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On the first of a year-long series, The National Provisioner takes a look at the co-packing/co-manufacturing arena, helping processors identify best practices and strategies for successfully incorporating, developing and nurturing co-manufacturing relationships in the marketplace.
In this, our first entry into the series, The National Provisioner speaks with Michael Quint, vice president & CCO, Sales, Marketing, R&D, for West Liberty Foods, L.L.C., in West Liberty, Iowa. What follows is a Q&A with Quint on how processors can determine and improve the returnon-investment of their co-packing ventures.
NP: What is important for a processor to consider when making the decision whether they should source a comanufacturer for a product or run the product "in-house?"
Quint: First and foremost would be the ability of the co-manufacturer to deliver a high-quality product that meets or exceeds all food-safety requirements. A second important factor is to understand the capital expenditures associated with any project. A major benefit of using a co-manufacturer is that a processor is able to develop new products and new packaging concepts without the investment in capital necessary to run "in-house." This allows the company to potentially expand their brand into a greater number of categories in a minimal amount of time. For...