Mayo based sauce, possible food product, pasteurization?

[BinfordChef]

My wife and I have come up with tasty taco sauce with mayo, garlic, lime, and some off the shelf seasoning. When we make it, we keep the sauce refrigerated and have used it for a week+ without any issues. We have friends over and they keep asking about the sauce, and want to take it home or buy it. The demand has us starting to research what it would take to make the sauce in larger quantities, possibly for sale, and if the sauce is shelf stable or needs refrigeration.

Please note we are just starting this process and are interesting in learning all that we don't yet know!

Mayo, dressing, garlic, etc all sit on the shelf of the grocery store (Colorado, USA) for weeks and are still safe. Is it possible to make a mayo based sauce an leave it un-refrigerated? Would a pasteurization process make a sauce like ours shelf stable?

Any other advise or pointers to consider?

Thank you!

 

[HeyItsSara]

mayonaise type products are sealed. that's what helps preserve them. well, that and preservatves added of course.

 

[dragnlaw]

Those shelf stable products that you use are generally needed to be refrigerated once you open them. At which point they are no longer shelf stable.
Your product for resale would, I imagine, need to then be "re-pasteurized.

You could possibly make it in small quantities for friends, etc. but labeling it with the need to be refrigerated and to be used within a certain length of time. Not forgetting, of course, to sterilize the jars and lids you would be packaging it in.

Hopefully I'm sure others will be along and have some more, perhaps better, advice.

 

[Aunt Bea]

Unless you have deep pockets like the folks at Hellmann’s or Kraft be sure that you understand your local food service sanitation requirements, licensing, inspection, legal liability, insurance requirements, etc…

If you believe your product has potential try to find an established manufacturer and negotiate a private label partnership agreement that will leverage their experience or expertise.

Good luck!

 

[BinfordChef]

Excellent suggestions, Thank you! A food manufacturer is a good idea, we will research some in our area.

 

[blissful]

I don't see any Ventura foods in your area. They package oils, salad dressings, mayonnaise, bbq sauce in bottles and jars and for food service. They run a lab on site to test for safety for things like mayonnaise or thousand island dressing. The bottles are run though a bottling machine on a conveyor belt, labeled, boxed and put on pallets. Large 2 story caldrons are heated to assemble the ingredients to bbq sauce, then moved to bottling machines. You might look for a food manufacturing plant like Ventura or one of their competitors.

 

[jennyema]

Speak to a lawyer first. Then your insurance agent. Research cottage food laws.

selling food to others is a risky proposition

 

[Silversage]

This is primarily a forum for home cooks. Very few have any professional training or commercial experience. Maybe 3 or 4 total. You have just heard from one of them - listen to her and call a lawyer first.