Seven FSSAI labelling mistakes that delay product launches
Labelling errors rarely stop a formulation, but they routinely stop a launch. Here are the seven we correct most often before a pack goes to print.
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Insights
Twenty articles on formulation, compliance, packaging, plant projects and scale-up — written for people who have to make the decision.
Accelerated or real-time? Choosing the right shelf-life study
Accelerated testing gets you to market faster. It also lies about certain failure modes. Here is how to decide which study your product actually needs.
Read the article →A sugar reduction playbook for Indian beverages
Cutting sugar changes sweetness, body, mouthfeel and preservation at the same time. A staged approach keeps the consumer with you.
Read the article →Hot fill, aseptic or HPP: choosing a preservation route
The preservation decision drives your capex, your shelf life and your clean-label positioning. Take it before formulation, not after.
Read the article →Millet product development: what works and what does not
Millets carry genuine nutritional and policy tailwinds. They also behave badly in extrusion, baking and storage. Here is where projects succeed.
Read the article →Why your protein bar goes hard, and what to do about it
Hardening over shelf life is the single most common protein bar complaint. It has three causes and all three are addressable in formulation.
Read the article →Water activity: the one number that runs your shelf life
Moisture content tells you how much water is present. Water activity tells you how much of it matters. Most shelf-life failures trace back to the second number.
Read the article →How to choose a contract manufacturer without regretting it
Most brands shortlist on price and discover the real costs later. A structured selection process takes three weeks and saves a year.
Read the article →What you can and cannot claim on a nutraceutical pack
Nutraceutical marketing lives close to the line. Knowing exactly where the line is lets you write stronger copy, not weaker.
Read the article →Keeping probiotics alive until someone eats them
A probiotic claim is a count at end of shelf life, not at production. Most products lose the argument in the supply chain.
Read the article →Clean label preservation: what actually replaces a preservative
Removing the preservative is easy. Keeping the shelf life afterwards takes a system of four changes, not one substitution.
Read the article →Cost engineering a formulation without cheapening the product
There is usually 8 to 15 percent of cost in a formulation that the consumer cannot taste. Finding it is a method, not a guess.
Read the article →Setting up a small food plant: what the brochures leave out
Equipment is the visible cost. Utilities, effluent, storage and working capital are the ones that derail first-time plant projects.
Read the article →WVTR and OTR: reading a packaging specification properly
Two numbers on a converter's datasheet decide most of your shelf life. Here is how to translate them into a decision.
Read the article →Why the pilot batch works and the plant batch does not
Scale-up failures are predictable. Six variables change between the pilot and the plant, and only two of them are usually on the record.
Read the article →Running useful sensory panels without a sensory department
You do not need a booth room and twenty trained assessors. You do need to stop asking people whether they like it.
Read the article →Export readiness: what buyers check before they place an order
Export rejection is usually a documentation failure, not a product failure. The gaps are predictable and most are closable in a quarter.
Read the article →Plant-based dairy alternatives: getting past the chalk and the split
Plant milks fail on three sensory faults and one stability fault. All four are formulation problems with known solutions.
Read the article →Building a HACCP plan that survives a real audit
Most HACCP plans fail audits for the same three reasons, and none of them is a lack of paperwork.
Read the article →Launching a D2C food brand: the technical checklist nobody sends you
The marketing plan is usually thorough. The technical plan is usually a manufacturer's phone number. Here is the rest of it.
Read the article →Tell us what you are trying to make.
Send the brief, the sample or just the idea. You will speak to a consultant, not a call centre.