Sample approval: the stage before everything.
Nothing else in the order matters if the sample is wrong. Here is the process that keeps it short.
In short. How buyers run sample approval for a new ingredient or supplier — request, COA, lab test, sensory and application trial, approval record — and how the sample links to the first PO and the shipment COA.
The steps
- Request. Specify the product, grade, quantity, packaging and the spec you will test against. Ask for the COA of the sample lot with the sample.
- Receive and log. Record the lot number, date received, condition, and the supplier's COA.
- Test. Your lab or a third party against the specification: physical (mesh, moisture, colour), chemical, microbiological, contaminants, allergens as applicable.
- Trial. Sensory and application trial in your product where it matters (flavour, solubility, behaviour in process).
- Decide and record. Approved, approved with conditions, or rejected — with the reason, the tester, the date and the reference lot. The approved sample's COA becomes the benchmark for shipment COAs.
Common delays
Samples sent without a COA; tests queued behind production QA; the trial waiting for a production slot; nobody telling the supplier the result. Each is a waiting step nobody is tracking — which is why Sample is a stage with whose-move on it, not a note.
Linking sample to shipment
Keep the approved lot's COA next to the specification. When the first shipment COA arrives, compare the two; at receipt, compare with your own result. Three documents, one page, and disputes become short.
In Pacifica an order can start at the Sample stage before any PO. The sample request, the COA and the QA result are filed on it; approval moves the order to Quotation; the shipment COA and Inspection result land on the same page months later.
Questions
How many samples should we request?
Enough for the lab tests plus an application trial, usually 200 g to 2 kg for powders; more for trials at pilot scale. Ask for two lots if consistency matters.
Should the sample be from production or a lab batch?
From production, ideally the lot that will ship or its equivalent. Lab batches can differ from what the plant makes.
Who pays for samples?
Commonly the supplier for small samples; the buyer often pays courier or larger trial quantities. Agree upfront.
Related
See it on your own orders.
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