Torn and wondering if it's worth the risk...

[EMS83]

So I originally got chickens to just have our own fresh eggs. County ordinance says that's fine, as long as any permanent structures are 100 feet from all property lines and 200 feet from any offsite residential structures. Well the coop is 125 feet from one neighbor's house (they don't care). And it is 77 & 85 feet from two of our property lines. No biggie because no one can see the coop, though they can hear my rooster. We've had chickens since 2016.

But last year I started market gardening and selling some baked goods at a local nonprofit market. They waive a lot of requirements because they're nonprofits, so I didn't need a business license and I got my egg candling license last August. I found an online regional market to sell at, too. They don't require a business license for the produce.

But if I want to sell baked goods at this online market, I would need a cottage food license from the state, and that requires a business license and septic inspection, etc. So I got to the point where I just need to fill out some forms and set up inspections when I realized that they may see the chickens and report them. And I don't know if it's worth risking the chickens. I just got more chicks today, too. More on the way April 12. I don't like breaking the rules. At the same time, the rules sometimes seem to make it awfully hard for individuals to be self-sufficient or start side hustles.

For what it's worth... I'd have to bake nearly 400 loaves of bread to equal what I'd net from egg sales once the chicks grow up.

One more detail: I would love to move, but multiple factors make it inadvisable/impossible. The only "out" I would have is if a local landowner suddenly wanted to rent out their home/land at a discount.

 

[Pipica]

I would check, again, city ordinances (it could change, especially since a lot more people got into chicken keeping) . If not, why rock the boat? What would you miss more?

 

[SueT]

I vote for the chickens and leaving well enough alone. Health inspections for a food prep business would be regular interferences, and possibly not simple at all. They can really complicate things.

 

[Happy hen lover]

Baking bread is fun but if it was chickens or kneading?....... CHICKEN WIN! lol
p. s. I love your banner.

 

[SueT]

Part of the joy of chickens is BYC. I don’t know if I’d feel much like hanging out here if I were forced to give up my flock. Just alone all day with my dough….sigh.

 

[Brooks_]

I am shocked that Georgia requires a license for cottage food and that a business license is part of it. Links either did not work or timed out so I couldn't find any more info myself. That said, the inspector for said license(s) probably does not know local chicken codes (may not even care about them). So it's a calculated risk on your end.

 

[EMS83]

I am shocked that Georgia requires a license for cottage food and that a business license is part of it. Links either did not work or timed out so I couldn't find any more info myself. That said, the inspector for said license(s) probably does not know local chicken codes (may not even care about them). So it's a calculated risk on your end.

https://www.agr.georgia.gov/cottage-food
https://rules.sos.ga.gov/gac/40-7-19

So part of the licensing requirement is to get in touch with local government about septic/well suitability and any business licensing requirements. It's the local septic inspectors I'm worried about. I don't think the zoning people will come out themselves for the business license, but idk how much county employees talk to each other.

 

[Brooks_]

but idk how much county employees talk to each other

Probably not that much. But on a personal not, I would consider 400 loaves of bread to be work whereas eggs/chickens are passive income.

 

[Saveria]

I met this man in Holyoke Massachusetts. He wrote a book called "Paradise Lot" about his friend and him making this amazing garden on a tiny plot in the city. Great book. Anyway, he talks a lot about their chicken woes. They weren't allowed at all in Holyoke, but they wanted to keep them anyway. I believe they hid them briefly to avoid getting caught, and then just returned the chickens to their own coop (not ideal for the chickens, I know, but you gotta do what you gotta do). They also found out the penalty for keeping birds was a $25 fine, so they were totally willing to keep them with that being the only risk.

I would see what the actual penalty would be where you are if you were caught. Maybe it isn't that bad, but you want to make sure that they aren't going to take your birds away. That sounds traumatizing.

 

[EMS83]

I met this man in Holyoke Massachusetts. He wrote a book called "Paradise Lot" about his friend and him making this amazing garden on a tiny plot in the city. Great book. Anyway, he talks a lot about their chicken woes. They weren't allowed at all in Holyoke, but they wanted to keep them anyway. I believe they hid them briefly to avoid getting caught, and then just returned the chickens to their own coop (not ideal for the chickens, I know, but you gotta do what you gotta do). They also found out the penalty for keeping birds was a $25 fine, so they were totally willing to keep them with that being the only risk.

I would see what the actual penalty would be where you are if you were caught. Maybe it isn't that bad, but you want to make sure that they aren't going to take your birds away. That sounds traumatizing.

My county uses Municode, and I tried searching for penalties and checking the Permitted Uses section for consequences of violations and turned up nothing. I work for our paper, so I'll try asking around there. I feel like calling zoning and asking about it would be kind of obvious. Especially so soon after calling about the cottage food license.