Forbes writes, “Industrialization and globalization of the food industry have delivered cheap and convenient food anywhere in the world”. The invention of plastic has made possible the creation and distribution of a large number of synthetic food products. They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. But do we have a representation on our plates?
What if someone could tell you which five mistakes are costing you the most amount of money?
Discrete vs process manufacturing
Regarding food manufacturing, there are two main categories: discrete manufacturers and process manufacturers. Discrete manufacturing companies produce a wide variety of products, but each is an individual product. For example, a company that makes chocolate bars would have to have separate facilities for making the chocolate and the candy bars, which means it would have to have different production lines for each type of product. Process manufacturing companies focus on producing a single product in bulk and converting it into various forms or varieties. For example, suppose you wanted to make chocolate bars from scratch. In that case, you could have one facility that processes cocoa beans into cocoa powder and another where the cocoa powder is turned into liquid chocolate. Then you could turn that liquid chocolate into solid bars through moulding. Discrete and process manufacturing are two different approaches to manufacturing products that use other processes, but they also have similarities.
The main difference between discrete manufacturing and process manufacturing is that in discrete manufacturing, the product is produced in batches of a specific size. In contrast, the product is continuously made in small amounts in process manufacturing. In addition to this difference, both methods can be used for different kinds of products: discrete manufacturing is typically used for products that need to be made by hand or with specialized equipment. In contrast, process manufacturing can be used for any product. Another difference between the two types of products is that they require different types of workforce. Discrete manufacturing typically requires more skilled workers with experience with specific tasks like welding or machining; process manufacturing requires fewer and more unskilled workers who can perform essential functions like packaging and labelling food products.
Generalized Flowchart Manual – Food Process Manufacturing
Food manufacturing is a very complicated and intricate process. It involves many steps and requires careful planning and execution. The food manufacturing process starts with the raw materials used to make the final product. These raw materials may be acquired from external sources or produced in-house. This is followed by the actual manufacturing of the final product, which may include cooking, baking, drying, freezing or canning it. Once this is done, the product can be packaged further before being sold or distributed for its intended use. Let us get into a little more depth. This will help us identify the stages involving critical pain points.
1) Raw materials
The first step in the food manufacturing process is collecting raw materials. These materials will determine the quality of your finished product, so you’ll want to ensure that your raw materials are as fresh as possible and have been stored properly.
2) Mixing
Once you have your raw materials, it’s time to mix them into a homogeneous mixture. This can be done manually or with an automated mixing machine. Depending on the recipe, you may also need to add additional ingredients at this stage.
3) Cooking/Baking
Next is cooking/baking: heating your mixture until it reaches its final desired temperature and texture. This process can also be done manually or with an automated appliance such as an oven or a microwave.
4) Packaging
Once your food has been cooked, it’s time to package it up for distribution—and this is where things can get messy! After all, you don’t want any of those delicious flavours leaking out before they reach their final destination! The best way to do this is by placing each container directly into another container with airtight seals; however, if you’re shipping in bulk via truck or rail, other options are available too. It is essential for any company involved in food manufacturing to know what their customers want to stay ahead of competitors and create new products that appeal to their target audience. This consists in identifying market trends so they can design their products accordingly. It is also essential for companies involved in this type of business to invest heavily in research & development (R&D). This will help them understand what customers want and allow them to develop new products for sale on store shelves around town!
Mistakes by food manufacturers
The food manufacturing industry is a 1.9 trillion dollar industry. With the growing demand for healthy and nutritious food, it has become increasingly important to maintain high-quality standards of raw materials, production and distribution while keeping cost-effective processes in place. However, many food manufacturing companies struggle with challenges when managing their supply chain operations. It can be attributed to several factors, including lack of proper planning, shortage of skilled workforce and inadequate technology infrastructure. Let us analyze the top 5 major manufacturing mistakes in the Food manufacturing sector.
1. Not having a sound supplier management system
One of many food manufacturing companies’ most significant mistakes is not having a good supplier management system. A sound supplier management system includes all aspects like procurement/sourcing, production process, quality control and compliance with regulatory requirements. It also involves managing relationships with suppliers through various activities like negotiations on price/quality levels or logistics issues about transportation of raw materials from one place to another within the country or even outside it, depending on what kind of business you do as a manufacturer.
When there isn’t a sound system, it can lead to costly mistakes like having products recalled because they were contaminated with foreign objects or ingredients that shouldn’t have been included. It can also lead to wasting money on products that aren’t up to standard or even unsafe for consumption.
Here are the five biggest mistakes companies make when it comes to procurement.
- Not having a formal process for selecting suppliers
- Not setting expectations with your suppliers
- Not having a detailed contract with your suppliers
- Not monitoring compliance with the agreement and policies
- Not being able to justify your decisions
2. Not doing enough testing
Not doing enough testing in the food manufacturing companies is one of the biggest mistakes that these companies can make. Not doing enough testing can lead to severe problems for the company and consumers. For example, if a product does not meet all its intended requirements, it could cause serious health problems for consumers. This could also result in costly lawsuits from customers who have been harmed by products they purchased from your company.
