The Kaflur Journal

Notes from thefood engineering floor.

Food science, kitchen economics and the systems behind modern food brands — written by the people building them.

Food Science·13 October 2026·5 min read

Why a twelve-month shelf life cannot be proved in six weeks

The date on a pack is not an estimate. It is the output of a programme that runs for months, starts when the formulation locks, and restarts if you change anything afterwards.

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A long row of identical unlabelled retort pouches of gravy on a steel bench, one cut open beside two matching white bowls and a tasting spoon

Building a Food Brand·6 October 2026·5 min read

From idea to shelf, your launch date is set in the first fortnight

Development finishes roughly when everyone expects it to. What decides when you can actually sell is a handful of choices made at the start, most of which stop being reversible the moment artwork goes to print.

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A reel of printed pouch laminate on a dark worktop beside a single plain unprinted pouch

Retort Technology·30 September 2026·4 min read

Glass, retort pouch or frozen: the choice is made by acidity

A jar looks better on a shelf than a pouch, so pack format usually gets chosen for how it will look. The product's pH decides whether that choice can actually work, and by the time anyone measures it, the packaging may already be ordered.

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A gloved technician's hand holding a digital pH meter probe in an open jar of gravy on a stainless steel factory bench, an empty glass jar and a sealed retort pouch of the same gravy lined up beside it

Kitchen Economics·22 September 2026·5 min read

Why asking for a lower MOQ usually costs you more

A minimum order quantity that comes down on the second quote reads as a win. It usually means the same changeover cost has moved somewhere less visible — the unit price, your place in the schedule, or a clean that got shorter along with the number.

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A technician mid-changeover wiping down stainless steel processing equipment on a factory line, a small trolley of shrink-wrapped gravy cartons parked in the foreground next to a much larger pallet of the same product queued behind it

Food Science·17 September 2026·4 min read

Why 50 grams of chilli powder isn't always 50 grams of heat

A formula that weighs out the same quantities every time can still taste different every time, because the raw material itself is not a constant. Here is what a manufacturer tests for before the weighing even starts.

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Jars of chilli powder and turmeric from different lots on a stainless steel QC bench in a spice facility, visibly different shades of red and yellow, next to a colour reference card, a certificate of analysis sheet and a colorimeter, a gloved hand comparing a jar against the reference card

Building a Food Brand·15 September 2026·5 min read

What a manufacturer needs from you before they can quote

Most enquiries arrive with a recipe and a target price. Neither is enough to price a production run, and a manufacturer who quotes anyway is guessing at your expense. Here is the brief that gets a real number back.

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A single home-made jar of gravy alone on a dark slate worktop in a commercial kitchen, and along the rest of the bench what pricing it takes — the same gravy with a pH probe in it, a weighed sample on a balance, and an empty retort pouch and glass jar waiting