LaFAYETTE COUNTY — A court ruling issued last week allows Wisconsinites to use their own home kitchens to make and sell foods like fudges, doughnuts, and roasted coffee beans—that is, any food that does not need to be refrigerated for food safety purposes.
Lafayette County Circuit Court Judge Rhonda L. Lanford on Dec. 28 ruled that the government may not prevent people from selling homemade, shelf-stable foods directly to consumers, according to a news release from the Institute for Justice.
Wisconsin was one of very few states that had banned virtually all sales of homemade food, requiring that people instead pay to utilize an off-site commercial kitchen.
In 2017, a legal challenge from a group of home bakers led a Wisconsin court to declare the ban on baked goods to be unconstitutional. But Wisconsin continued to ban the sale of other homemade shelf-stable foods, like chocolates, candies, dried goods, and roasted coffee beans. This lawsuit, launched in February 2021, sought to change that.
“We are thrilled with the court’s decision,” said Lisa Kivirist, a home baker and plaintiff in both the original and current lawsuits. “This win is going to be a game changer for so many in Wisconsin.”
Dela Ends, another plaintiff in the prior and current lawsuits, joined the cases so she can sell shelf-stable dried foods like soup mixes, tea mixes and dehydrated vegetables to supplement her income.
Rising prices has left many people struggling to make ends meet, and any additional source of revenue for home-based food producers would be helpful to Wisconsin families like Dela’s. Dela said that a victory in the lawsuit could help her bed-and-breakfast business, and it would allow her to cook more than breakfast.
.
.
