21 Jan Industry 4.0 in the food processing industry- challenges and solutions

Introduction

Our planet has been undergoing drastic changes and facing immense challenges due to climate change in the past few years.  As the world population increases and is expected to reach 9.7 billion people by 2050, the demand for food is going to be unprecedented. Along with this, continuous improvements and upgrades in the food processing industry are also expected with more focus on higher nutritional value foods, producing foods with minimum loss of biodiversity and min environmental impact.

The future demand can be met with some changes in the current food processing scenario.

Before we go into the tech part, let us first have a look at the challenges faced by the food processing industry currently.

Simply put, food processing is the conversion of fresh/raw agricultural products into semi-finished or finished ingredients.

Current challenges

The first major concern is food safety. Food borne diseases and outbreaks occur frequently and some more systems are required to be put in place to control these outbreaks, prevent contamination with toxic substances and ensure safer food.

Another issue faced by the food processing industry currently is to develop ‘better’ plant-based processed foods in terms of colour, flavour and mouthfeel. This is something that can be solved by Industry 4.0.

Quality control during processing of products in the factory currently requires great laboratory infrastructure. This can also be greatly improved in terms of reduction of apparatus and using more tech to make it more compact and quicker.

Food adulteration is a serious issue worldwide which needs to be worked upon extensively and hampers the food industry to a large extent. Food adulteration can cause serious harm to the body and is also a punishable activity by law.

Different Industrial revolutions

Let us now delve into the history of different Industry level technologies available for the food industry.

The first industrial revolution was driven by the steam engine which helped with continuous repetitive tasks and also helped greatly in pasteurization and sterilisation.

The second industrial revolution was inducing electricity in food production. Steam powered equipment was replaced by electrical equipments. A major development in this category was juice extracting machine. Here, refrigeration systems were also developed to store food products which gave a significant shelf-life extension.

The third industrial revolution was focused completely on digitalisation of process flows. Extrusion was a major production process developed during this period. There were remarkable developments in food irradiation systems also.

Industry 4.0

Industry 4.0, also known as the fourth industrial revolution, involves the integration of digital technologies, automation, and data exchange in various industries to create “smart” and connected systems. In the context of the food processing industry, Industry 4.0 brings about several transformative changes. There are various aspects that food processing industries need to adapt in order to compete and survive on a world level.

1 Smart manufacturing and automation

Robotics and automation are going to be major enablers in this area. High level robots have now been designed which can perform complex tasks and reduce manual labour to a great extent.

Automation also helps increase efficiency of production processes. Sensors and actuators are going to play a big role in monitoring and controlling machines in real-time.

Data analytics and automation are going to go hand-in-hand to produce the best output results in production as well as marketing.

AI has received a great deal of attention and is going to be the go-to tool for creativity. In the food industry, its application is going to be for demand forecasting, supply chain management and quality assurance. Ensuring proper hygiene standards and detecting potential risks during food production will also be easier by using AI.

Sample photo of robots doing sorting

2. IoT ( Internet of Things)It is simply a network of things that can be located and identified and are connected through sensors.

IoT devices can be placed on various machineries in the production process to communicate speed, efficiency, inventory and transparency.

3. Supply Chain enhancement

The entire supply chain after production to last mile distribution can be enhanced with Industry 4.0 giving complete traceability and transparency.

4. Cyber physical systems

This involves the integration of computerised and physical processes which can give increased control and monitoring.

5. Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality (AR-VR)

This can be used very effectively in worker training, troubleshooting and maintenance.

Conclusion

Implementing Industry 4.0 in the food processing industry can result in increased productivity, improved product quality, better resource utilization, and enhanced overall competitiveness in the market. However, it also poses challenges such as cybersecurity concerns, the need for a skilled workforce, and the upfront costs associated with technology adoption.

References

• Food processing 4.0: Current and future developments spurred by the fourth industrial revolution (Abdo Hassoun et al, 2022)