Why Co-Manufacturing Is one Secret Weapon for CPG Innovation

Even the biggest CPG companies can’t innovate alone. As consumer tastes shift and new categories emerge, internal plants—built for efficiency and volume—frequently aren’t the best option to support the development process for new products.  They typically struggle to support small-batch testing or fast pivots unless those capabilities were built-in. 

That’s where co-manufacturing comes in. Smaller specialized partners can give brands the agility to test new ideas, validate new products, and explore markets faster than traditional systems allow.  

They’re early adopters of packaging, processing, and ingredient innovations—often the same ones that later define entire categories. 

When searching for the right co-man, three best practices stand out: 

1. Design clear “innovation testing” criteria. 

2. Treat it as a short-term experiment, not a permanent relationship. 

3. Pay for effort, not just throughput. 

Innovation thrives when CPG leaders pair their scale with the speed of smaller partners. The companies that do this best keep their pipelines moving—and their edge sharp. 

Looking for a deeper dive?  

Read our full Inc. article here.  

Photo: Getty Images.