Market stalls
Can you sell dog treats at a farmers market?
Verified September 7, 2026. Figures quoted from the statute, rule, fee page or form.
Selling from a table at a market is not a lighter version of selling from a shop. Every verified state defines distribution in terms that cover a market stall, and none of them offers a stall-sized exemption from the license, the registration or the label.
The word that does the work is distribute
State feed laws hang everything on that one verb, and they define it wide. Offer for sale, sell, barter, exchange, supply, furnish, otherwise provide. In at least one verified state the definition names giving away outright, and the department applies it literally: a license, a product registration and proper labeling remain a requirement for pet food that is handed over for free.
AAFCO reaches the same conclusion for markets and samples. A stall is distribution, and so is a sample.
The market rules are a separate layer
The market manager may ask for a stallholder permit, a certificate of insurance or a local health sign-off. Those are the market operator and the county talking. They sit on top of the state feed instrument, not instead of it, and neither one substitutes for the other.
The same goes for a sales tax permit and a business entity filing. Those are real obligations from other agencies, and services that sell them will happily let you believe you have bought a feed license. You have not.
What to have on the table
Labeled packages, not loose treats in a jar, because the label rules attach to the package. The guarantees and the ingredient statement in the order the state fixes. Your business name and address on the bag. And the paperwork you filed with the state, because a feed control inspector who walks the market will ask about it.
What AAFCO says about stalls and samples
many states require pet food and specialty pet food registration and/or distributor licensure before offering distribution into that state. [...] Therefore, shipping product into a state in response to an internet purchase constitutes “distribution”.
All pet foods, including snacks, treats, cookies, chews, rawhides, supplements, and complete and balanced products are regulated by the states under the state’s feed law and pet food regulations, if the state has adopted such legislation.
Direct sales, state by state
| State | Retail or direct carve-out | Cite |
|---|---|---|
| Texas | DependsOnly a person making retail sales of commercial feed that bears the label of a licensed manufacturer, guarantor or distributor is outside the license; a maker who manufactures and labels their own treats is not, and the channel of sale makes no difference | Tex. Agric. Code §141.021(a) (License Required), second sentence |
| Florida | DependsOnly a person who sells a registrant brand-name feed at retail on the registrant behalf is outside the definition of distributor; a maker who manufactures and sells their own treats is the distributor and must register, whatever the channel | Fla. Stat. 580.031(8) |
| Ohio | DependsThe registration duty reaches only a person who manufactures commercial feed or whose name appears on the label as a distributor, so a shop reselling another firm labeled feed is outside it; a maker who manufactures and labels their own treats is inside it whatever the sales channel, and giving feed away is still distribution | Ohio Rev. Code Sec. 923.42(A) (Registration), the licence trigger |
| Illinois | DependsThe license duty reaches only a person who manufactures feed in Illinois or whose name appears on the label, so a shop reselling another firm labeled feed is outside it; a maker who manufactures and labels their own treats is inside it whatever the channel, and giving the product away is still distribution | 505 ILCS 30/4(a) (Product Registration and Firm License), the licence trigger |
| Michigan | DependsOnly a person making retail sales of commercial feed labeled from a licensed manufacturer, distributor or guarantor that has assumed responsibility for the inspection fee is outside the license; a maker who prepares, grinds, mixes, packages, repackages or relabels their own treats is a manufacturer and is inside it, whatever the channel | MCL 287.524(2)(a) |
| Iowa | DependsOnly a person making retail sales of commercial feed that bears labeling showing it is from a licensed manufacturer, guarantor or distributor who has assumed responsibility for the tonnage inspection fee is outside the license; a maker whose own name is the label guarantor is inside it, and direct, farmers market and internet sales make no difference | Iowa Code § 198.4(2), second sentence (Licenses) |
| Missouri | DependsOnly a person making retail sales of commercial feed that bears labeling showing it is from a licensed manufacturer, guarantor or distributor who has assumed responsibility for the tonnage inspection fee is outside the license; a maker who labels their own treats is inside it | Mo. Rev. Stat. section 266.165.1 |
| Indiana | DependsThe license duty reaches only a person who manufactures a commercial feed or whose name appears on the label, so a shop reselling another firm labeled feed is outside it; a maker who manufactures and labels their own treats is inside it whatever the channel, and OISC applies that to farmers market sales in one pound bags | IC 15-19-7-24(a) (Distributors; commercial feed licenses), the licence trigger |
| California | DependsA retailer repackaging from a bulk container at the time of sale to its ultimate consumer is outside the word manufacture (FAQ Q7), and separately a brand owner who contracts out every part of the manufacture and distribution of pet foods under its own brand needs no registration itself while each contracting facility does (FAQ Q4); neither reaches a maker who bakes the treats | CDPH, Frequently Asked Questions for Pet Food Processor Registration, Q7 |
| Georgia | DependsThe license exemption reaches only a distributor moving a licensee feed unchanged, either in the original packages of a licensed manufacturer, guarantor or distributor (r. 40-5-5-.01(c)1) or in bulk as received from a licensee with that licensee label information except for the net weight statement (r. 40-5-5-.01(c)2); a maker who manufactures and labels their own treats falls under (a) and (b) and is inside the license | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 40-5-5-.01(a)-(c), including both limbs of the distributor exemption |
