Granola is packaged to stay crisp: moisture softens it and air dulls the nuts and oats. Cool it completely, so no steam is trapped, then bag it in something that seals and recloses, because nobody eats 12 ounces at once. A kraft stand-up pouch with a zip and a window stands on a shelf, keeps light off and still shows the clusters. A clear stand-up pouch costs less and shows more, for granola that sells within weeks. A glass jar makes a gift and costs like one. Cafés buy 25 lb boxes with a liner and scoop it for parfaits. Every retail bag carries the label your license requires, including the nuts and grains people check for. In the example below, a Utah granola maker prices four options: 8 cents to $1.16 per 12 ounces. Below are the options, the label, the example, and a free cost calculator.
The short version
- Cool granola completely before bagging, or it softens in the bag.
- Shops and markets: a kraft stand-up pouch with a zip and window.
- Lower cost, more show: a clear stand-up pouch.
- Gifts: a glass jar, priced as a gift.
- Cafés: 25 lb boxes with a poly liner.
- Label with the required lines; nuts, wheat, soy and milk are the allergens to check.
- Count the package in the cost; at a shop price, the pouch is a real share of what's left.
- TaroStack keeps each batch's lot and date, and the packaging in every batch's cost. More below.
The options
| Option | Recloses | Shows the granola | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kraft stand-up pouch with zip and window | Yes | Through the window | Shops, markets |
| Clear stand-up pouch with zip | Yes | Yes | Granola that sells within weeks |
| Glass jar | Yes | Yes | Gifts, holiday baskets |
| 25 lb box with liner | Fold and tie | No | Cafés |
The label
A bag of granola carries the label your license requires: the name, net weight, ingredients by weight, allergens such as tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soy and milk, and the name and place of business, plus Nutrition Facts unless an exemption applies. A café's bulk box needs the same information on the box so the café can answer customers. How the label works is in food labeling requirements for small business, and the exemption in nutrition label small business exemption.
An example: four options for a granola maker
Cache Valley Granola Co., the made-up granola maker in Logan, Utah, I use in these examples, sells about 380 12 oz bags a week at markets, online and to shops, and 25 lb boxes to cafés:
| Option | Parts | Per 12 oz | 380 a week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kraft stand-up pouch with zip and window | Pouch 32¢, label | $0.36 | $137.99 |
| Clear stand-up pouch with zip | Pouch 22¢, label | $0.26 | $99.23 |
| Glass jar for gifts | Jar $1.08, labels | $1.16 | $439.04 |
| 25 lb bulk for cafés, per 12 oz | Box and liner $2.50, label | $0.08 | $29.49 |
Shop and market bags are kraft pouches; jars appear only in November and December, at a gift price. A shop bag sells for $5.40 against a $3.30 cost, so switching shops to clear pouches would save 10 cents of the $2.10 left, while the kraft keeps light off on a shop shelf for weeks. How the granola is priced is in how to price granola, and made at volume in how to make granola in bulk.
Get the calculator
Download the granola packaging calculator. Two sheets: components, each part of each option with its pack price, units, how many a bag uses and waste; and compare, each option's cost per 12 ounces and per week at your volume, with notes. It's an ordinary Excel file with no macros, and it works in Google Sheets, LibreOffice and Numbers.
Where this stops working
Shops, markets, online orders, cafés and holiday jars draw on the same batches, and the pouches run out mid-batch. A cost sheet doesn't say which batch went to which shop, or how many pouches are left.
How TaroStack does it
TaroStack keeps each batch's lot and date, and the packaging in every batch's cost.
Each batch dated. A batch of granola records the oat and nut lots it used, automatically, gets a lot with its best-before date, and lot labels print for the bags.
Packaging in the recipe. The pouch and label are items in each bag's recipe, so every batch uses them up at the price you paid.
What each channel earns. Margins show by product and by customer, so a shop's bag and a café's box are compared plainly.
| The job | Notebook | In TaroStack |
|---|---|---|
| Which batch is in a bag | Written on the bag | The lot on its label |
| Pouches left | Counted when you run out | Used by every batch |
| What a shop's bags earn | A guess | Margin by customer |
Lots, batches, recipes and true cost are on every plan, from $49 a month. The first 30 days are free, with no credit card. If you'd like a hand setting up, ask, and we'll do it with you.