Getting Started
Please help us put an end to in-box clutter and complete projects more quickly!
- If you are a new customer, please complete our New Customer Form.
- A quotation will be prepared for your project.
- Submit pre-payment information to rebecca@trelfalabs.com.
- Download, complete, and submit all applicable forms and/or labels based on the project types below.
- Email form(s) to rebecca@trelfalabs.com
- Rebecca will create a secure One Drive project folder and upload your form for Jon’s review.
- Rebecca will email you (and anyone you designate) an invitation to access the folder and upload/download and edit files as needed.
- When editing, please make note of your revisions, so that Jon can track your project accordingly!
- Jon will refer to this folder for all project information and upload your completed files there.
- Ship products and information to: Trelfa Labs, Inc., 6 Merrill St., Unit 4, Salisbury, MA 01952
- To discuss in further detail, please schedule a call with Jon via the Book Now link, also shown to the right of this screen.
- Please Note: Any advice not related to a project already on the schedule will be billed after 5 minutes, billed in 15-minute increments (rounded up).
Shelf Life Studies
For a shelf life study, we require:
- Products which have gone through an HPP (High Pressure Pasteurization) system before submitting to the lab. (Pasteurization is your responsibility, unless otherwise stipulated.)
- Six unopened bottles/packages of each product presented to us as you intend to sell it.
- Instructions as to how you would like each product stored. (refrigerated, ambient, etc.)
- An estimate of the number of days you expect each product to last.
Our process is as follows:
- We will test your product for Total Bacterial Count, Coliform, and Yeast/Mold upon each of the six openings.
- The first sample will also be tested for pH verification.
- We will test the product at intervals that will achieve the desired shelf life or beyond.
- You will receive notification if there is a problem along the way.
- Once complete, a laboratory report will be issued with a recommendation for shelf life.
- The report will be available to your company only via our customer portal.
Validation Studies
The health department and FDA will require you to have validation of all SKUs.
For a validation study, we require:
- Payment up front at a rate of $1,500.00 per validated item. (check, ACH/e-check, credit cards, and bank transfers accepted)
- Sixteen bottles (no glass) of your product freshly made, but not exposed to HPP.
- The product does not need to be in the final packaging.
- The product must be in the same size bottle that you will be selling, as HPP works differently on different sized bottles.
- Do not submit with caps with foam liners.
- Items labeled with your company name, product ID, and date of manufacture. Unlabeled products will be discarded.
- Samples received into our laboratory on a Monday or Wednesday, so that we can inoculate and send to HPP on Tuesday or Thursday.
- Your expected shelf life for the product, so we can run the validation study through the length of the life.
- If you require some products to be refrigerated and others to remain ambient, please indicate on the Validation Study Tracking form.
- Ship using the following form and labels: Validation Study Tracking | Validation Study Labels (Template: 4″ x 2″, 10/sheet)
Our process is as follows:
- We inoculate the bottles with Listeria, Salmonella, and E. coli.
- We then, transfer the bottles to an HPP facility.
- We test the bottles across the life of the product to prove that HPP was effective in destroying sufficient numbers of bacteria.
- You are welcome to call/write regarding the status of testing, but we do not supply interim reports.
- We will notify you if there is a problem along the way. However, “no news is good news.”
- Once complete, we will write a comprehensive report detailing the study and results.
- These reports are not available through our client portal.
- You will receive a paid invoice for your records.
Juice HACCP Plans
For a Juice HACCP Plan, we require:
- Your recipe.
- A description of your manufacturing process, from the receipt of raw materials to the shipping of finished goods.
- Temperatures and times, as needed, throughout your process. (We know the parameters for HPP, so you do not need to provide that).
- Other information, as requested, throughout the writing process.
Please allow at least two weeks for you project’s completion.