Seasoning is packaged against moisture and light: a damp blend cakes in the jar, and paprika and chili fade in a sunny window. The usual choice is a PET shaker jar with a sifter cap, light and hard to break; a glass jar looks better on a shelf and costs twice as much; a foil-lined refill pouch is the cheapest and sells to people who already own the jar; and a tin with a shaker lid sells as a gift. On the label, most spices can go under one word, "spice"; garlic, onion, salt and anything that colors the blend can't. In the example below, an Illinois spice blender prices four options: 36 cents to 98 cents a package.
The short version
- Pack seasoning against moisture and light.
- PET shakers with sifter caps are light and hard to break.
- Glass jars look better and cost twice as much.
- Refill pouches are the cheapest; sell them to jar owners.
- Spices can be listed as "spice"; garlic, onion and salt by name.
- Declare wheat, soy, sesame and any other major allergen.
- TaroStack puts the jar in each blend's cost. More below.
The options
| Option | Keeps out light | Ships | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| PET shaker jar, sifter cap | No, unless amber | Well | Grocers, online |
| Glass jar, sifter cap | No | Heavy | Gift shops, markets |
| Foil-lined refill pouch | Yes | Best | Refills, online |
| Tin with shaker lid | Yes | Well | Gifts |
Blends with salt or sugar take up moisture fastest, so they're filled on a dry day and capped at once; a desiccant in the case, not the jar, helps in summer. Whether a blend can be made at home is in can you sell spices from home.
The label
The label lists ingredients in order by weight (21 CFR 101.4) and the name and place of business (21 CFR 101.5), with the net weight. Spices may be listed together as "spice", but paprika, turmeric and other spices that also color the blend say "spice and coloring" unless named, and garlic powder, onion powder and salt are listed by name (21 CFR 101.22). Wheat in a rub's flour, soy sauce powder and sesame seeds are declared (21 U.S.C. 343(w)). The rest of a spice label is in spice labeling requirements. This is general information, not legal advice.
An example: four options for a spice blender
Sangamon Spice Co., the made-up spice blender in Springfield, Illinois, I use in these examples, fills about 600 packages a week of barbecue rubs and seasoning blends for grocers and online orders:
| Option | Parts | Per package | 600 a week |
|---|---|---|---|
| PET shaker jar, sifter cap | Jar and cap 42¢, label | $0.48 | $287.64 |
| Glass jar, sifter cap | Jar and cap 90¢, label | $0.98 | $586.80 |
| Foil-lined refill pouch | Pouch 30¢, label | $0.36 | $214.20 |
| Tin with shaker lid | Tin 75¢, label | $0.82 | $489.60 |
Grocers keep the PET shaker, which survives being dropped in an aisle. The refill pouch sells online to people who reorder, and it costs less to ship. Tins go into the holiday gift box; glass stays off the list because it breaks in the mail. What a jar sells for is in spice business plan, and handing the filling to someone else in spice co-packer.
Get the calculator
Download the seasoning packaging calculator. Two sheets: components, each part of each option with its pack price, units, how many a package uses and waste; and compare, each option's cost per package 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
A cost sheet doesn't know which lot of paprika is in which jar. When a supplier recalls a lot of chili powder, every jar of every blend it went into has to be found.
How TaroStack does it
TaroStack keeps each batch's lot, the packaging in its cost, and where every case went.
Each batch a lot. Each batch of seasoning records the ingredient lots it used, gets its own lot and dates, and lot labels print for the packages.
Packaging in the recipe. The jars and pouches are items in each blend's recipe, so every batch uses them up at the price you paid, and the count of what's left stays current.
Where it went. Each customer's order records the lots it got, so one recall report shows every customer a batch reached.
| The job | Notebook | In TaroStack |
|---|---|---|
| Which batch is in a package | Written on it | The lot on its label |
| Jars and pouches left | Counted when you run out | Used by every batch |
| Which shops got a batch | Invoices | One recall report |
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.