Can I Bottle Pasta Sauce With Pepperoni In It?

Q.  I want Best Brand Bottlers to bottle my pasta sauce from an old family recipe.  It's a red sauce and it has chunks of pepperoni in it.  Can you process it for me?

Pepperoni in pasta sauce!  That sounds fabulous! I’ve had ground hot Italian sausage in a meat sauce, but never pepperoni.  As tasty as your sauce sounds, unfortunately we cannot pack meat products into anything we bottle here.  We specialize in acidified and thermal processing of sauces, marinades, dressings and condiments. FDA Regulation 21 CFR 114 states that "Acidified foods are low-acid foods to which acid(s) or acid food(s) are added; these foods include, but are not limited to, beans, cucumbers, cabbage, artichokes, cauliflower, puddings, peppers, tropical fruits, and fish, singly or in any combination. They have a water activity (aw) greater than 0.85 and have a finished equilibrium pH of 4.6 or below."  Our manufacturing plant has not been approved for handling and processing meat and we follow the regulations both to the letter and the spirit of the law. 

If you would like for Best Brand Bottlers to manufacture your pasta sauce without the pepperoni, we’ll be happy to help get you started.  Perhaps on your packaging you could have your customers add pepperoni in the cooking instructions. 

Thanks for your question and your interest in Best Brand Bottlers - an industry leader in co-packing and private labeling for executive chefs/restaurants, food service distributors and major grocery chains.