Liquid Filling
Services

You send us finished bulk. We fill it, close it and label it, then send it back ready for sale. On this service we do not touch the formulation — just the filling operation, run accurately and released with documentation. If you want the product developed too, that is contract manufacturing, and we do that as well.

We've had the pleasure of working with PharmaHemp for several years and are extremely satisfied with our partnership.

1-1000 

FILL VOLUME, ML

0

UNITS MOQ

0 -3

WEEKS LEAD TIME

CONTRACT LIQUID FILLING

What is contract liquid filling?

Contract liquid filling is a service in which a manufacturer fills a brand’s finished bulk liquid into containers, closes them and applies the labels, returning finished goods ready for sale. The formulation stays with the brand; only the filling operation is outsourced.

Liquid contract filling suits brands where the filling line is the missing piece rather than the product. You already have a bulk liquid you are satisfied with — an oil, a tincture, an emulsion, a lotion — and no equipment to put it into containers accurately, repeatably and with documentation behind it. Buying that equipment means a filling line, a controlled area, trained operators and validation work before a single unit ships.

What this page covers, and what it does not. This is the fill-only route: you send finished bulk and we fill it, without developing, blending or adjusting what arrives. PharmaHemp does also formulate — bulk production, custom formulation and white or private label are real services here — but they are quoted as contract manufacturing, not as filling. And we do not sell filling machines: we run them on your product. If you arrived looking for equipment to buy, this is not that page.

STEP 01

You send finished bulk

Your liquid arrives as approved bulk, with its specification and your own release documentation.

STEP 02

We fill and
close

Filled to your target volume on the method that suits its viscosity, then capped and sealed.
STEP 03

We label and return

Your artwork applied, batch coded, packed and shipped back as finished goods.

SPECIFICATIONS

Liquid filling capabilities
and specifications

Almost no contract filler publishes these figures, so a buyer has to ask for all of them before knowing whether a project is even feasible. Ours are below, indexed by viscosity — because viscosity, not the product name, is what decides which line your liquid runs on.

Filling capability by viscosity band.

Viscosity band Typical liquids Fill volume Filling method Dosing accuracy MOQ Capacity
Under 100 cP Thin aqueous liquids, tinctures 1 – 1,000 ml Peristaltic / piston pump ± 1 % 50 units 6,000 units / day
100 – 1,000 cP Oils, light emulsions 1 – 1,000 ml Peristaltic / piston pump ± 1 % 50 units 6,000 units / day
1,000 – 10,000 cP Lotions, light gels 10 – 500 ml Piston ± 1 % 50 units 1,000 units / day
10,000 – 50,000 cP Creams, thick gels 10 – 500 ml Piston ± 1 % 50 units 1,000 units / day
Above 50,000 cP Balms, salves 10 – 500 ml Piston, heat assisted ± 1 % 50 units 1,000 units / day

If you do not know your product’s viscosity, send a sample and we will measure it. That is the fastest route to an accurate quote, and it avoids the common problem of a filler quoting on a line that turns out to be wrong for the paste once it arrives.

 

Runs range from pilot batches for market testing through to full production. Batch size, line speed in units per hour and changeover time are confirmed before the quote is issued.

SPECIFICATIONS

Filling methods and
how we match them to your liquid

Most contract fillers list what they can fill. Very few say how, which matters, because the wrong method on the wrong viscosity gives you inconsistent fills, foaming, or product left in the hopper.

Volumetric and piston filling

A piston draws a measured volume and dispenses it. Accurate across a wide viscosity range and the workhorse for oils, emulsions, lotions and creams. Because it measures volume rather than level, the fill stays consistent regardless of container shape.

Best for 100 – 50,000 cP
Gravity and overflow filling
Thin, free-flowing liquids fill under their own weight; overflow filling levels every unit to the same visible height. The right choice for tinctures and thin aqueous liquids in clear glass, where a consistent fill line is what the customer sees on shelf.
Best for under 100 cP
Vacuum-assisted filling
Used with thicker products and with liquids that entrain air. Reduces foaming and helps the product settle into the container without voids, which protects both fill accuracy and appearance.
Thick and air-entraining liquids
Hot pour
Balms and salves are filled warm and set in the container. Pour temperature and cooling are controlled so the surface sets evenly, without the sink marks and shrinkage that come from pouring too hot or cooling too fast.
Above 50,000 cP
OILS

Carrier oils and how they behave on the line

Oil filling is the largest share of what runs here, and the carrier decides more than the active does. Two tinctures at the same cannabinoid strength can need different nozzles, different line speeds and a different room temperature, purely because of the oil they sit in.

MCT

Thin, stable and the easiest carrier to fill accurately. Low enough in viscosity to behave almost like an aqueous liquid, which makes it fast — but thin oils string and drip at the nozzle, so cut-off is what has to be controlled rather than dose.

