Tablet Manufacturing
Tablets are one of the most common and familiar ways to produce pharmaceutical as well as natural health supplements. There are some good reasons to choose tablet manufacturing, either instead of or in addition to other delivery systems such as capsules or liquids. Contract tablet manufacturers offer many services to help you bring the best products to your customers.
Tablet Vitamin & Supplement Manufacturing
Any supplement can be produced in tablet form. Tablets have several advantages over other types of supplements for both manufacturers and customers.
- Inexpensive to produce. Compared to capsules, tablets are usually cheaper to manufacture.
- Long shelf life than capsules.
- More concentrated. It’s easier to produce higher doses of active ingredients in tablets than in capsules.
- Often have fewer additives than capsules. While capsules are usually made with gelatin, which is an animal product, tablets don’t require a shell so they don’t have such ingredients.
- Tablets can be cut into two or more pieces if someone wants a smaller dose or wants to break the dose into multiple servings.
Brief Overview of the Tablet Manufacturing Process
Contract tablet manufacturers play a crucial role in the supplement industry. Tablets have long been the most popular way to take supplements, for reasons summarized above. A facility that manufactures tablets and other supplements need the appropriate technology and staff to produce large quantities of tablets using a wide variety of ingredients. Facilities must also meet the appropriate FDA and GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) standards to ensure safe and sanitary conditions. Tablet manufacturing facilities produce tablets of varying sizes, colors, and shapes.
- Size. The size of a tablet is important for a few reasons. Larger tablets can include higher doses of active ingredients. On the other hand, they are more difficult for some users to swallow.
- Color and shape. These factors are secondary but can still be important for branding private label tablets.
- Chewable or not. Some tablets are chewable, which gets around the challenges of swallowing them. Unlike tablets that are swallowed, chewable tablets must have a pleasant or at least neutral taste to make them palatable.
- Branding. Some tablets include branding features, such as when letters or logos are inscribed on their surface. This is something to consider if you’re having private label tablets produced and want your tablets clearly labeled.
Available Tablet Ingredients
Contract tablet manufacturers may include many ingredients in tablets. There are numerous niche markets in the supplement industry, targeting all kinds of customers. The following are some common ingredients used in tablet manufacturing.
- Vitamins and Minerals. Many tablets contain either a single vitamin or mineral or a complex. Multivitamin and multimineral formulas are quite popular and many contain ingredients such as Vitamins A, B complex vitamins, C, D, E, calcium, zinc, magnesium, and others.
- Nutraceuticals. This category includes any food-based nutrients. Common examples are vegetables, fruits, medicinal mushrooms, and dairy products.
- Herbs and spices. Many supplements contain ginger, turmeric, echinacea, cinnamon, peppermint, and many others.
- Probiotics –microorganisms that support beneficial bacteria.
- Protein supplements such as whey, soy, pea, and other plant & animal based proteins. Healthy greens such as algae, chlorella, wheatgrass, and spirulina.
- Inactive ingredients. Supplements may also contain inactive ingredients for purposes such as improving consistency and increasing shelf life. Common inactive ingredients used in tablet manufacturing include silicon dioxide for anti-caking, cellulose for binding and disintegration of other ingredients, ascorbic acid for preservation, and fillers such as sorbitol and glucose.
Contract Tablet Manufacturing Services
Contract tablet manufacturers may offer a wide range of services in addition to producing supplements.
- Warehousing and order fulfillment. Many sellers don’t have the expertise or space to handle warehousing and order fulfillment. Some contract tablet manufacturers also offer these services.
- Resources for Amazon sellers. Selling nutritional supplements on Amazon can be lucrative, but it’s also complicated. Amazon has very precise rules about packaging, labeling, and order fulfillment. Some companies offer Amazon selling assistance for private label tablets and other supplements.
- Private labeling. Some contract tablet manufacturers can produce private label tablets that you can sell under your own brand name. The alternative is to sell generic products that may be sold by many other companies. If you want to build your brand and attract loyal customers, it’s more advantageous to sell private label tablets.