Bespoke pre-workout manufacturing

Pre-workouts we make, with a fixed caffeine dose or none

We are the pre-workout manufacturer behind custom pre-workouts for premium wellness brands, taking each from the first formula to the finished tub, stick pack, capsule, gummy or shot in our Leicester facility. Brands comparing pre-workout manufacturers come to us for stimulant formulas with a fixed caffeine dose in every serving, anchored for the UK and EU to EFSA's 200 mg single-dose figure, and for non-stimulant formulas dosed to the studies: citrulline from 3 g, beta-alanine at 4 to 6 g a day and beetroot nitrate at 310 to 560 mg. Every formula is screened against WADA's Prohibited List, and every batch is assayed for its actives and released with a certificate of analysis.

Pre-workouts sit within our sports nutrition manufacturing range. SPINS reports: "Shoppers are seeking alternatives to stimulants, shifting towards natural, multifunctional preworkout blends" (SPINS, 2025).

The International Olympic Committee's consensus statement finds good evidence of performance benefits for only a few supplements, including caffeine, creatine, specific buffering agents and nitrate (Maughan and colleagues, 2018). We build on those actives, specified by form, grade and dose.

• Caffeine. Anhydrous caffeine gives an exact dose and a short label. Natural caffeine from green coffee beans, guarana seed or tea gives a botanical story; we use extracts standardised to caffeine and confirm the content of every lot. Coated, slower-release caffeine softens the peak and the bitterness.
• Citrulline. L-citrulline, or citrulline malate, which pairs citrulline with malic acid and so carries less citrulline per gram. We set the label on citrulline content, not blend weight.
• Beta-alanine. Standard and sustained-release grades; the sustained-release grade reduces the tingle.
• Nitrate. Beetroot powders, juice concentrates and extracts. Nitrate varies between raw materials, so we specify nitrate per serving, measured by accredited partner laboratories, rather than beetroot weight.
• Creatine monohydrate. At 3 g of creatine a day, the dose behind its authorised performance claim; see creatine supplement manufacturing.
• Supporting actives. Sodium, potassium and magnesium for hydration, B vitamins with authorised energy claims, and L-tyrosine and other amino acid supplements for focus-positioned blends.

Every sports formula is checked against WADA's Prohibited List at concept stage, and we leave out stimulants and botanicals whose identity cannot be proven. The current Prohibited List bans higenamine at all times and stimulants such as DMAA and octodrine in competition, while caffeine is monitored, not prohibited (WADA, 2026). FDA states that DMAA products sold as supplements are illegal and that a label listing geranium extract may indicate DMAA. Newer actives such as methylliberine and agmatine sulfate are novel foods without EU authorisation, so our UK and EU formulas leave them out. Your formula is yours.

Tubs and sticks for gram doses, capsules for milligram actives

• Powders in tubs. The classic pre-workout. We size the scoop to the blend's bulk density, so one level scoop delivers the labelled serving; see powder supplement manufacturing. We fill protein powders the same way.
• Stick packs. One exact serving per stick; see sachet and stick pack manufacturing.
• Capsules and tablets. Caffeine, beetroot extract and L-tyrosine fit; gram doses of citrulline or beta-alanine would take a handful, so capsule pre-workouts carry milligram actives. Capsules are GMP certified.
• Gummies. Caffeine and B vitamins suit a gummy; gram doses do not fit an honest serving. We set adult flavours and packs, and every gummy batch gets an active assay as standard; see gummy manufacturing.
• Shots. Beetroot nitrate shots, with or without caffeine, made on our liquid lines, which are GMP certified.
• Natural formats. Natural caffeine, beetroot and colours from fruit, vegetable and spice extracts. In the US, foods, including dietary supplements, must stop using FD&C Red No. 3 by 15 January 2027, so our new US formulas start with natural colours.

We make every format above in our Leicester facility, which is ISO 9001, HACCP and GMP certified by BSI, and FDA registered. Bitter caffeine and sour acids need a balanced flavour system from the first bench sample, the work of our flavour and taste masking team. R&D is a paid stage that can be included with an order of the right size.

Caffeine at 200 mg, citrulline from 3 g: dosing to the studies

Caffeine: dose and timing

Caffeine improves exercise performance at 3 to 6 mg per kg of body mass, most often taken 60 minutes before exercise, and the minimal effective dose may be as low as 2 mg per kg (Guest and colleagues, 2021). EFSA sets the safety frame: single doses up to 200 mg raise no safety concerns for healthy adults, including less than two hours before intense exercise under normal environmental conditions, and up to 400 mg a day from all sources raises none outside pregnancy (EFSA, 2015). For UK and EU products we anchor caffeine per serving to that 200 mg figure and limit servings in the directions. Every scoop, stick or capsule carries a fixed, labelled dose.

