Trying to find a process authority in Connecticut

Sam & Oliver

Sam & Oliver

Trying to find a Process Authority in Connecticut.

I've googled and found nothing short of frustrations and links to Utah, Arizona and Texas, but nothing with connecticut and when I called an 800 number I found on the CT gov site... they acted like they had no idea what I was talking about on the phone.

Can anyone help me to find a process authority in Connecticut where I can send my sauces to get certified?
 
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Contact universities that have a food science department. May not be one in CT, might have to look at adjoining state. Also contact your state's department that licenses food processors. They might have a list of independent labs they can give you. When you get the list, call around! Prices vary from $ to $$$$.

This looks like a good place to start, they do "Food Industry and Business, product development..." http://www.cag.uconn.edu/nutsci/nutsci/ugprog.html

Also, make sure what you are getting for the $$. Some labs will charge $500 for a full product review, process review, pH test, nutritional analysis, etc etc...to get started, you need a pH test and a process review. That's it. (well, at least in WA that's it...) it might vary by state.
 
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+1 with SL would think Yale must have something ?

Did you try CT Dept of Public Health?
http://www.ct.gov/dph/cwp/view.asp?a=3140&q=387484
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Food Service Licensing
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To obtain a food service License -

Contact the local health department serving your town for information on obtaining a food service license. Specific requirements and procedures may vary from town to town, so it is important that you contact them prior to beginning any construction or renovation. If you are unsure of the name or location of your local health department, call the Food Protection Program at (860) 509-7297. Additional licenses may be required for baking or frozen desserts. Contact the Food Division of the Department of Consumer Protection for more information on these types of licenses.
The FDA Plan Review Guidelines provide an overview of information that local health departments may request from an owner prior to new construction or renovation of a food service establishment.
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Get your process review before doing labels. They may tell you the sauce has too high of pH and you need to add more acids. That could change the order of the ingredients, or even add an ingredient. @luckydog- that quote sounds like it's talking about a restaurant? They probably don't do process review.

The Process Authority is usually someone with a PhD etc in food science, they are qualified to review a recipe and the detailed process of how it's made and then give a determination as to whether the product is safe or not, or if something needs to be changed, added or done differently. They also determine if the person making the sauce is qualified. All I needed for a really long time was my state processing license. When I started making the BBQ sauce which contained butter, I had to get BPCS certified....at a cost of $500 and a week out of my life. So, yea, I admit getting a little pissy when people blatantly sell illegally made sauces, etc.
 
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OK update on this:  I called and got bounced around 3 times and ended up back again (surprise, surprise) with the CT Department of Consumer Protection, speaking to an inspector.
 
Pre: Register for a FEIN (federal employer id number - tax purposes) - Free
Pre: Register my business name with the state for sales and use - $102.50 fee (100 for the registration, 2.50 for the filing charge)
----------------------------------------------------------
1) I need to take a course on process authority online from Cornell University - $$$ fee
2) I need to register with the FDA if I want to sell online outside the state (which is pretty much a given) - $$$ fee
3) I need to register for a UPC for each recipe I finalize to make - $$$ fee
4) I need to detail the entire packaging process from start to re-boxing for the recipe in specific:
4a) A detailed list of ingredients in order of predominance, with secondary ingredients in ( )'s ie: chocolate bar (coco, soy, etc)
4b) A detailed list of steps from opening the ingredients to bottling to sealing to boxing
4c) A detailed list of allergens found on the FDA website that may be in the product (even trace)
5) I need a label approved by the FDA with the above info (see step 4)
6) I need to rent or construct a storage area for the packed boxes of product in an area that is:
6a) concrete floor (no carpeting)
6b) off limits to pets or children
6c) off the floor (shelving)
6d) climate controlled (not too hot or cold)
7) No restriction on transportation as long as the product is individually sealed (ie: shrink banded bottles is fine)
8) Seek product liablilty for the business (not per product) incase someone gets sick or injured - $$$ fee
9) Before I sell the final product I need to seek a Food Manufacturing License - $$$ fee
 
Other pointers of note from the inspector:
  • On the use of ANY rented or licensed resteraunt kitchen: the entire area I use or that food comes in contact with, including the sink, tables or instruments / appliances MUST be re-cleaned prior to use by me, as I will ultimately fall responsible for it being clean (even though the resteraunt may clean it great the night before it closes, I can't prove they did it).
  • Any ingredients not used for the batch or batches that day cannot be reused if it is produce (peppers, etc).  I tried asking if it's ok if it's mash and she said "better to be safe than sorry with that, so only bring what you plan to use, even if it means making a few bottles short of your target."
 
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Couple of clarifications-
You do not need a Federal Employer ID number unless you plan on hiring employees. Your business structure is determined at the state level. The IRS doen't care if you are a sole proprietor or an LLC, you will be filing your SchC using your SS number. Only full-on corporations file with the IRS as corporations. If you plan on having employees, then Yes, you will need the EIN.

UPC Codes (bar codes) are not a licensing requirement. Many stores and distributors require products have them,but that is a store requirement, not a licensing requirement

Nutritional information panel (NIP) are also not REQUIRED. It is, of course, a good idea, but not required. If you choose to not put a NIP on the label, you must file for a nutritional lableing exemption with the FDA, and update it yearly.

UPC- they do cost money, and you can always add them later. A small laser printed (so it won't smudge) can be added to the bottles at any time down the road.
 
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UPC codes are cheap you can buy them for like $20 from companies that buy them in bulk.
 
I'd also say design a QR code to put on your label, it's free, and if they scan it with a smartphone it can take them wherever you want, as in, to your FB page, your website, etc.
 
