Openborders.direct is partnering with Ashbury leading providers of regulatory and technical compliance advice. 

To help you navigate the complex world of product information compliance and guide you from a place of uncertainty to complete reassurance.   
Ashbury's experts are a skilled team of food technologists and regulatory professionals with decades of experience in global manufacturing, retail and enforcement; they work collaboratively with small, medium and large businesses to discover customised solutions, and deliver practical guidance across the entire development process. This includes advice on formulation and due diligence testing, as well as validation of specification, pack copy, artwork and export ready labels. 

As a trusted partner we help to ensure your final product complies with the law in your intended domestic and international markets. We make this journey as simple as possible; our service is clearly defined in four key stages to signpost the road ahead - Discover, Launch, Expand and Protect.  

With 100+ experts covering 80+ countries and speaking 35+ languages, we provide and end-to-end solution within one centralised team. 

Discover:

Every journey starts with discovery. It’s common for businesses to feel at a loss on where to start; our team will scope your needs and ask the right questions, as well as answering yours. We’ll quote to suit your project and walk you through the process so you feel confident that you will receive the service you expect.  

• Regulatory Advice 

By understanding your product and intended markets, we can advise on any topic relating to the information that ends up on your label; for example, law relating to fortified foods and supplements, contaminants, additives, organic legislation and health claims. We can do this from the start of the development process or as part of the regulatory adaptation service (discussed later).

• Formulation Check

This focusses on the composition of your products. We check the ingredients list for permissibility, taking into consideration the minimum and maximum requirements and aspects such as purity criteria, hygiene requirements and packaging and food safety criteria. 

Launching your product is a true milestone moment. We work with you to prepare all your product information, so you have accurate foundations to set you up for success. 

• Specifications Writing or Check:

We can work with you and liaise with your suppliers to write or check specifications, making sure they are complete, accurate and compliant. This drives more efficient pack copy and artwork creation so you can get your product to market quickly and efficiently

• Pack Copy and Artwork Check

Using your specification and any necessary evidence, such as proof of certification or claims, we can review your pack copy and artworks. We’ll check for formatting errors and regulatory issues and provide guidance on how to optimise your labels for compliance in your intended markets. This covers all mandatory information such as legal name, pictorials, field of vision, ingredients, allergens and storage instructions. 

Ashbury will help you over-come the complexities that international law can pose when you are looking to export. 

• Regulatory Adaptation

There are several challenges relating to your product information that arise when you enter a new market - it is not as simple as ‘copy, translate and paste’. Every country, territory or jurisdiction is governed by unique legislation that regularly evolves; this must be applied to your products before you go to market there. Using a combination of regulatory advice, formulation checks, and translation, we will localise your product information for your intended markets. This covers mandatory elements such as permissibility and warning requirements, as well as voluntary such as the claims and pictures. We also check the sense of the messages you are trying to convey have been maintained, as direct translation may change the intention or context and render parts of the label illegal or useless. 

Protect: 

Managing compliance extends much further than what’s on the label. Our solutions help you proactively maintain compliance across your business. 

• Training

Inspire, Inform, Improve. Compliance training can be used to up-skill your stakeholders on all matters of product information compliance and the systems to manage this. These can focus on country-specific, category-specific, current regulatory affairs, PLM systems or quality assurance topics. You can choose from our list of standard trainings or arrange a bespoke session customised to your needs. 

• Horizon Scanning 

Before you take a product to market, we can scan the horizon for any possible changes that may affect your expansion so that you can take these into account as you plan.

• Crisis Management

If something does go pear shaped, we can provide expert opinion, assess, and advise your response or act as an expert witness in court to help keep your brand untarnished. 

• Due Diligence Testing Programmes 

While we don’t carry out chemical and microbial testing, we can advise and create appropriate and optimised testing programmes for your products to keep costs down and due diligence defence high. 

• Quality Assurance Programmes

As part of your due diligence we can spot check your product information with a second pair of eyes. This enables continuous improvement by identifying gaps where training or process changes may be required. 

• Process, Procedure and Policy Optimisation 

Consistency is an important part of risk management. Our experts can help you design, write or renew various processes, procedures and policies that drive how you do business. This could be new product development or exporting procedures to ensure key milestones are efficiently handled for a more streamlined performance. 

• Job or Demand Cover

In times of staff absence or higher workloads, Ashbury technologists and regulatory affairs staff can provide interim on-site or remote cover, acting as your own trading law and compliance experts. You can contract out overflow work and projects to our experts so your internal teams can focus on their own priorities, and deadlines can be met more effectively.

For more information on how it works, click here, or to discuss your product and plans in more detail please do get in touch.