Batch, lot and the CoA reference
Three codes were supplied with the label artwork. None of them is a test result, and the distance between a reference number and a document is the whole subject of this page.
The lot SOD-26/SO-1425, the certificate of analysis reference SOD-1425-26-SO and the expiry 07-2028 were supplied as printed label references for this site. They are draft label references and not lab proof. No certificate of analysis, and no test result of any kind, was supplied to this website.
A reference number is an index entry. The document it points at is the thing with the measurements in it. This page sets out what such a document contains, what to ask the seller for, and the one thing even a genuine certificate would still not tell you about this particular label.
The three codes, as printed
| Code | As supplied | What it establishes |
|---|---|---|
| Lot | SOD-26/SO-1425 | That a batch was given an identifier. It is the reference a query about a specific bottle turns on. |
| CoA reference | SOD-1425-26-SO | That a certificate was numbered. Not that one exists, not what it measured, and not what it found. |
| Expiry | 07-2028 | A best-before date printed on the side panel. It is a manufacturer statement, not a test of the contents. |
Scroll this table sideways →
Note the shape of the middle one. SOD-1425-26-SO is the lot code rearranged: the same digits and letters in a different order. That is a reasonable way to index a document against a batch, and it is not additional information. Two references to the same batch are still one batch.
These are draft label references, not lab proof
No certificate of analysis was supplied to this website. No assay, no heavy metal result, no microbiological result and no identity test accompanied the artwork. What arrived was a number in a layout.
The bottle you receive may legitimately carry a different lot and a different expiry from the draft artwork. If it does, the bottle is correct and the artwork is a draft. Write down what is on yours.
Where the codes are printed
The side panel is the working panel. It carries the directions, the storage instruction, the caution, the keep-out-of-reach line, and the date.
- Suggested use
- As a dietary supplement, take one (1) or two (2) capsules daily with an 8 oz. glass of water.
- Storage
- Keep away from heat, light, and humidity to preserve freshness.
- Expiry, as printed
- 07-2028
- Lot, as supplied
- SOD-26/SO-1425
Photograph this panel on the bottle you receive, before you open it. It takes a moment and it answers most of the questions any later query will raise.
The back panel carries the Supplement Facts and the FDA disclaimer, and it is transcribed line by line on the panel page. The front carries the crest, the claim and the count.
What a certificate of analysis actually contains
A certificate of analysis is a laboratory report on a specific batch. It is a page of measurements with a name and a date on it, and every element below is part of what makes it worth having.
- The batch it refers to
- A lot number matching the one on the bottle. A certificate for a different lot is a certificate about a different batch of material.
- Identity
- Confirmation that each raw material is the species claimed, and the plant part claimed. On this label that means eight separate identity questions, including two root extracts and a leaf extract.
- Potency or assay
- How much of the marker compound each material contains. For this blend the relevant markers would be icariin for the horny goat weed, eurycomanone for the tongkat ali, fatty acid content for the saw palmetto and elemental boron for the chelate. None of the four is stated on the label.
- Heavy metals
- Lead, arsenic, cadmium and mercury, with a result and a limit for each. Botanicals draw these out of soil, which is why the test exists.
- Microbiology
- Total plate count, yeast and mold, and the specific organisms. This one matters more than usual where an animal tissue is in the formula.
- A laboratory
- A named laboratory, ideally with its accreditation stated, rather than an unattributed table.
- A date, and a signature
- When the work was done and who signs for it. A certificate without a date cannot be matched to a batch.
Nothing in that list is exotic. It is the ordinary content of a document that changes hands between a manufacturer and a seller as a matter of routine, which is why asking for it is a reasonable request rather than an awkward one.
What a certificate would still not tell you here
Even a complete, genuine certificate for this lot would leave the central question on this label open, and it is worth being explicit about why.
A certificate reports on what was tested. If it reports the finished blend as a blend — total weight, heavy metals, microbiology on the mixture — it confirms that 1,200 mg of something clean is in the capsule. It does not say how those 1,200 mg are divided between eight ingredients, because nobody asked it that question.
A certificate that reported each of the eight separately, with an amount for each, would disclose the split. That is precisely what a proprietary blend is designed not to do, and a seller is under no obligation to produce it. If one were produced, it would be the single most informative document about this product in existence.
Until then the only quantitative statement available about any one ingredient comes from the printed order, which caps position k at 1,200 mg divided by k. That arithmetic is on the budget, and what it rules out is on the two left out.
Why a certificate is worth asking for in this category
This is about the category and not about this product. We have no adverse finding for SodaPeak, because we have no test result for it at all, and an absence of evidence is not a finding.
What is on the record is that the FDA has published warnings about products marketed as testosterone boosters that were found to contain hidden drug ingredients not declared on the label. A consumer monograph makes the same point about horny goat weed products specifically, which is the first ingredient on this panel.
That is the argument for a document rather than a seal. A certificate of analysis for your lot is the only thing in this chain that reports what is actually in the material, as opposed to how the factory is run or where it stands. Testing and quality covers the seals and what each of them does and does not certify.
What to ask the seller for
Telephone the order desk Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 5:00pm Eastern Time, or write to them. Six requests, in the order that makes them easy to answer.
- Which lot number was in the bottle you sent me?
- Is there a certificate of analysis for that lot, and can I have a copy?
- Which laboratory issued it, and on what date?
- Does it cover identity, potency, heavy metals and microbiological testing?
- Does it report each of the eight ingredients separately, or the blend as a whole?
- What is the standardization of the horny goat weed, the tongkat ali, the saw palmetto and the boron chelate?
The last question is the one that tells you most about a supplier. A standardization figure changes what a milligram means, and the label states none for anything. A seller who can answer it has specifications from their manufacturer. A seller who cannot is passing on a blend they have not looked inside either.
If you receive a certificate, check the lot on it against the lot on your bottle before reading anything else. That one comparison is what separates a document about your material from a document about somebody else’s.
Checking the bottle you received
- The safety seal. The label says not to use the product if it is damaged or missing, and that instruction is not a formality.
- The lot code. Write it down, with the date the parcel arrived, and keep the two together.
- The expiry date. Check it against how long your pack will take to finish — thirty days a bottle at the panel’s two-capsule serving, so ninety for three bottles and a hundred and eighty for six.
- The Supplement Facts panel. Compare it line by line against the transcription here, including the blend total and the count of ingredients.
- The Other Ingredients line, if you avoid gelatin. It is declared on the panel, and there is bovine tissue in the blend as well.
If your bottle disagrees with anything published on this site, your bottle is right and we would like to hear about it through the website inbox in the footer. Corrections are made on the page, with the date.
References
The sources behind the numbers on this page.
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration — 2023T XTRA Strength Test Booster contains hidden drug ingredient — FDA.gov · source
- WebMD / Natural MedicinesHorny Goat Weed — uses, side effects and adulteration warning — WebMD.com · source
- U.S. Food and Drug AdministrationQuestions and Answers on Dietary Supplements — FDA.gov · source
- U.S. Government Publishing Office21 CFR 101.36 — Nutrition labeling of dietary supplements, including the proprietary blend and descending-order requirements — Code of Federal Regulations · source
See the SodaPeak packs
One, three or six bottles. The price is on the seller’s checkout page, because it is the one figure this site was never given — and a figure we were not given is not a figure we will print.
Shipping and the guarantee term are shown at checkout. This site publishes no number it was not able to verify.