Small-scale exemptions, state by state
| State | Small or home exemption | Cite |
|---|---|---|
| Texas | NoNo size, revenue, premises or home-kitchen exemption; the only carve-outs are the commodity exclusions of Tex. Agric. Code 141.002(c), including a feed product produced and sold by a farmer | 4 TAC §61.1(11) (Definitions) |
| Florida | NoNo size, revenue, premises or home-kitchen exemption; the only carve-outs are the three commodity exceptions in Fla. Stat. 580.031(2)(a)-(c) | Fla. Stat. 580.031(2)(c) |
| Ohio | NoNo home-producer, cottage, kitchen, hobby, gross-receipts or volume exemption; the only exemption power reaches unmixed agricultural commodities and unmixed individual chemical compounds | Ohio Rev. Code § 923.411(A) |
| Illinois | NoNo size, revenue, premises or home-kitchen exemption; the only carve-outs are the three commodity exceptions in 505 ILCS 30/3(d)(1)-(3), customer-formula feed from registration in 30/4(a) and the tonnage exceptions in 30/6(a)(1)-(3) | IDOA, Pet Food as a Business — A Regulatory Guide for the Cottage Industry (intro paragraph) |
| Michigan | NoThe four license exemptions turn on retail resale, on-farm mixing, integrated operations and diversion to a licensee, and none of them turns on volume, revenue or home production | MCL 287.524(2)(a)-(d) (persons not required to obtain a license) |
| Iowa | NoIowa Code ch. 198 contains no volume, revenue or home-producer exemption, and IDALS states there are no exceptions in Iowa law in the fees or with label compliance | IDALS 'Pet Food Registration in Iowa', item 1.C |
| Missouri | NoNo volume, revenue or home-scale exemption from the license; MDA states that the license requirement applies to anyone producing pet food or treats in their own home as much as in a commercial facility | MDA 'Guide to Making and Selling Pet Food & Pet Treats', page 1 scope statement |
| Indiana | NoInd. Code ch. 15-19-7 contains no size, revenue, premises or home-kitchen exemption from the license duty at IC 15-19-7-24(a), and OISC states that everyone must be licensed regardless of company size or amount distributed | IC 15-19-7-24(a) (Distributors; commercial feed licenses) |
| California | NoNo volume, revenue or home-scale exemption anywhere in Cal. Health & Safety Code ch. 10, and CDPH bars production in a residence; failure to obtain a license is itself a prohibited act under Sec. 113075(h) | CDPH, Frequently Asked Questions for Pet Food Processor Registration, Q5 |
| Georgia | NoNo size, revenue, premises or home-kitchen exemption; the only exemption is feed manufactured or produced for the maker own domestic animals, livestock or poultry | O.C.G.A. § 2-13-22(a) |
The instrument you need before the table goes up
| State | Firm instrument | Cite |
|---|---|---|
| Texas | YesFeed License, one per feed facility and one per guarantor named on the label, applied for on Form LA 0198 | Form LA 0198 Feed License Application, title line (Rev 5-3-11) |
| Florida | YesFeed Master Registration, one per distributor, applied for on Form FDACS-13244; the FDACS web page calls the same instrument a feed distributor license | Fla. Stat. 580.041(1)(a) |
| Ohio | YesFeed Registration under ORC 923.42, applied for on ODA form plnt_4203-011; ODA calls it an Animal Feed License on the program page and the form calls the charge a fee per permit | Ohio Rev. Code § 923.42(A) |
| Illinois | 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?' |
| Michigan | YesMichigan Commercial Feed License, one per physical manufacturing location, and one for a non-manufacturer distributor or guarantor; there is no separate pet-treat instrument | MDARD Commercial Animal Feed Licensing page, opening paragraph |
| Iowa | YesCommercial feed license, one per facility, applied for on the IDALS Commercial Feed License Application | Iowa Code § 198.4(2) (Licenses) |
| Missouri | YesMissouri Commercial Feed License, one per facility, applied for on form MO 350-1186 | Commercial Feed License Application, form MO 350-1186 (8-19), activity checklist |
| Indiana | YesCommercial feed license issued by the state chemist, applied for on Form F-1, one per Indiana manufacturing location | IC 15-19-7-24(a) (Distributors; commercial feed licenses) |
| California | YesPet Food Processor License for an in-state manufacturer or warehouse, and a registration certificate for an out-of-state manufacturer, one per processing facility, applied for on CDPH 8676 | CDPH, Procedures for Obtaining a Pet Food Processor License or Registration, Revised (8/2025), in-state item 1 |
| Georgia | YesCommercial feed license issued by the Commissioner, one per firm | O.C.G.A. § 2-13-6(a) |
Verified states on this site
This guide prints only what the verified state records support. More states are added a block at a time as they clear verification.
Questions people actually type
Do I need a license to sell dog treats at a market?
The same state instrument applies as for any other channel. There is no verified state where a market stall is exempt from the feed license or registration, and the definition of distribution is written so that a stall is squarely inside it.
Do free samples count?
In at least one verified state the definition of distribute names giving away, and the department says the license, the product registration and the labeling still apply. AAFCO takes the same view of samples generally. Where a state definition uses supply or furnish rather than give away, a handout is still inside the words.
What about a bake sale or a charity event?
Nothing in the verified state texts turns on the purpose of the sale or on who keeps the money. The trigger is manufacture and distribution of commercial feed. If your treats are changing hands, the state instrument is the same one your state page prints.
Keep reading
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.
Questions about this page go to the state feed control office first. Our terms explain what this site is and is not. See also privacy.