As Food Engineering’s Automation & Manufacturing Conference made clear, processors have to cope with a lot more issues than increased throughput in today’s market.
About 160 industry professionals attended this year’s event in Clearwater Beach, Fla. The three-day program featured speakers from 16 food companies and related firms, as well as the project team from American Italian Pasta Co. (AIPC), this year’s Food Plant of the Year honoree (see Food Engineering, April 2003). Networking events were interspersed with the presentations, including an exposition featuring 80 suppliers of equipment, automation systems and other manufacturing aids. Conference sessions included topics such as plant efficiency, consolidation issues, automation software and packaging, but food safety was always on the radar.