Element Bars Wholesale - Certifications

The Four Step Process

These days it seems like you cannot go into a store without seeing the words organic or gluten free everywhere you look. Thanks to the amount of competition in natural food production, it may be tempting to want to declare your food bars as “All Natural” or “Organic” as well.

Surely you have heard the saying “The proof is in the pudding.” Well in this case, the proof lies within your food bar. If you want to make certain claims about your bars, they must be tested and certified. Let’s take a look at the different types of certifications you can obtain.

Quality & Safety Standards

There are a number of different reasons to use a contract manufacturer. While production volume is a concern, it is important that the quality is consistent and that the facilities are held to strict cleanliness standards. These standards are what is known as GMPs, or Good Manufacturing Practices. Generally, facilities use a 3rd party to audit the GMPs they use in their facility.

Here at Element Bars, we are proud to say we took the standard 3rd party GMP audit to another level. In 2016 Element Bars attained SQF certification by meeting globally recognized food safety standards and procedures. With a score of 97%, our facility is in good standing with the SQF code.

Many retailers, including Target, Walmart, and Costco require food they handle to be manufactured in a facility that meets these global food safety standards. Element Bars is the perfect place to start if you are looking to retail your bar in these stores.

Additionally, an SQF certification also means that Element Bars is compliant with FDA regulations.

Organic & Gluten Free

Consumer demand for healthy, organic, and gluten free products has risen over the past decade. While some manufacturers may not be able to offer organic and gluten free certifications, Element Bars has risen to the challenge.

Element Bars is certified organic by CCOF (California Certified Organic Farmers). This is why many products made in the Element Bars facility bare the USDA Organic button.

Due to the rigorous CCOF audit standards, which include a facility inspection, the dollar amount of certification can be considerable. The cost of certification increases depending on how many certified organic clients we have.

Since Element Bars pays for the inspection at its own cost, the price to add a private label to our production is roughly $1,000 per year. This fee is passed on to the customer, should they choose to be certified organic.

We at Element Bars understand that this cost is necessary to provide our clientele with the most natural products possible.

Religious

Element Bars is proud to be kosher certified by Orthodox Union under OU-D. While there are many specific details to the kosher process, there are 4 main considerations for a bar brand.

Ingredients

With few exceptions, we stock all Kosher-certified ingredients. One such exception commonly used as a bar ingredient is collagen. Dietary collagen is most often sourced from non-meat portions of a cow, rendering it non-Kosher. Kosher does not allow the consumption of any animal skin or organs. There are also several fully forbidden animals, including pig and shellfish.

Baked vs Unbaked

The baking equipment at Element Bars is certified Kosher. We cannot bake any non-Kosher ingredient in our ovens. So, if your product requires baking, it must contain only Kosher certified ingredients. We CAN produce product with non-Kosher ingredients (the bovine collagen mentioned above, for example) as long as it requires no bake step.

Parve vs Dairy vs Meat

Kosher requires that milk and meat may not be combined in the same food item or meal. Pareve (or neutral) product is made from ingredients that are neither meat nor dairy- for example, fruits, oats, nuts. While Element Bars processes no meat, we do commonly include milk and whey-based protein. We are therefore certified under OU-D (Dairy), and your product packaging will indicate OU-D, even if your particular item includes no dairy.

Cost and Process

We maintain all Kosher records on your behalf, and host monthly audits from the OU certification body to ensure adherence. The cost to you, the brand, is $1,000 per item, per year.

For More Information, Please Contact Us

Contact Info

OwnerJonathan Miller

Emailjmiller@elementbars.com

Phone888.411.3536

Address1140 S Washtenaw Ave,
Chicago IL, 60612

Certifications