Hello fellow Yellow Rose's of Texas.
I am just starting out making cakes and was just looking into what other people have done with starting a "home" business of cake decorating. And I have to ask a dumb question here: If we are going to make cakes from our homes and then sell them do we have to have a license? If so what type? Food handlers? And where can I find what I can do and can not do with having a business from my home doing cakes?
Yikes!!! So many question's!!
Thanks,
Cyndi

Laws/guidelines sometimes vary from county to county but Earlene is a fellow yellow rose . Might want to check out her articles on the business of cake decorating.

http://www.earlenescakes.com/business.htm

no advice here!! from what I understand ther is no such thing as a licensed home baker California or at least in SF bay area.
I wish you much luck!!!
michelle

Here is a link to some info I posted about Texas - how to start a small business. Some of it is food-specific and some of it isn't. It's mostly steps to take and numbers to call for starting up.
http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-6777.html

Bottom line, in TX, no food businesses operating out of a home kitchen. If you build a separate kitchen in your home, it can't be accessible from inside the home and you wouldn't believe the specific requirements for the health department (like triple dishwashing sink, separate mopsink, and I think hands-free hand washing sink, drain in the floor, and the walls have to be covered in some plastic or vinyl material, can't remember exactly what the rule is there, plus much more.) In Austin I can't build a kitchen because zoning laws say any addition can't be specifically for a home business. Hopefully zoning is different in your area.

To start a legal business you will need to find a commercial kitchen (not even all restaurant kitchens qualify) that you can rent full or part time or build one on your property if zoning allows. Otherwise everything is under the radar and no point being licensed since everything else is illegal anyways. The only thing you might consider doing in that case is getting a DBA from the county clerk so you can have a business name that you're sure doesn't belong to anybody else (and that nobody else can use.)

Good luck!

Thanks ladies, It is so confusing! I mean, it's just cake's!! I live in Fort Worth, so I will look into what I have to do. I am not looking into going "big time", right now I just want a small business.