“Worker safety” and “worker recruitment,” two themes that play into the above, came in at Nos. 3 and 4 on our list of manufacturing-related concerns. The first two were “food safety” and “cost control.”
One concern that we didn’t offer as an option came up frequently in the comments: supply chain. As one commenter put it: “Supply chain is an issue for us. Cost control was much higher than expected, as we are paying 5-6 times the expected price for ingredients.”
Cost control means dealing with inflation, which will require a higher level of cost management. “With the high price inflation numbers, the majority of the costs are being passed along to consumers and the major players will continue to manage pricing across their supply chain to establish a new supply and demand curve,” says Tyler Higgins, retail practice lead and managing director at consulting firm AArete.
Safety and automation
Food safety was the No. 1 concern. Asked to choose from a list of practices to enhance food safety, the most popular option, at 71%, was employee training. More or improved sanitary equipment was the second choice at 46%, followed by “HACCP plan” at 37%.
Comments revealed other paths to follow. Two people mentioned certification from the SQF (Safe Quality Food) Institute. One referred to “improved cleaning chemicals for CIP” (clean in place). And a couple said simply, referring to the options offered in the survey, “These are all ongoing practices we do every year.”
An ongoing challenge for the industry is digital technology and automation, which we ask about every year. The most popular two response were the same as last year: “replacing paper records with electronic records,” chosen by 61% of respondents, and “replacing analog devices with digital sensors and meters,” at 47%. (Multiple responses were permitted.)
Several commenters mentioned remote access to equipment, by its manufacturers and others, but there was some caution: “Due to security issues, we grant only required remote access to machine controls,” one said.
A big part of the challenge for automation is establishing a workforce that can handle it reliably. Our survey presented a list of options, with multiple responses permitted; the most popular one, at 49%, was “expanding in-house technical training.” No. 2, at 44%, was “recruiting maintenance technicians”; the third choice, at 39%, was “adding in-house engineering capabilities.”
Some of the comments offered some additional perspective. "We are simply seeking [workers who can handle automation] in the workplace. We have added programs to work with new employees out of college to address needs,” said one. “Still TBD as we determine the exact equipment upgrades to be installed,” said another, while another said simply, “Maintenance technicians are hard to come by.”
Our survey also included the opportunity for miscellaneous comments, about whatever is on the respondents’ minds. Some of the more interesting include:
- “Getting more raw produce from a limited number of agricultural fields.”
- “Constant changing rules and regulations at all levels of government need to be addressed more.”
- “Certain cumbersome quality functions could be outsourced, but there are not parties performing those functions, e.g., annual vendor qualification requirements.
While there are databases, there is not a competent source to whom this function could be outsourced in its entirety. A gap in the market place for someone to fill.”
Who Answered the Survey
Our 2022 Manufacturing Survey, conducted online in late 2021, garnered 156 responses from food and beverage industry professionals. In terms of what is manufactured, the most common categories were further-processed foods, at 13%; baked goods, at 11%, and meat/poultry/seafood at 9%. In number of employees, the most frequent range was 101 to 500, at 37%, followed by 11 to 50 at 21%.