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The Hot Pepper said:
UPC codes are cheap you can buy them for like $20 from companies that buy them in bulk.
 
I'd also say design a QR code to put on your label, it's free, and if they scan it with a smartphone it can take them wherever you want, as in, to your FB page, your website, etc.
Click to expand...
Good call on the QR code. You can also program qr codes to open your website or run an app, right?
 
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Correct. Or a promo, or whatever. You can change the action as well.
 
What I suggest with QR codes is set up a page on your website specifically for the QR code. This lets you...
 
1) Track all the traffic.
2) Change the webpage content to what you want them to see... an upcoming event, a promo...
3) If you just want them to go the the homepage you can forward this URL to your homepage and you are still able to track the traffic and change it back to a promo, etc.
 
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The Hot Pepper said:
UPC codes are cheap you can buy them for like $20 from companies that buy them in bulk.
 
I'd also say design a QR code to put on your label, it's free, and if they scan it with a smartphone it can take them wherever you want, as in, to your FB page, your website, etc.
Click to expand...
 
I would avoid the "$20 UPC" - it is owned by someone else, and if they fail to renew, you are left in the cold with a bunk UPC label. They are renewed every year & registered to another company. I would never want to expose my products to that risk. I've made over 20,000 bottles of sauce since I launched, costing 5-figures. I'm not going to risk losing the ability to sell it in stores over $760 in barcodes. I'm no expert on it but everything I researched said to avoid those companies offering cheap barcode solutions. A lot of scams, a lot of risk and a lot of headache if things go south. 
 
 
Matanzima said:
I put a QR code on my business card.
 
You know how many people scanned it? 1 (me, when I tested it)
Click to expand...
Same experience here. It's an industry trend that no one outside of the industry is using. lol

I have the QR codes on my shelf-talkers in stores. 
 
30+ stores, all with shelf talkers. 0 scans. 


salsalady said:
 @luckydog- that quote sounds like it's talking about a restaurant? 
Click to expand...
 
sorry, what quote? I just replied to this topic for the 1st time. Is it 0:wine:30 already? 
:rofl: 
 
Never been correctored without posting before. lol

Oh - the other luckydog! D'oh!!! :doh: 
 
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A bar code can't go bunk or expire, companies register with GS1 to ensure each bar code is unique. If they don't pay fees they lose their membership for unique bar codes, but once a bar code is given it will never expire or become available again. That would be a mess! There is no information stored or encrypted within the bars. They are simply a style of font (called the UPC-A font) that correlates to the 12 numbers beneath the bars. When you go to sell your product at a retailer, that retailer will have you fill out a product information form. On that form is where you will put your company and product details as well as your bar code number. The retailer then manually enters that information into their inventory management computer. It's not like any info is magically on there from scanning. It's a unique set of numbers.
 
Maybe there are scams with fake numbers that are not registered as unique. This, of course, is possible. Buy from reliable sources. I've ordered CD replication and gotten the "free bar code" on the CDs and no issues. You can check if the company is GS1 registered if you have doubts.
 
I can see doing it yourself, LD, if you plan on mass-production, but for a limited-release, or in my case, 1000 CDs, not doing that. So yeah, for you, a good thing.
 
QR codes, maybe they work better for bands. We have them on our stickers, and bored people in bars like to play with their smartphones. 
 
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Do you know if you're typically allowed to sanitize everything at home (bottles, utensils, etc), store in sanitized plastic bins, and bring to the commercial kitchen to start making and bottling sauce?  Or do they (health inspectors) typically want the sanitizing to be done at the kitchen as well?
 
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Typically, it's everything at the restaurant/facility. 
 
If you're using a restaurant after hours, everything must be sanitized before starting (your stuff, their stuff, the work area...) .  Theoretically, when you are done processing you will wash-rinse-sanitize everything there at the restaurant before packing up and going home.  It would be up to your inspector as to what types of totes are used for transport, etc, whether he would allow you to just open the totes and go to work.  I'm guessing they wouldn't allow it due to the possibility that someone else could have gotten into the tote, used something, washed it and returned it without sanitizing and without you knowing. 
 
Once the equipment is out of the controlled restaurant environment....????????...... but ultimately, it's up to your inspector.
 
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THP - interesting.

I was warned by a number of industry people to buy the block of 100 & never buy a "subdivided" barcode.

While you're correct that they are just a code to be scanned, the leading & traing digit are accociated with your company.

E.g. If you buy someone else's codes, you're associating your product(s) with their company.

Perhaps there's some legal ramification to that?

Dunno - not a lawyer. But I was told by more than a dozen folks I trust to not purchase barcode from anyone but GS1

Believe me - with just 3 products, 4 soon, I woulda rather spent $100 than $800.

That said, I can see needing them even if I've only got, say, 5 sauces in a year. I can use one on the sauce, then do a nested code on the case for 12, then a nested code on the pallet for 260 cases. X 5 flavors that's 15 right there. Plus LDHS t-shirts, hats, condoms, pregnancy testers, enema kits - whatever else I make eventually will require a bar code.

So while 100 sounds like a lot, it's not really.
 
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No there are no legal ramifications and you are not associating your product. It just tells you who registered the bar code. Like when I buy CD runs they offer a bar code. So yes there are a couple numbers that show they registered it if you look it up in the bar code directory. But it is mine. And the numbers mean nothing until you tell a computer they mean something, as in scan it and enter the product and price. There is no information stored that could ever say expired, or etc. The information is what you enter, it's just a unique code that's all, like a fingerprint, that does not exist until a computer that stores them scans it and asks for the info from you.
 
There are trusted sellers and it is common practice.
 
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