Resources for navigating the world of contract manufacturing for your food or beverage product.
The seals on your package do real work at shelf — this breakdown covers the five certifications you'll encounter most in food and beverage, what each one actually requires, and how to use them alongside on-pack claims to build consumer trust without overspending on fees.
Most founders treat co-packers like vendors — this is a guide to understanding why that mental model fails, and how shifting your mindset to think of your co-packer as an investor changes the way you pitch, follow up, and build a manufacturing relationship that actually scales.
For any founder bringing a shelf-stable canned or jarred product to market, a Process Authority Letter is one of the most important — and most overlooked — regulatory requirements. This is a deep dive into what it is, when you need one, and how to get it before your first production run.
Freight is one of the first things that can make or break your margin after a production run — this is a deep dive into brokers, carriers, freight types, and booking best practices to help you navigate the logistics side of your CPG business without getting caught off guard.
Early-stage CPG brands often get blindsided by compliance paperwork — this is a deep dive into on-pack claims, third-party certifications, and seller's permits to help you understand what you can say on your package and how to buy ingredients and packaging without paying unnecessary sales tax.
This is a deep dive into CPG packaging layers — from direct unit to pallet — covering print methods, dielines, and case sizing to help you make sharper decisions and ask better questions of your co-packer and design team
This is a deep dive into turnkey vs. tolling production models to help guide your discussions with a Contract Manufacturer after you have been matched from our Dedicated Co-packer Search Process.
This is a deep dive into corrosion testing for canned beverages to help guide your understanding of what causes corrosion, how it's tested, and why selecting the right can liner is a critical step in bringing a canned product to market
(PART 2] This is in the format of a deep dive to help guide your discussions with a Contract Manufacturer after you have been matched from our Dedicated Co-packer Search Process. We are able to handle this process for you or we are also available to advise you as you go along this process.
This is in the format of a deep dive to help guide your discussions with a Contract Manufacturer after you have been matched from our Dedicated Co-packer Search Process.
In order to arm food and beverage entrepreneurs that are new to co-packing, here are industry terms that you can use so that you are speaking the same language! :)
A technical review is the process whereby a food maker speaks with a contract manufacturer to determine if their product can be produced at the production facility.
Beverage manufacturing is one of the fastest-growing segments in contract manufacturing. The Beverage category is a very competitive market; it has a low barrier to entry for new competitors, high shipping and warehousing costs, and supply chain constraints for glass, aluminum, and cardboard.
Turnkey means the Co-packer will make the entire product for you. They will order all of the ingredients and packaging on your behalf and you will pay for the finished product in one invoice.
This week, our team at Sherpa CPG and the good folks at Rodeo CPG teamed up to create one of the most functional and complete Co-Packer Databases ever!
Many food and beverage founders reach out to me after months of searching for a contract manufacturer with no luck at finding the right partner. I’ve had some brands who have reached out to 70+ groups with no luck. In my experience, most of the time they have already spoken to the right co-packing groups but they were not adequately prepared for the conversation.
Finding the right co-packer for the size and scope of your business is one of the most vital and toughest parts of setting up your supply chain. It can be a very frustrating, long, and complicated process even for the most experienced CPG executive...
When working with a contract manufacturer for the first time, there are a lot of things that can go wrong. The best way to avoid making costly mistakes is by educating yourself and being as prepared as possible. A lot of times, that means learning from the mistakes made by the thousands of entrepreneurs before you!