You should be testing your products at every step of the process. This means that before you even start making your product, you need to know whether or not it will work as intended and how it will taste when it’s done. Then, once you’ve launched your product, you need to constantly test it to see how it is performing against competitors’ products and in comparison with what consumers expect from their favourite brands.
When it comes to testing your products, there are five mistakes that many companies make:
- Not testing enough
- Not being thorough with your testing process
- Not including the right people in your process
- Pushing too late in the development phase (or not at all)
- Not knowing what tests should be conducted
3. Not paying attention to the quality of your raw materials and ingredients
The quality of your ingredients is crucial to the success of your food manufacturing business. If you’re using cheap, low-quality ingredients, your product will suffer. Quality can be a massive problem if you sell your products at a premium price since customers will likely be disappointed by their experience and won’t return. This mistake can also lead to health problems for consumers who eat your products regularly. If you are using subpar ingredients in your food manufacturing processes, it’s possible that some of those ingredients could contain dangerous chemicals or bacteria that could make people sick. It’s essential to ensure that the people working in this area have extensive knowledge about all aspects of raw material handling and processing to ensure they get only the highest quality materials possible.
4. Not being able to predict the demand for your products correctly
The food manufacturing industry is one of the most competitive in the world. As such, it requires a lot of planning and foresight to succeed. One of the biggest mistakes made by food manufacturing companies is not being able to predict the demand for their products correctly. The food manufacturing industry can be especially problematic when developing new products or services. If you don’t have enough demand for your product, you’ll lose money on inventory that isn’t selling. When you’re in the food manufacturing business, it’s essential to predict your products’ demand accurately. If you don’t, you might have a lot of excess inventory thrown away or donated. You’ll also miss out on opportunities to sell more of your product.
The best way to avoid this situation is by doing market research before developing new products or services. The food manufacturing industry will give you insight into what your customers want, making it easier for you to make changes before spending too much time or money on something that may not be a good seller.
- Not having any data at all about your customer’s preferences and habits
- Not knowing how to interpret your data
- Thinking that you can’t change what consumers want
- Focusing too much on one segment of your market (e.g., millennials)
- Believing that “what worked yesterday” will work tomorrow
5. Not having procedures in place to test your finished products
Not having methods to test your finished products can be costly for food manufacturing companies. It’s not just about safety but also quality and consistency. First, it’s important to remember that the FDA is not the only governing body overseeing food safety. There are state and local governments and international regulations, all of which can affect your company’s operations. Second, many different types of testing can be done on finished products. Some examples include:
- Microbiological Testing (to ensure pathogens such as E. coli don’t make their way into your product)
- Chemical Testing (to ensure that no chemicals have found their way into your product)
- Physical Testing (such as checking for discolouration or off odours)
- If you’re a food manufacturer, chances are you’ve heard the term “food safety” thrown around by your employees. But have you ever stopped to think about what that means?
- Food safety is protecting your finished products and testing them before they leave your facility. When you don’t have procedures to test your finished products, you risk making a huge mistake that could cost your company thousands of dollars in fines and lost profits.
So, what are some common mistakes food manufacturing companies make when testing their finished products? Here are five:
- Not testing for bacteria
- Not testing for allergens or contaminants like pesticides or heavy metals
- Not testing nutritional content
- Not testing for chemicals like trans-fat (trans fat is no longer allowed in foods sold in the U.S.) and preservatives
- Not testing for pH levels
The mistake cheat sheet – solution
1. Corrective Approach
- The food manufacturing industries should conduct quality checks at every production stage to avoid product quality issues. These checks help detect any defect in raw materials and ensure that no substandard material is used in production.
- Food manufacturing companies should implement proper testing methods to ensure that their products meet all standards set by the government and customers. The testing methods should be implemented to detect any adulteration early enough and take corrective action before it becomes a significant issue.
- Food manufacturers should maintain proper hygiene standards during production so that no harmful microorganisms enter the product. They should also ensure that employees in these areas wear protective clothing and masks while performing their tasks. This will help them remain safe from any infections or diseases that may affect them later on due to exposure to these microorganisms.
2. Preventive Approach
- A food manufacturing company should ensure that all its products are correctly labelled, including the nutritional information, expiry date and other relevant information. Premature expiration of food products can be prevented by using proper storage facilities and checking the temperature at which they are kept.
- As a food-producing company, you should ensure that all your employees are well trained in all aspects of food handling, processing and packaging so that no mistakes are made during the process. The personnel must be given regular training sessions to remain updated about new regulations regarding food safety standards and quality control measures.
- Research & development is an essential aspect of any business; however, few companies take this aspect seriously regarding food manufacturing processes. Manufacturers should invest in research and development activities to avoid losses due to poor quality control or lack of innovation. They must hire experts to help them develop new products with longer shelf lives and better taste than the existing ones on the market today.
The food and beverage industry is a growing sector, constantly facing competition in all market segments. Every day it’s being swallowed into the deep sea of sameness, and only the most innovative enterprises remain afloat. A company’s quality assurance departments are constantly under pressure to ensure products hit the shelves at their peak quality. Thus, lengthy quality control processes are a must. It isn’t easy to be creative if you’re in that line of work. The pressure cooker is always on.
Sangeetha brings 20 years of experience in Information Technology which includes Solution architecting, building micro services, research, and evaluation of business applications, integrating apps.