Low viscosity · fast fill
Hemp seed oil
Thicker than MCT and the most oxidation-sensitive of the common carriers. Headspace control and nitrogen flushing matter more here than anywhere else in the range, because the shelf life you lose is lost at the moment of filling, not later.
Oxidation-sensitive
Olive oil
Viscosity climbs sharply as it cools, and it climbs before the oil looks any different. A batch filled in an unheated warehouse in February will not dose like the same batch filled in July unless the fill room is held at temperature.
Strongly temperature-dependent
Essential oils
Low viscosity and chemically aggressive. Some are incompatible with standard gasket and tubing materials and will attack a seal over a long run, so the wetted parts are confirmed against the oil before the line is set rather than after.
Material compatibility first

The practical consequence: the viscosity figure on your specification sheet is only true at the temperature it was measured. Tell us that temperature, or send a sample and we will measure across the range the fill room actually sees. It is the single most common reason a dose that was accurate in a trial drifts in production.

Filling a cannabinoid oil? Bottle sizes, dropper and pipette assemblies, amber glass and light protection are specified on bottle filling services, which also covers CBD oil and tincture bottling. If you already hold bulk oil and want to know what documentation has to travel with it, see sending your own bulk CBD oil for bottling and labelling.

FILL CONTROL

Dosing accuracy and fill
control

A filling service is only worth what its consistency is worth. These are the controls that hold it, on every run.

  • Fill tolerance of ±1%, verified at set intervals through the run rather than at the start only
  • Checkweighing — at defined intervals, with out-of-tolerance units rejected rather than passed on
  • Headspace control, so every unit looks the same on shelf and the closure seats correctly
  • In-line filtration where the specification calls for it
  • Batch records and a filling report released with every run — fill weights, batch number, quantity produced, quantity rejected

Because you supply the bulk, the release documentation covers what we are responsible for: the accuracy of the fill, the integrity of the closure, and the correctness of the label. Your own bulk release stays yours.

CLOSE AND LABEL

Closing, sealing and labelling

Filling is the middle of the job, not the end of it. Every unit still has to be closed to a repeatable torque, sealed, coded and labelled to the artwork you approved — and each of those steps carries a requirement in the markets you sell into.

 

We close by cap, pump or dropper assembly depending on the container, apply a foil induction seal liner or shrink band where tamper evidence is needed, then batch code: batch number, best-before or expiry date, and a lot code where the market requires one. Labelling covers wrap-around, front and back, and full-body shrink sleeving, applied to your artwork and checked against the approved proof before the run continues.

 

Our liquid packaging services continue in the same facility — cartoning, inserts, multipacks and transport packaging — so the goods leave palletised and ready to ship rather than needing a second supplier to finish them.

Closure and container detail lives on the container page. Bottle and jar materials, sizes, neck finishes, capping torque and the full closure range are covered under bottle filling services. Tubes are filled too — the tube formats, sealing and crimping detail sits with the products that use them, under contract cosmetic filling.

FILLING AND PACKAGING TOGETHER

Liquid filling
and contract packaging

Liquid filling contract packaging means the fill and everything after it handled by one supplier, under one batch record, with one party accountable for the finished unit.

A product that is filled in one place, labelled in another and boxed in a third has three points where a specification can drift and no single supplier responsible for the result. Running liquid contract packaging in one facility removes the handovers: the batch that was filled is the batch that was coded, labelled, cartoned and palletised, and it is traceable through each step by the same number.

 

Finished goods can be held in our warehouse and released against your schedule rather than shipped in one consignment — useful when the retail launch date and the production date are not the same date.

SCOPE

What we do, and what we do not

Most contract manufacturers answer every question with yes and work out the details later. We would rather you knew the boundary before you send a specification, because a filler that is honest about its scope is faster to work with than one that is not.

We do

  • Fill your finished bulk liquid to a target volume
  • Close, cap and seal, including tamper evidence
  • Apply your labels and batch coding
  • Carton, multipack and palletise
  • Release the run with batch records and a filling report
  • Hold finished goods and release them to your schedule

We do not

  • Formulate or adjust your bulk on a filling order
  • Blend or compound the liquid as part of this service
  • Supply our own formulation on a filling order
  • Fill capsules, softgels, dry powders, sachets, ampoules or lubricants
  • Sell or lease filling equipment

This is toll filling in the strict sense: you own the formulation and supply the material, and you pay for the filling operation rather than for goods. Everything in the right-hand column that involves formulation is a different service, not a refusal — bulk production, custom formulation and white or private label are quoted as contract manufacturing.

Tell us which one you actually need and we will quote that instead. Tolling service or filling service — what’s the difference?

ACROSS THE RANGE

Liquids and containers
we work with

On the product side we fill cannabinoid oils and tinctures, water-soluble emulsions, lotions, gels, serums, balms and salves. Carrier oils and how each behaves on the line are covered above; the cosmetic categories, ISO 22716 scope and who holds which obligation under the EU Cosmetic Products Regulation are on contract cosmetic filling.

