Services

Through our Process Innovation Laboratory, we’re happy to assist you with water activity and pH analysis of your new food product, develop a Nutrition Facts Label, and provide a scheduled process for food with a pH lower than 4.6.

Our current turnaround for analysis and documentation is approximately 2-4 weeks (excluding holidays, staff illness or other unforeseen circumstances) depending on the complexity of the product submitted and our workload.

See below for detailed information on each service and step-by-step submission instructions. The submission process is the same for all services. Missing or incomplete forms may result in processing delays.

Please contact us at foodsci_ext@utk.edu so we know to expect your sample and to verify what type of analyses you will need.

STARTING JANUARY 5, 2026, OUR SAMPLE SUBMISSION FORM AND SERVICE FEES HAVE BEEN UPDATED
TO MAINTAIN THE LEVEL OF QUALITY AND SUPPORT.

List of Services

Water activity & pH
analysis

Water activity: $50 per sample
pH: $25 per sample

Water activity and/or pH analysis requires at least 4 ounces of each sample.

Nutrition Facts
Panel

Nutritional Facts Panel: $150 per sample

We develop a Nutrition Facts Panel for your product based on ingredients and formulation. We do not have the resources to analyze the nutritional content of a sample. We do not require any sample for this service.

Process letter for Formulated Acid & Acidified Foods

Hot Fill/Cold Fill: $150 per sample
Water Bath: $500 per sample

Hot Fill/Cold Fill process requires at least 4 ounces of each sample to analyze/confirm the pH and/or water activity of your product.

Water bath process requires at least 6 FULL CONTAINERS of product for each container type/size instead of 4 oz.

Submission Process

The submission process is the same for all services. Missing or incomplete forms may result in processing delays.

STEP 1

Complete the Sample Submission Form:
(click this box to access the form)

1. Save PDF to your computer.

2. Fill out the form. When completing this form, please make sure to list formulation by WEIGHTS, and provide detailed, step-by-step instructions for the production process. Include the processing details for each step as temperature, time, filling/packaging size.

3. Save and print.

STEP 2

Complete the Product Formulation Percentage by Weight Form:
(click this box to access the form)

1. Upon clicking, it will be downloaded automatically.

2. Fill out the form. When completing this form, please make sure to use the same units of measurement for weighing each ingredient (i.e., grams, ounces, pounds, etc.). Do not use cups, tsp, tbsp, or fluid ounces.

3. Save and print.

STEP 3

Mail or drop-off the followings to the address below:
1. At least 4 ounces of each sample for pH or water activity analysis, – make sure to label each sample container with the product name, contact name (either company or your name), and bottling date.
2. Payment
3. Sample submission form, and
4. Product formulation-percentage by weight form to:

University of Tennessee
Process Innovation Laboratory
2510 River Dr.
Food Science Building
Knoxville, TN 37996

STARTING JANUARY 5, 2026, OUR SAMPLE SUBMISSION FORM AND SERVICE FEES HAVE BEEN UPDATED TO MAINTAIN THE LEVEL OF QUALITY AND SUPPORT.