Florida Regulations

[caryfh]

My military husband came home yesterday to inform me that a move may be in our near future. I am anticipating this may be to Florida. So I started trying to find information online about whether Florida has specific regulations for candle and bath & body companies aside from obtaining a business license. I have found the Florida licensing website, but then thought I might try here to see if anyone presently operates out of Florida and could give any input or advice. Thanks so much!

~Cary

P.S. The thought of packing up my entire shop to move has my eye starting to twitch already, seriously dreading that activity.

[Faerywren]

As far as I know Florida doesn't allow the sale of any other handmade/handcrafted bath and body products except soap. I don't know about candles.

[Traveler]

Hi Caryfh,

I make candles and some bath and body. You will need to check with the County you move to in Florida to find out what type of licensing you are required to have. (For instance our local County Code Enforcement Agency requires me to have a Manufacturing license (since I make my own products) a Retails sales license (since I sell at craft shows and State Fairs) as well as a Home Occupation License since I make candles in my residence. **Also, in Florida I live in a much older subdivision that is not regulated by any HOA so I am permitted to "Manufacture" products in my home. There are a great many subdivisons run by HOA's (Home Owner's Associations) which limit what type of occupation you run from your home or what types of items you are permitted to make in your home, if any. As for Florida not permitting the sale of handcrafted items other than soap, I have not seen a law to that effect. Folks are out there making and selling lotions, soaps, sprays, scrubs, candles, incense, body butters, perfumes...phew! It seems that a great many unemployed folks have turned to bath and body and candles as a way to make a living. But again, check with the County and Code Enforcement department of the area you move to...as well as your subdivision. (You want to be fully licensed to avoid any potential issues with nosy neighbors :-)

HTH

[Faerywren]

I had a couple B&B maker friends from Florida tell me they couldn't sell anything other than soap. Maybe it was a matter of what hoops they were willing to jump through or maybe it was an HOA thing.

[coconut]

I've heard Florida is the most restrictive state for Bath & Body. If the product is considered a cosmetic, it needs a special permit:

http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?mode=View%20Statutes&SubMenu=1&App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=499.01&URL=CH0499/Sec01.HTM

Excerpt:

® Cosmetic manufacturer permit.--A cosmetic manufacturer permit is required for any person that manufactures or repackages cosmetics in this state. A person that only labels or changes the labeling of a cosmetic but does not open the container sealed by the manufacturer of the product is exempt from obtaining a permit under this paragraph.

And the permit requirements include a separate manufacturing facility: http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?mode=View%20Statutes&SubMenu=1&App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=499.012&URL=CH0499/Sec012.HTM

Excerpt:

( An establishment that is a place of residence may not receive a permit and may not operate under this part.

I think you can make soap if the only claim you make is that it cleanses.

[coconut]

OK, here is the FDA's word on soap vs. cosmetics, and this applies to Florida:

http://www.fda.gov/cosmetics/guidancecomplianceregulatoryinformation/ucm074201.htm

Excerpt:

And what if it's "soap"?

Soap is a category that needs special explanation. That's because the regulatory definition of "soap" is different from the way in which people commonly use the word. Products that meet the definition of "soap" are exempt from the provisions of the FD&C Act because -- even though Section 201(i)(1) of the act includes "articles...for cleansing" in the definition of a cosmetic -- Section 201(i)(2) excludes soap from the definition of a cosmetic.

How FDA defines "soap"

Not every product marketed as soap meets FDA's definition of the term. FDA interprets the term "soap" to apply only when --

• <LI id=rrli28>The bulk of the nonvolatile matter in the product consists of an alkali salt of fatty acids and the product's detergent properties are due to the alkali-fatty acid compounds, and
  
• The product is labeled, sold, and represented solely as soap [21 CFR 701.20].
  

If a cleanser does not meet all of these criteria...

If a product intended to cleanse the human body does not meet all the criteria for soap, as listed above, it is either a cosmetic or a drug. For example:

If a product --

• <LI id=rrli30>consists of detergents or <LI id=rrli31>primarily of alkali salts of fatty acids and
  
• is intended not only for cleansing but also for other cosmetic uses, such as beautifying or moisturizing,
  

it is regulated as a cosmetic.

If a product --

• <LI id=rrli33>consists of detergents or <LI id=rrli34>primarily of alkali salts of fatty acids and
  
• is intended not only for cleansing but also to cure, treat, or prevent disease or to affect the structure or any function of the human body,
  

it is regulated as a drug.

If a product --

• <LI id=rrli36>is intended solely for cleansing the human body and <LI id=rrli37>has the characteristics consumers generally associate with soap,
  
• does not consist primarily of alkali salts of fatty acids,
  

it may be identified in labeling as soap, but it is regulated as a cosmetic.

[coconut]

And what does this mean? "alkali salts of fatty acids". I don't know much about soap.

[Scented]

And what does this mean? "alkali salts of fatty acids". I don't know much about soap.

It just means the process of making soap. It's the product that results from the combination of a fatty acid (oils in the case of soap) and an alkali (lye).

Edited November 3, 2011 by Scented

[smellywax]

Which County in Florida is it that you might be stationed?

[lsbennis]

Interesting...I sell soaps, candle, body lotions, lip balms etc...

[Oceangazer1]

Interesting...I sell soaps, candle, body lotions, lip balms etc...

Me too, just for the exception of lip balms for now.

[coconut]

I think a lot of people do, and they may or may be aware of the laws, and may or may not comply... Not judging, just saying. I was only vaguely aware of the rules until I researched it for this thread...

[caryfh]

Wow, thank you to all of you for all the help on this. We are hoping to be able to stay put in Washington State, but if we have to move then it would be to the area near Jacksonville. I had contacted the state licensing agency which referred me to their agriculture department for the regulations - but I hadn't gone there to read up yet. I truly don't mind jumping through a lot of hoops, since I've already established that side of my business and would hate to give it up, but I could certainly see people not wanting to start up a business in that realm if there was a lot of regulations. I just feared from what I had heard that it wasn't possible... but then the more I thought about it, the more I realized that there must be some way to do it as companies do not became gigantic entities overnight, and had to start in a little studio somewhere. Thanks so much!! Hopefully we don't have to move, but if we do at least I know that I don't have to throw away all my years of hard work.