A starting guide for Colorado food businesses
Colorado manufactured food.
A clearer place to start.
You have a product in mind. Let’s turn it into a manageable next step—starting with what you make, where you make it, and who you sell it to.
Start with the facts you already know
A useful starting point for your business.
These are planning prompts, not an application submission list. Work through them on paper and note what you still need to ask. For acidified foods, see the three required application attachments below.
Describe the food and how it will be stored.
List your products, ingredients, packaging, and whether you expect refrigerated, frozen, or room-temperature storage. A rough process outline is enough to start.
Why does this matter?
A product name alone does not tell the whole story. The way it is prepared, packaged, and stored helps identify the questions that need review.
Decide where you’ll make it and where it will go.
Note your proposed kitchen or facility and whether you’ll sell directly to customers, to stores or restaurants, online, or through a distributor. Include any co-packer you plan to use.
Why does this matter?
Your production space and sales model help determine which agencies to contact. Ask about the location before committing to a lease or buildout.
Confirm the right registration or licensing path.
For wholesale food manufacturing or storage, start with CDPHE’s food manufacturing program. For retail or food-service plans, contact the state or local agency responsible for your location. If you plan to make food at home, confirm the current cottage-food rules for your specific product and sales model.
Ask: “Here is what I want to make, where I’ll make it, and how I’ll sell it. Which requirements apply?”
Want the regulatory detail?
Colorado’s wholesale-food rules cover registration of wholesale food manufacturers. Federal requirements may also apply; state registration and FDA facility registration are separate questions. Use the official resources below to confirm your path.
Gather what you already have.
Bring your recipe or formulation, process outline, proposed label, supplier information, and any testing or Process Authority documents. Mark the gaps—you don’t need to pretend the folder is complete.
Why does this matter?
A clear starting folder makes it easier to scope the next review and avoids repeatedly explaining the same product.
Build everyday food-safety habits and useful records.
Start with cleaning, people and hygiene, equipment care, and ingredient handling. Sketch how an ingredient lot will connect to a production batch, a finished-product lot, and the customer or business receiving it.
Next action: choose one gap, name who will handle it, and agree on when to review it.
Colorado application · Acidified foods
Three required supporting documents.
When the acidified-food section applies to your business, CDPHE’s manufactured-food application requires these three types of documentation:
Include these with the completed application and applicable payment. Other attachments can apply to your situation, such as a commissary agreement when using a shared kitchen. These three documents are the acidified-food supporting requirements, not the entire application.
Read CDPHE’s registration form · acidified foods on page 2 ↗Checked against CDPHE’s July 2026–June 2027 form on October 20, 2026. Confirm the current form and requirements with CDPHE before applying.
Go deeper when you’re ready
Official resources
- CDPHE: food manufacturing and storageStart with the state program for your wholesale manufacturing or storage questions.
- Colorado’s official rules directoryLook up 6 CCR 1010-21 for wholesale food and 6 CCR 1010-2 for retail food.
- FDA: How to Start a Food BusinessAn overview of federal requirements and links to more specific guidance.
This is a planning guide, not a registration, product approval, or determination of exemption eligibility. Confirm requirements with the responsible agency and qualified reviewers for your operation. Summit is independent of those agencies.