Iowa Co-Packers to Make and Package Your Food Product: Jams, Salsa, Sauces, Pickles, Cookies, Pies, cakes, whatever!

Looking for Iowa Co-Packers to Make and Package Your Food Product: Jams, Salsa, Sauces, Pickles, Cookies, Pies, cakes, whatever! in 2021?  Scroll down this page and  follow the links. And if you bring home some fruit or vegetables and want to can, freeze, make jam, salsa or pickles, see this page for simple, reliable, illustrated canning, freezing or preserving directions. There are plenty of other related resources, click on the resources dropdown above.

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Iowa Co-Packers to Make and Package Your Food Product: Jams, Salsa, Sauces, Pickles, Cookies, Pies, cakes, whatever!

Iowa Co-Packers: Want to Sell Your Salsa, Preserves, Jams, Etc.? Learn About Using A CoPacker to Prepare It!

If you want to make and sell your home-made preserves, salsa, spaghetti sauce, applesauce, apple butter, jams, jellies, or whatever, you will need a licensed kitchen to prepare and can the food. That's fine for relatively small quantities, and if there is a licensed kitchen to rent nearby at a good cost. See this page for shared use kitchens in Iowa. But it may be less expensive (and less risky) for your new business to use a CoPacker to prepare their food, according to you recipe and process. 

What is a Co-Packer?

Co-packers manufacture and package foods for other companies to sell.  These products range from nationally-known brands to private labels.  Entrepreneurs choose to use the services of copackers for many reasons.  Copackers can provide entrepreneurs with a variety of services in addition to manufacturing and packaging products.  They can often help in the formulation of the product.  The copacker may function only as a packer of other people's products or may be in business with his own product line.  They may be, in fact, manufacturing several competing products.  The range of services available from a copacker will vary depending on the size and experience of the copacker and the type of facilities and the capacity of their plant.

Choosing a Co-Packer

You will want to choose a co-packer who has experience making the type of product and packaging that you need.  You may also want to choose a co-packer that is located close to you or your source materials and/or market or distribution centers to reduce costs.

See this page for much, much more about co-packers, like advantages, disadvantages and how to choose a copacker.

The following list consists of companies in Iowa that have co-packing capabilities. This list is neither all-inclusive, nor is it meant to serve as an endorsement.

If you are a co-packer wishing to be added to this list, add your information here.

Iowa Co-Packers

• Euroclassic Pastries - Ready to Bake Pastries
  Lester, IA. Phone: 888-497-7243.
• Dutchland Frozen Foods - Kosher, Organic/Natural Cakes and Pastries, Frozen Baked Goods and Appetizers
  205 North Maine, Lester, IA 51242. Phone: 888-497-7243; 712-478-4349. Fax: 712-478-4554. Email: . Email: [email protected]. Contact: Stan Warner.
• Iowa Choice Harvest -
  P.O. Box 812, Marshalltown, IA 50158. Phone: (515) 554.5541. Iowa Choice Harvest Small Batch Processing can help your small business scale up and reach the next level with our co-packing services. Our FDA-approved Food Grade Facility is centrally located in Marshalltown, Iowa. Our plant manager, Jason Durham, has more than 10 years experience in food manufacturing and co-packing. Founded by a group of Iowa Farmers, we are especially committed to supporting environmental sustainability and local food systems.  Custom co-processing, IQF freezing, Packing, Sauce blending, sauce coating (enrobing), flavor packet insert, Dry mixing, Packaging, Heat sealed bagging, Clear or printed, standard or laminated, gusseted and four corner poly seal bags (2 oz. to 6.25 lbs.), Tray/bowl packing and boxing, Ingredient sourcing, Meeting your sustainability goals, And more!
• Palmer Candy Company - full line of confections and nutmeats.
  311 Bluff Street, Sioux City, IA 51106. Phone: 712-258-5543.
• Todd's Premium Foods - Copacker, Refrigerated storage, Freezer storage, Dry shelf storage, Acidified canning, Low acid canning, Hot packing, Cold packing, Kosher, Certified Organic, Scale-up recipes, We can file forms and paperwork, We can source (find) ingredients, We can source (find) packaging, Private labeling, We specialize in small and start-ups, Larger volumes only
  4413 NE 14th St., Des Moines, IA 50313. Phone: (515) 771-9435. Email: [email protected]. Open: See their website for for hours and availability. Directions: See their website for directions. Click here for a map and directions. Payment: . SQF LEVEL 2, ORGANIC AND KOSHER CERTIFIED. TODD'S CAPABILITIES: Dry Plant=Location=Des Moines, Iowa CAPABILITIES Blending HFFS machine=2 grams to 250 gram packets VFFS machine=.50 lbs to 6 lb pouches Stand up pouch machine Bagging line=25-50 lb bagging line with heat seal Bulk packaging=25 lbs to 2000 lb totes Bottling line Liquid Plant=Location=Madison, Nebraska CAPABILITIES Liquifier Hot fill and cold fill Bottling Line=8 oz to 64 oz bottles ½ Gallons/ Gallons/ 5 Gallons 2000 lb tote Gallons (ADDED: June 09, 2020, Suggested by a visitor)

Other Resources

If you still can't find a suitable co-packer for your product, see this organization:

• Contract Packaging Association
  1833 Centre Point Circle, Suite 123
  Naperville, IL 60563. Email: [email protected];

Where can I find more information about canning?

For more than 250 specific, simple recipes with step-by-step directions and photos; and general information on canning and food preservation, see this page.