Contracting With Your Co-Packer Part II

Q.  What questions should I ask the company that will be manufacturing my products for me?

in my last blog I referred to this article from North Carolina State University, which has a lot of guidelines on how to pick a co-packer.  I’ll finish answering those guideline questions and hopefully you will work with Best Brand Bottlers, a leading thermal acidified manufacture, specializing in Condiments, Dressings, Marinades and Sauces!

• What will render the product unacceptable? What are the appearance factors such as color, separation, piece size, and texture? Who will judge adequacy of flavor and taste?   The main acceptable/unacceptable determination factors are flavor, consistency, and appearance.  First and foremost, the product has to taste as good as the samples you approved after we replicated your recipe.   Second, every time we manufacture the product, it should look and taste the same as it did for the previous production runs.  Third, there shouldn’t be a noticeable variance in the appearance of the product at all.    We’re confident in our production processes and we strive to continually improve them. 

• What are the appearance factors for the container, such as label placement, closure gasket materials and closure color, or neckband placement, size and color? How tight is the closure to be?   Consistency is key.  Most of our processes are automated and we visually and manually check each process during the production run.  You should have the same head space for the fill, the cap should be as tight as it can be, the neckband should be in the same spot and we will insure that the packaging is the same each and every time.  We specify these packaging products from our vendors and work with the same suppliers to insure consistency.

• Who is responsible for disposal and disposal costs or rework of unacceptable product?

• The entrepreneur should furnish labels, what size are they to be, what style and orientation, and how are they to be wound? (It is recommended you have the copacker specify the labels in writing to be sure they will run on his equipment).

• How much lead-time is necessary for the next and subsequent production runs to be delivered?

• Will the copacker be required to furnish grade certifications, third party audits or other certifications of lots and batches? The copacker should certify that the label statements are accurate.

• What lot or batch coding is to be used? Where will it be placed on the container and how will ingredient processing and testing records be filed to correlate with the code?

• What is the manufacturer's recall plan? Be sure you have a copy. How are you to be notified?

• Is there a noncompete agreement with the copacker? Are confidentiality and privacy issues covered?

• What finished product testing will be provided?

While there may be many other points to be covered in the contract, the above represents those points for which many disagreements occur. While we recommend an attorney's advice on contracts, the small entrepreneur may find the cost prohibitive.

Make the Relationship Good

A good working relationship with your copacker and an agreement which covers what he is expected to provide will make your venture more pleasant, and hopefully, more profitable. Get the copacker on your team. Give him a chance to be properly reimbursed for his services, then concentrate on selling your product!