Does anyone have experience with a co-packer in the food industry

I've never done business with one and looking for experiences - good and bad. What are the pitfalls and how far can a co=packer take a product? Thanks!

[bkreigsr]

A good 'custom' co-packer can take the product all the way down the vertical supply chain, - manufacture to your specs, QC for you within the proper regulatory agencies, package to your needs, and distribute wherever/whenever you need.
We did pasta products for everyone from Barilla to Muller's to Manischewitz.
We insisted, for custom molds/shapes, that the customer buy the dedicated molds/dies.
Packaging could go either way - you supply the containers, cartons and foil rolls, or let the vendor source it, with your artwork.
The good is that it's hands-off for the vendor.
The bad is that it's more expensive.
Bill K

[t6dpilot]

Bill, interesting - I didn't know you were in the contract packaging biz. Which one?

Mark, I come from the flexible packaging industry and worked with lots of copackers. Are packaging flexible or rigid? What kind of food product? As Bill said, the agreement can be structured a number of different ways. You can supply the product and they package it, you supply the formulation and they make/ package it, or you can choose from one of their formulations. As far as packaging materials go, that can be sourced by you or the copacker. Because flexible packaging can be very highly engineered for specific barrier properties, the food company typically will manage the supply of printed roll stock.

You will want to work with a company that separates nut based products from other food products. Some may have altogether separate plants for safety. Any copacker worth his salt is managing the allergen situation on the plant floor. It goes without saying that you will for sure want to work with a company that is at a minimum AIB certified and most now are going to an SQF or BRC standard (more stringent). And make sure that they have a clear raw material tracking plan for recalls. This should also pertain to your packaging material suppliers as well.

If you need recommendations, let me know - I may be able to help you.

[MRM]

Whatever you do, if you get into the packaged food industry, get recall insurance. FURTHER EXPANDED Recall Period of Certain Sunflower Kernel Products Due to Possible Contamination by Listeria monocytogenes | Business Wire SunOpta just recalled one full years' worth of sunflower seeds. Quaker, General Mills, and some others have just recalled every granola bar they made in the last year because they contained seeds included in SunOpta's recall. If your co-packer gets contaminated you can get stuck holding the bag, even though nothing was your fault.

Scott - thanks very much! We have a product developed and about to do some consumer testing. If it is as big of a hit as I think, I'll need some help. We have a business that prepares healthy meals to go, but we are not versed in manufacture and marketing on any scale.

MRM - This is still in infancy stages, so I hadn't considered the recall possibilities. Thanks!