Small manufacturers & fabricators
Books and taxes for beverage and food co-packers.
A brand's minimum run deposit, a canning line invoice, an ingredient order bought to spec, and a food safety audit fee. Your own bookkeeper stays on it all year, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
June came in at $22,600. The Solstice Beverage run's ingredient order is tagged to that client, so it does not blend into the shop's general ingredient spend.
- Solstice Beverage, run depositMinimum run deposits
- Harvest Foods, case goods invoiceCase goods invoices
- Ingredient order, client specIngredients by client
- Bottle and can supplierPackaging and cans
- Third party food safety auditAudits and certification
Why your books are different
Co-packer books go wrong across brands with different recipes on the same line.
A generalist sees deposits and bills. Your facility runs one brand's beverage through a bottling line one day and another brand's product through a canning line the next, each with its own recipe, ingredients, and case count. When the books do not separate one client's costs from another's, you cannot tell which account is actually worth the line time.
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1
One client's ingredients get mixed with another's
Ingredients bought to one brand's exact recipe look the same on a supplier invoice as ingredients for a different brand's run, and lumped together you cannot see what any single client's product actually costs to produce.
What we doTags ingredients and packaging to the client they were bought for, so each account's real margin is visible. -
2
A minimum run deposit looks like a finished sale
A brand pays a deposit to lock in a production slot for a minimum run size, but if that deposit is booked as income the day it lands, the month looks better than it is while the case goods still owed go unseen.
What we doHolds minimum run deposits as money still owed until the run ships, then moves it to income so the timeline matches reality. -
3
Food safety audit costs blend into general overhead
Third party audits and certifications required to keep running brand clients' products are real recurring costs, but it is easy to let them blend into general facility overhead where their true cost is never seen.
What we doKeeps audit and certification costs in their own line so their real cost stays visible, separate from ordinary facility bills. -
4
Line changeover time hides inside labor
Switching a line from one brand's recipe and packaging to another's takes real cleaning and setup hours, and if that time is not tracked, a day with fewer cases run just looks unexplained.
What we doFlags changeover time against the runs it separated, so a lighter day has a real reason attached to it.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a beverage and food co-packer.
Set up once for how each brand's runs get paid and what it costs to produce them. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Minimum run depositsHeld as money owed until a production run ships.
- Case goods invoicesPer-case billing once a finished run is packed and ready.
- Co-packing setup feesWhat is charged to onboard a new brand's recipe and line setup.
- Storage and warehousingFees for holding finished case goods before pickup.
Money out
- Ingredients by clientRaw ingredients bought to a specific brand's recipe.
- Packaging and cansBottles, cans, labels, and cases, tracked by client.
- Audits and certificationThird party food safety audits and certifications.
- Equipment loan or leasePayments on bottling and canning lines.
- Facility rent and utilitiesBuilding costs, refrigeration, and line power draw.
- Quality assurance laborStaff time spent on inspection and batch documentation.
- Freight and cold storageInbound ingredients and outbound case goods shipping.
What we watch for you
- Margin by client
What each brand's runs actually earn once ingredients, packaging, and line time are counted.
- Minimum run deposit backlog
The value of minimum run deposits still owed on runs that have not shipped, so cash sitting in the account is not mistaken for profit.
- Audit cost per year
Certification costs tracked on their own, so this real cost of running the facility stays visible.
- Changeover time
How much line time switching between clients actually costs, so scheduling can group runs when possible.
Ask Gus
Things co-packer owners ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
I tag their ingredients, packaging, and line time to their account, so you can see real margin per client instead of one blended number for the whole facility.
Yes, and I keep it in its own line so the real yearly cost of certification stays visible instead of blending into general facility bills.
If they are not on payroll and you pay them $2,000 or more this year, yes, a 1099-NEC by January 31. I keep that list running as we go.
The tax side
The tax side of a beverage and food co-packing business.
Most of what goes wrong here is keeping each client's ingredient and packaging cost separate and knowing what shop equipment can be written off.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Bottling and canning linesProduction line equipment can usually be written off, often in the year it is bought. Section 179 covers up to $2,560,000 and bonus depreciation is 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- Ingredients and packaging on handIngredients and packaging bought ahead per client and sitting in the facility at year end get valued and matched against what actually sold, rather than expensed the day they were bought.
- Contractor 1099sAnyone not on payroll who you pay $2,000 or more in 2026, including outside auditors or line technicians, gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when each client's ingredient cost and line time are tracked correctly all year.
Deductions beverage and food co-packers miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Ingredients by client
- Bottles, cans, and labels
- Food safety audit fees
- Cleaning and sanitation supplies
- Line maintenance parts
- Cold storage costs
- Quality assurance supplies
- Freight on incoming ingredients
- Uniforms and hairnets
- Small hand tools
- Facility insurance
- Waste disposal
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A co-packing year, kept every month.
Each brand's runs land on its own schedule, though some beverage lines pick up ahead of warmer months. Your taxes still run on their own schedule. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Runs planned
Year end ingredients and packaging per client get valued, last year's return gets started, and your monthly set-aside is planned so April is already handled.
- April
Co-pack year filed
The accountant files and signs your return. Since the set-aside has been running since January, a quarter of heavy audit and ingredient spending does not turn into a scramble.
- July
Midyear co-pack check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether adding new brand clients this year has shifted the number.
- October
Ahead of December
Gus looks at any line equipment buy worth making before December and flags it for the accountant's call on depreciation.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for beverage and food co-packers. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions co-packer owners ask first.
How does Gus keep our different brand clients' costs separate?
He tags ingredients, packaging, and line time to the client they were bought for, so you can see each account's real margin instead of one blended number.
How does Gus handle a minimum run deposit?
He holds it as money the facility still owes that brand until the run actually ships, not income the moment it lands, so a heavy deposit month does not overstate what was really earned.
Do you handle our food safety certification or audits?
No, that stays with your facility's own certification process. Your team keeps your books accurate and organized so the accountant can help you see the cost, but the audits themselves are not part of the subscription.
Do we have to change how we bill a client's production run?
No, keep billing each brand's run however you already do. Gus reads it off your bank statement, and if a deposit is not obvious, he asks once and remembers the answer going forward.
Our books are behind after taking on a new brand client this year. Can that be fixed?
Yes. Send the bank statements you have. Gus sorts each brand's ingredient and packaging charges, the accountant checks the result, and most owners know where they stand within a week.
Do I write off new line equipment all at once?
Often you can. Line equipment bought for the facility can usually be deducted the year it is bought, though sometimes spreading it out fits the year better. Gus flags the purchase and the accountant decides with your whole year in view.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
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What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever