Food Processing’s Food For Thought Podcast

Consumers Hunt Deals on Thanksgiving Meals, and Other Turkey Day F&B Trends

Circana’s vice president of Thought Leadership, Joan Driggs, joins the Food For Thought podcast to discuss the trends driving Thanksgiving shopping for food and beverage products this year. Shoppers are not wavering on the products they want on this American food-fest of a holiday, and retailers and processors, fortunately, are stepping up to offer deals and make the cost a little more affordable for consumers.
In addition, Driggs digs into the Thanksgiving meal — how people approach eating at home versus in a restaurant — when they do celebrate Turkey Day out of the home — and how the Thanksgiving meal remains very heavily homemade. She also implores food and beverage manufacturers to be unique and find ways to promote their products as adjacencies to the main meal, which often supplies a few added leftover meal options in the days afterward.
Check out Circana's 2024 Thanksgiving Outlook for a deeper dive.

How Molecular Recycling Can Help Take Packaging Sustainability to the Next Level

The term “recycling” has been around for decades, but how much progress have food and beverage companies made? And how have consumers been supported in their efforts to recycle?
John Hewitt, senior vice president of packaging and sustainability on behalf of the Consumer Brands Association, talks about where industry stands, and then offers a learning session on molecular recycling — a recycling process that takes the standard, mechanical recycling processes to the next level.

The Innovation Driving Consumer Demand, Acceptance of Fermented Foods

As consumers seek healthier options in their food choices, fermented foods have seen a resurgence in popularity, and Fermented Food Holdings, or FFH, hopes to take advantage of the rising demand. The company recently promoted Jorge Azevedo from chief operating officer to be its first CEO, and he joins the Food For Thought podcast to discuss the company’s growth and its mission moving forward.
In addition, Azevedo offers his insights into the fermented foods marketplace and the demand for those products from consumers, and how FFH is looking to grow not just in the fermented foods space, but also as a functional foods company.

Increase Operational Productivity with Advanced Use of Automation, Data and Labor Best Practices

Food and beverage plants are constantly chasing improved productivity and efficiency, and Bill Remy, CEO for TBM Consulting, joins the Food For Thought podcast to discuss strategies to help them reach those goals.
Remy also reminds processors of the importance of getting skilled workers on board to maintain the equipment at a high level, despite the complexity of the automation being installed, and figuring out a way to transfer the tribal knowledge from longtime workers who leave to the new generation of employees.

Integrate Electrical Safety, Food Safety to Further Mitigate Risk in Food Plant Design

This episode is brought to you by Robroy Industries.
For food and beverage processors, designing facilities, equipment and components requires a sharp focus on mitigating safety risks to product and the workforce. Taken singularly, the bar has been raised for most of these standards.
Yet, as Steve Voelzke, president of the Electrical Division at Robroy Industries, explains, an all-encompassing, wide-lens approach to designing systems around all the standards together can help companies advance safety and reliability in their plants and stay ahead of the curve.
Learn more about Robroy Industries

How to Capitalize on Private-Label Popularity, Target Gen Z Food & Bev Consumers

The popularity of private-label food and beverage products continues to grow, and it’s being driven by a variety of factors from inflation over the years to continued price pressure to the influence of the Gen Z shopper.
Nichole Jones, principal in EY-Parthenon’s retail strategy practice, and Don Johnson, principal in the consumer products and retail strategy practice at EY-Parthenon, join the podcast to discuss what makes this opportunity in private label different from other historical opportunities. They also give insights on how to cater products to Gen Z consumers, as well as strategies for processors and retailers to take advantage and strike while the iron remains hot.

Strategies, Solutions to Ease the Burden of Maintenance on Processing Plants

This episode is brought to you by Regal Rexnord.
Food and beverage processors aim every day to deliver increased sustainable productivity to get products out the door quicker. However, that goal often can be impeded by routine or unexpected conveyor line maintenance.
Barry Voshell, strategic account manager for Regal Rexnord, joins us in this episode to discuss the various solutions in the industry that can reduce maintenance intervals and ease the burden of keeping lines and equipment operating at peak efficiency — a burden faced by both processors and their maintenance teams.
Learn more about Regal Rexnord

Meatable CEO Jeff Tripician Details How Cultivated Meat Can Help Feed Our Growing Global Population

When it comes to cultivated meat, the food industry remains in a holding pattern around what the future might hold for this segment of the meat industry. Some folks see cultivated meat as an uncertainty — and maybe even a threat to the traditional meat industry. Others, however, believe cultivated meat should have a seat at the table regarding how the industry will feed the growing global population with fewer resources in the coming decades and beyond.
Jeff “Trip” Tripician, a meat industry veteran who joined Netherlands-based cultivated meat processor Meatable as its new CEO in May of this year, joins the podcast to discuss where cultivated meat and Meatable’s product line stand today, what challenges remain on the road to full-scale commerce in the U.S., and where he believes the future potential is greatest for cultivated meat down the road.  

Using Robotics to Optimize the Performance of Processing and Packaging Lines

This episode is sponsored by Marel.
In many segments of the food industry, in particular meat, poultry and seafood, manufacturing products requires multiple processing steps to get from live animal to a food portion. Automation and robotics can help processors where speed and efficiency are needed to create uniform, consistent products and package them in such a way that protects the products and attracts the customer.
Thomas Danmark, commercial manager for the Robotics and Batching product groups at Marel, discusses the challenges that processors need to address when implementing robotics and automation solutions, as well as how vision and gripper technologies continue to evolve to improve the speed of the lines, the quality of the products, and the gentle handling of the equipment on the product.
Learn more about Marel

Digital Transformation and AI Implementation: Best Practices for Food and Beverage Companies

Shawn Gilronan is a partner with CohnReznick and the leader of the company’s digital advisory practice. He joins us today to offer insights as to how food and beverage processors can start in on their own digital transformation journey, as well as how the latest wave of innovation has impacted the data revolution.
Additionally, Gilronan gives his thoughts on how the industry can get ready for more artificial intelligence and how to train and educate workers on what AI truly means for the quality of their work, rather than having them fear for their job security.