On the container side we fill glass, PET and HDPE bottles, jars and airless jars, tins and tubes. Sizes, neck finishes, capping torque and the closure range are specified on contract bottle filling, which also covers CBD oil and tincture bottling.

Toothpaste is the exception in this silo: we manufacture it rather than fill client bulk, so it sits on its own page — private label toothpaste manufacturer.

COMPLIANCE

Quality and certifications

Filling under certification is what separates a contract filler from a pair of hands. Every standard below is held by the facility that will run your product. Ask for the current certificates at any point and we will send them.

ISO 22716:2007

Good Manufacturing Practices for cosmetics — governs how cosmetic products are filled, controlled, stored and shipped.

ISO 9001:2015

Quality management system. The process that filled your batch is documented, audited and repeatable.

ISO 22000

Food safety management, applied to ingestible liquids.

HACCP

Hazard analysis and critical control points across food-grade filling.

GMP for Food Supplements

Good manufacturing practice certified for food supplement production, alongside ISO 22000 and HACCP on the same operation.

Batch traceability

Every finished unit traces back through the filling record to the bulk lot you supplied.

For cannabinoid liquids, tell us which markets the product is going to. THC limits, labelling rules and Novel Food positions differ by country, and it is better to confirm what the label needs before the run is scheduled than after it has shipped.

See all certifications →

Laboratory services & regulatory support →

GETTING STARTED

How to request a liquid filling quote

A filling quote is only as accurate as the specification behind it. Send us the following and you will get real numbers instead of a range that spans a factor of three.

On minimum order and price. We do not publish a price list, because the same 30 ml bottle can differ by a factor of two depending on the closure, the viscosity and the run size. What we can tell you up front is the range: filling runs start at 100 units. The maximum quantity depends on the product and packaging requirements. Three things move the price — quantity, container and closure complexity, and how the viscosity of your liquid affects line speed and changeover.

Expect a written quote within 3-5 working days of receiving a complete specification, and a trial fill before you commit to a full production run.

MOQ explained →

How we work, step by step → 

QUESTIONS

Liquid filling FAQ

What is contract liquid filling?
Contract liquid filling is a service in which a manufacturer fills a brand’s finished bulk liquid into containers, closes them and applies the labels, returning finished goods ready for sale. The formulation stays with the brand; only the filling operation is outsourced.
From under 100 cP to above 50,000 cP, across five bands from thin aqueous tinctures to balms filled by heat-assisted piston. Viscosity decides which line and which method your liquid runs on, so it is the first thing we confirm. If you do not know it, send a sample and we will measure it.
MCT, hemp seed, olive and essential oils, plus blends to your specification. Each behaves differently on the line — MCT is thin and fast but prone to stringing at the nozzle, hemp seed is the most oxidation-sensitive, olive thickens sharply as it cools, and some essential oils attack standard gasket materials. We confirm wetted-part compatibility before setting the line.
All four, matched to viscosity. Gravity and overflow for liquids under 100 cP, volumetric and piston from 100 to 50,000 cP, vacuum-assisted for thick or air-entraining products, and hot pour above 50,000 cP. The method is stated in the quote, not decided on the day.
Fill tolerance is ±1 %, verified by checkweighing at defined intervals through the run rather than only at the start. Out-of-tolerance units are rejected, and the filling report released with the batch states fill weights, quantity produced and quantity rejected.

Filling runs start at 100 units and scale to full production runs. The practical minimum depends on the container and the viscosity, because changeover time differs — a 10 ml dropper bottle and a 200 ml airless jar are not the same job.

On a liquid filling order you send finished bulk: we fill what arrives and do not develop, blend or adjust it. PharmaHemp does formulate, though — custom formulation, bulk production and white or private label are separate services with their own quote. Tell us at the first email which of the two you need and we will price the right one.
They overlap. Contract liquid filling describes the filling operation itself; liquid co-packing usually describes filling plus the packaging steps after it — coding, labelling, cartoning and palletising. We do both, under one batch record.
Yes. Closing, sealing, batch coding, labelling, shrink sleeving, cartoning, multipacking, palletising and transport packaging all run in the same facility, so the batch that was filled is the batch that ships. Finished goods can also be warehoused and released to your schedule.

Filling runs under GMP in our certified facility (ISO 22716:2007 for cosmetics, GMP for food supplements). If your product needs aseptic filling or a classified area, tell us at the specification stage and we will confirm whether it can be run.

A written quote follows within 1-3 working days of a complete specification. Production lead time is 2–3 weeks from approved artwork, approved bulk and components on site. Component lead times are usually the longest element, so tell us early if you are supplying your own.

Request a liquid filling quote

Send your liquid’s viscosity, container spec and run quantity — or just send a sample. Our production team will come back with a written quote and a trial fill plan.