What is contract bottling and how does it work?
Contract Bottling is when one company hires another to bottle their beverage product for them. The company who bottles the product for the customer is known as a contract packer or co-packer. The contract bottler takes care of the whole packaging process, not just the bottling. They will ensure the product satisfies the quality desired by the customer, and that this hasn’t been compromised when the liquid was transport to their facility. The contract packer is also responsible for packing each filled bottle into the required box format (ie 6 pack, 12 pack, slabs for cider / beer).
Sourcing raw materials for contract bottling
Contract bottling requires a number of materials including; the liquid, bottle, label, cardboard case and desired lid format. Depending on the chosen way the product is packaged, there will be a need for a screw cap or crown seal, or cork which may also require a muselet and a hood.
It is important to determine who is supplying these raw materials. If the customer is, the contract bottler will refer to these as ‘customer supplied’ goods. If the contract bottler is required to arrange these dry goods to be ordered, they will incorporate the cost of these with the total cost of production. It’s likely that the contract bottler will have longstanding, quality relationships with suppliers that result in them being able to purchase these products for a lower cost than the customer would, normally due to combined order volumes.
Packaging formation
Another important step is ensuring the contract bottler can package the product in the desired format for the customer. This includes bottle size and shape, and case formation (6 pack, 12 pack, dividers, basket packs, wraps etc). These are steps that should be discussed whilst selecting a co-packer, ensuring that what the customer wants is something the contract packer has the capabilities to do.
Liquid delivery
A vital step in the co-packing process is to ensure your liquid / beverage product is delivered to the contract bottler’s facility.
This process can be done by tankers if the logistical route is domestic, whilst international deliveries are often delivered via shipping containers that contain a ‘bladder’ inside that are filled with the required liquid. Once these deliveries arrive at the contract bottlers’ site, they are unloaded and the quality is checked by the quality control team of the co-packer. This step is vital to ensure the product tastes, smells and appears as the customer expects. The co-packer has all resources available to identify and amend any issues with the product quality once it arrives on site.
Idyll are expert contract bottlers and co-packers. If you have a product you’d like contract bottled by Idyll - be sure to contact us.