PMMI Consultant Jeffrey Barach talks about what food and beverage manufacturers can do to improve product quality and what resources will be available to them at PACK EXPO.

With an increasing demand for ready retail packaging (RRP), a new report from PMMI suggests manufacturers are ready to invest in specialized equipment in order to keep up with industry growth.

The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies and PACK EXPO producer PMMI announced it is accepting nominations for the 2014 packaging hall of fame class to be celebrated at this year’s PACK EXPO International.

PMMI predicts over 400 companies will exhibit on the over 100,000 net sq. ft. of space.

The year’s largest forum for food processing and packaging featured more than 1,700 exhibitors.

As this issue’s cover story explains, the state of food manufacturing is slowly trending upward. But, while business indicators are gradually improving, some of the current challenges in food manufacturing remain unchanged: the need for increased automation, advances in food safety and a more highly skilled workforce.