Beta-alanine: a daily buffer

Beta-alanine raises muscle carnosine, an intracellular buffer. Taking 4 to 6 g a day for a month raises carnosine significantly, and performance gains are clearest in efforts lasting 1 to 4 minutes (Trexler and colleagues, 2015). Because the effect builds over time, our directions say daily use, not only before training. Tingling skin, or paraesthesia, is the only reported side effect, and divided doses of about 1.6 g or a sustained-release grade reduce it.

Nitrate and citrulline

Nitrate shows acute benefits within 2 to 3 hours of a 310 to 560 mg dose (5 to 9 mmol), with gains harder to obtain in highly trained athletes (Maughan and colleagues, 2018). The nitrate content of each beetroot lot, measured before use, decides whether a shot, a concentrated powder or an extract carries that dose. For citrulline, a meta-analysis of 12 studies with 198 participants found a small but significant benefit for high-intensity strength and power, in studies using at least 3 g (Trexler and colleagues, 2019). Dosed at the levels studied, citrulline belongs in powders and stick packs, not capsules.

Stability, flow and interactions

Citrulline and beta-alanine brown with reducing sugars in warm, moist storage through the Maillard reaction, so we pair them with non-reducing sweeteners and keep water activity low. Citrulline malate, malic acid and citric acid attract water and cake, so we blend and fill under humidity control, use flow aids such as silicon dioxide where the label allows, and pack in moisture-barrier tubs and films. Fine caffeine can separate from coarser amino acids, so we pre-blend it with a carrier and check uniformity across the batch. We never stack caffeine with other stimulants.

Caffeine warnings, nutrient claims and under-18 sales rules

As of October 2026, pre-workouts sell as food supplements in the UK and EU and as dietary supplements in the US. What changes by market is the caffeine label, the claims and, in two US states, who may buy them.

Claims follow the GB nutrition and health claims register and the EU register word for word, and our regulation watch tracks every change that affects your product. We are an FDA registered food facility for dietary supplements.

Caffeine assay, WADA record and the buyer's file

For each market we prepare the label text, the claims wording and the document file buyers and marketplaces ask for: the product specification, certificates of analysis with the caffeine assay, the WADA screening record, the Informed Sport certificate where arranged, a stability summary and allergen statements. Our labels state every active and its amount, so buyers see exactly what a serving delivers.

Screened against WADA, then blended so caffeine spreads evenly

1. Brief and screen. We agree actives, doses, caffeine per serving, flavours, format and markets with you, then screen every ingredient against WADA's Prohibited List and the rules of each market you sell in.
2. Approve and receive. Supplier approval comes before any material is used, with a review every year. Each lot arrives with a certificate of analysis, and natural caffeine extracts and beetroot materials are confirmed for caffeine or nitrate content before use.
3. Weigh and pre-blend. Materials are weighed against the batch record under our allergen management plan, which uses yellow colour coding, and caffeine is pre-blended with a carrier.
4. Blend and check. The main blend runs in a set order under humidity control, and samples from the top, middle and bottom of the batch confirm the caffeine is evenly spread.
5. Fill and seal. Tubs are filled by weight with a matched scoop, sticks are formed, filled and sealed in one process, and capsules are filled to a set weight.
6. Label and release. Label verification on every batch is the critical control point in our HACCP plan, CCP-01, and on pre-workouts it confirms the caffeine statement and dose. Three retained samples per batch are kept for shelf life plus one year, and nothing is dispatched without quality control sign-off.

Choosing pre-workout manufacturers: the batch tests that matter

Every batch is tested by accredited partner laboratories (ISO/IEC 17025) as part of every order, then released by quality control against its specification.

• Actives: caffeine by HPLC with UV detection, citrulline and beta-alanine by HPLC, and nitrate by ion chromatography where the label declares it.
• Contaminants: lead, cadmium and mercury against the EU limits for food supplements of 3.0, 1.0 and 0.10 mg/kg, plus microbiology.
• Moisture and water activity: for powders, stick packs and gummies.
• Banned substances: Informed Sport certification is arranged for your product; the programme screens every batch, each flavour included, for more than 285 substances prohibited in sport before release (Informed Sport, October 2026).
• Stability: accelerated and real-time studies of actives, moisture, colour and flavour set the shelf life on your label.

Our full mock recall, forward and backward with mass balance, runs in seconds, and our testing and batch release page explains the full programme. Start your project with your target actives, caffeine level, format and markets, and we will build the formula and its labels around them.

References: Maughan and colleagues, IOC consensus statement on dietary supplements, British Journal of Sports Medicine (2018); Guest and colleagues, ISSN position stand on caffeine and exercise performance (2021); Trexler and colleagues, ISSN position stand on beta-alanine (2015); Trexler and colleagues, citrulline and strength and power performance, Sports Medicine (2019); EFSA, scientific opinion on the safety of caffeine (2015); Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 on food information to consumers (2011); WADA, 2026 Prohibited List (2025); SPINS, Active and Sports Nutrition (2025).