They call them ‘cake sheds’. Garden huts, converted garages and spare rooms where home bakers churn out artisan loaves, brownies and celebration cakes. The rewards can be mouth-watering: some bakers report taking home **£1,000 a week** tax-free.
But a storm is brewing over this cottage industry. Environmental health officers are cracking down on home-based food businesses, demanding commercial kitchens, hygiene inspections and insurance. Bakers say the rules are killing their dream.
Private documents obtained by this newspaper show that local councils have issued over **200 enforcement notices** to home bakers in the past two years. The cost of compliance can run into thousands of pounds. For many, the choice is stark: go legal or go underground.
Yet the public appetite for home-baked goods shows no sign of slowing. Social media groups dedicated to cake sheds have **hundreds of thousands of members**. Supporters argue that the rules were written for factory production lines, not for a grandmother selling sponge cakes from her conservatory.
One baker, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of council reprisals, told me: ‘I’ve been doing this for three years. I have a spotless kitchen and a 5-star hygiene rating online. But the council says I need a separate kitchen with a hand wash basin and a tiled floor.
That would cost me £10,000. I can’t afford it.’ The Government is now reviewing the regulations.
A Whitehall source confirmed that ministers are ‘looking at ways to support micro food businesses without compromising food safety’. But the clock is ticking. For thousands of cake shed entrepreneurs, the icing could soon turn sour.
