You’re Not a Number Here. You’re a Person With a Dream.

There's one thing we hear on almost every first call, every proof-of-concept run and every walkthrough: "I can't believe how much time you just spent with me."

People are surprised when we walk them through why a seal wrinkled on a test run, or when a quote call turns into an hour on film, fill weight and what we'd change about their packaging. They expect a co-packer to take the order, run it and send an invoice.

That time isn't a one-off, and it isn't a sales tactic. It's how we work. You're not a purchase order to us. You're a person who built something from an idea, and you're trusting us with it.

We've been on your side of the table

Before North Lakes, we were the brand. Our owner, Ole Hovde, runs Switchback Foods, so we've been the founder with a formula and a launch date, sending emails to co-packers who wanted 35,000 units before they'd call back, and getting answers in a language nobody bothered to translate.

Nobody sat us down and explained why our film didn't track, why the first run came in short, or which questions we should have asked before signing. We learned a lot of it the expensive way. You shouldn't have to. Teaching you what we didn't get taught is the point.

The mechanics of a successful run

A good run isn't luck. It comes down to a handful of things you can understand and control before your product ever reaches our line. This is what we walk every brand through.

1. How the machine actually works

On our horizontal form-fill-seal (HFFS) line, your printed film unwinds off a roll, is folded and sealed into a pouch, filled by an auger that measures your powder, then sealed and cut. Once you can picture that, a lot of decisions make sense: why your film needs a certain wind direction, why your eye mark matters, why some powders fill cleanly and others fight the auger. Here's the full explainer.

2. Your film is half the product

Core size, roll diameter, web width, wind direction, the eye mark that tells the machine where to cut: get one wrong and the roll can't run. We send every brand our roll stock film spec to hand to their film supplier, and we'd rather spend 20 minutes on it now than watch you reorder film later. How one film mistake cost a brand $8,000.

3. Your powder has a personality

Some powders flow like sand. Others clump, bridge in the hopper or pull in moisture from the air. Particle size, blend uniformity and humidity all change how your product fills. We hold the room under 40% relative humidity for that reason, and we'll tell you up front if your formula needs a different approach.

4. Yield is physics, not a mistake

Every run loses some product to startup, seal checks and the last powder in the hopper. Brands that don't plan for it come up short. We'll show you where the loss comes from and how much to order so you end up with the count you need. More on yield loss.

5. The paperwork that protects you

COAs for every ingredient lot, a clear spec, your allergen declaration, a fill weight with a real tolerance and a shelf life. It sounds like admin. It's what keeps your product safe, your retailers happy and your brand out of a recall. Our client portal walks you through every piece of it.

6. What we'd do differently

We'll tell you honestly when a different format, film, fill weight or run size would save you money or trouble, even when the answer means a smaller order for us. You can't make a good decision without the full picture.

From first project to mass market

Most brands we work with start small, and that's the right way to start. The path usually looks like this:

1. Proof of concept ($525). Your ingredients and a small roll of your film, run in your real format, so you know it works before a full order rides on it. How it works.
2. Your first production run. Real, sellable product at our flat rate for 1 to 8,000 units, so you can test the market without betting the business on a minimum.
3. Growing runs. More flavors, more units, and fulfillment if you want it, with the same people who ran your first batch.
4. Scale. Vertical and dedicated stick-pack lines are on order for runs up to 50,000 units per flavor. And if a day comes when a much bigger plant fits you better, we'll tell you that straight too.

Every step is easier because you understand what's happening on the line. Brands who know the mechanics make faster decisions, waste less and grow with fewer surprises.

We're not the cheapest. That's on purpose.

We're not the cheapest co-packer out there, not by a long shot. If the lowest per-pouch price at a huge volume is all that matters, there are bigger plants built for exactly that.

What you get here is different: the owner and the plant manager on your project, answers in plain English, a published price list instead of a negotiation, and the time to understand your own product. The brands that do best with us aren't looking for the lowest bid. They want a partner who will help them get it right.

What working with us looks like

• The first call is a conversation about your product, not a sales pitch. Expect questions, and expect to learn something.
• During your proof of concept, we show you what we're seeing and why.
• On run day, you get real updates from the people running your job, and you're welcome to see the line.
• After the run, we tell you what went well and what we'd change next time.

Bring us your idea, your formula or your half-finished plan. We'll help you understand it, run it and grow it.