"How fast can you make it?" is usually the third question we get, and the honest answer involves two numbers rather than one. The first is the one everybody asks for. The second is the one that actually shapes your launch. Number one: eight weeks from approved spec From an approved specification, first pallet is eight weeks. That phrase is doing real work, so it's worth unpacking. Approved spec means the formula is locked, the packaging is specified, and the per-unit price is

Ask a brand owner what they want from a refrigerated product and you'll usually hear two things that pull against each other: a clean ingredient list, and a shelf life long enough to actually distribute and sell. Those two goals fight because of when the cooking happens. The conventional sequence, and its problem In most refrigerated food manufacturing, product is cooked in bulk, chilled, and then portioned into its final package. It's an efficient way to run a plant. But eve

Most first calls with a contract manufacturer end without a price. Not because the product is wrong, and not because the manufacturer isn't interested — but because the information needed to build a quote isn't there yet. That's a frustrating call for everybody. So here is exactly what we need before we can put a number in front of you, and, just as usefully, what you don't need to have solved yet. 1. The format Pouch, bag, bowl, or tray. This is the first question because it