I am doing some research regarding home licensing in New York State. I live in Albany County. I found this on the Dept of Agriculture website but need it explained to me, can someone help?

http://www.agriculture.ny.gov/FS/consumer/processor.html

NY has an Article 20-C, home food processors exemption. This is what you're looking at. Someone will come and inspect your home kitchen and you can bake "non refrigerator required" foods from home. HOWEVER, you may not bake custom made cakes to sell directly to the public, which, since you are on Cake Central, I can only assume is your goal. Under the Home Food Processors exemption, you may bake and sell to local businesses, like farm stands, small restaurants. You can't sell anything that needs to go in the refrigerator and you can't sell directly to the consumer.

Unfortunately in NY, you can not bake these types of custom cakes that we do in your own home kitchen. There's no way around it. You either need to establish your own kitchen and get an Article 20-C license from the Department of Agriculture or rent an already established kitchen and obtain a Food Service License from the Department of Health.

It's a long (and expensive) road to get to the point, as your license is the last step.

If I can give you any advice it is to call the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health multiple times and ask the same questions. I would get 12 different answers from 12 different people. I was delayed 3 months because I listened to the first person I spoke with and she was not correct. In addition, every county is different. So call, call and call again.

Good luck!