Questions to ask a co-packer on the first call

Before you call

UF/IFAS advises preparing a business plan and detailed process instructions, with specifications for ingredients, packaging and labeling, before meeting co-packers¹. A co-packer search checklist adds a product specification sheet, a commercial formula, packaging specifications, a process flowchart and volume projections².

Fit

1. Have you made a product like mine with my preservation method, such as hot fill, cold-fill-hold, HPP, retort or aseptic? Which container sizes and closures can your line run?¹

Compliance

2. Is your facility registered with FDA and, for acidified or low-acid products, registered as a canning establishment? Who files the scheduled process for my product, and who pays the process authority?³
3. Which GFSI scheme and level do you hold, what was your last audit score, and may I see the certificate scope? SQF certificates can be checked in SQFI's directory⁴⁵

Volume

4. What is your minimum per SKU, in what unit, and how long is the minimum run? Is there an annual volume commitment? If I order at your minimum now, how far can I grow with you?¹⁴

Allergens

5. Which of the nine major allergens are in your facility, are lines dedicated or shared, and how do you clean and verify between runs?⁶⁷

Money

6. Turnkey or tolling? Can I supply my own ingredients or packaging, and what markup applies to materials you buy?⁸
7. What goes into the price: the per-unit conversion fee, setup, changeover, onboarding, storage per pallet per month, testing, rework and rush fees? How long is the price held, and what is the annual increase?¹⁸⁹
8. What deposit and payment terms do you require, and who owns the materials and finished goods at each step?¹⁰

Timing

9. What is the lead time for a first run and for repeat runs, and how far ahead is your schedule booked? Many co-packers ask clients to confirm production a month or more in advance¹.

Ownership

10. Will you sign my NDA, and will our agreement say that I own the formula and specifications?¹¹¹

Samples and quality

11. What do bench samples and pilot runs cost, how large are they, and can pilot product be sold?
12. What do you test, how does hold and release work, do you provide certificates of analysis and keep retained samples, and what is your recall plan? Can you walk me through a hold you have had and how it was handled?⁷¹²¹¹

Insurance

13. What insurance limits do you carry, and will you name my brand as an additional insured?¹¹¹³

On the visit

UF/IFAS recommends touring the facility and asking for the most recent inspection report and the plant's food safety systems¹.

Sources

1. UF/IFAS Extension FS380, Finding and Using a Co-packer (University)
2. PartnerSlate Academy, Co-Man Search Checklist (Company)
3. 21 CFR 108.25, acidified food registration and process filing (Cornell LII) (Government)
4. YouBars, Top 10 Questions to Ask a Food Co-Packer (Company; a manufacturer listed in this directory, so cited by name and not linked; read through a search summary, the page itself was not opened in full)
5. SQFI, Certified Site Directory (Standards body; read through a search summary, the page itself was not opened in full)
6. FDA, The FASTER Act: Sesame Is the Ninth Major Food Allergen (Government)
7. Made by Genie, Beverage co-packer questions and red flags (Company; read through a search summary, the page itself was not opened in full)
8. Feed The Line, How to Price Co-Packing Services (2026) (Company)
9. MSL Packaging and Fulfillment, Co-Packing Pricing 2026 (Company)
10. Eightx, Co-Manufacturing Cost and MOQs for CPG (2026) (Company)
11. Cummings Law, Legal Considerations for Co-Packing Agreements (Law firm)
12. Saraya USA CoPacking, How to choose a co-packer (Company; read through a search summary, the page itself was not opened in full)
13. Femfounded, Product Liability Insurance (2026) (Company)