a commercial feed without a license, and each commercial feed is separately registered before distribution. The department's guide for home makers repeats both duties. The only exemptions in the Act are three unmixed commodity carve-outs, customer-formula feed and the tonnage exceptions; none of them is based on volume, revenue or working from a home kitchen.
No, and the name of the department's own guide is the reason people think otherwise. The cottage food operation definition covers a person producing or packaging food or drink in a kitchen in their primary residence, and the whole cottage food Act never uses the words pet food or animal feed. Homemade dog treats sit under the Commercial Feed Act with the Department of Agriculture, which publishes its guidance under the heading of a regulatory guide for the cottage industry.
The license follows manufacturing or being named on the label, not the channel. Distribute in Illinois covers offering for sale, selling, exchanging, giving away and bartering, so an online order, a market stall and a free sample are the same event for the Act. Every state you ship into applies its own feed law on top of the Illinois one.
The firm license is $30 for each year or any portion thereof, so a license taken out late in the year still costs $30 and still lapses on December 31. Each pet food in containers of 10 lbs or less is $90.00 per product, due when you register it and again on renewal. Three flavors means the $30 once and the $90 three times over.
Yes. Each commercial feed is registered before it is distributed, with a label attached for each product listed on the form, and the $90.00 inspection fee is charged for each pet food in containers of 10 lbs or less on that form. You do not have to re-register a product another company has already registered unless you repackage or relabel it, which makes it a new product.
The principal display panel carries the product and brand name, a species designation such as Dog, the word snack or treat where that is the intended use, and the net weight on the bottom one third. The rest may sit on the front or a back panel: the guaranteed analysis in the order crude protein minimum, crude fat minimum, crude fiber maximum and moisture maximum, an ingredient statement by AAFCO definition or common name in order of predominance by weight, and the company name and address. A product prominently identified as a snack or treat on that panel is excused from the nutritional adequacy statement and from nothing else.
Statute: yes: 505 ILCS 30/1 through 30/16 (Illinois Commercial Feed Act of 1961). Rules: yes: 8 Ill. Adm. Code Part 200 (Commercial Feed Act), Subpart B Pet Food, Sections 200.120 through 200.170. Agency: yes: Illinois Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Agricultural Products Inspection (program page).
Snapshot read and adjudicated September 7, 2026, record date 2026-09-07. 38 recorded facts for Illinois.
DogTreatLicense is an informational reference about state commercial feed laws as they apply to people who make and sell pet treats in the United States. It reprints instrument names, fees, thresholds, label items and citations from state statutes, rules, fee schedules and agency forms, together with the date each state was last verified. Nothing on this site is legal advice, and fees and rules change. Confirm with the state feed control office before you register or sell.
Read the terms before you rely on any figure here.