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Last year was an eventful year for the food manufacturing industry, and FOOD ENGINEERING expects many of the major themes to carry over into 2026.

There was a time most maintenance and EAM software operated strictly within a facility or enterprise, but the development of AI and off-premises, cloud-based computing has made it possible to do heavy computing and trending in the cloud. But what happens when the “cloud” goes down?

Bob Garrison, chief editor of Prepared Foods, Kelley Rodriguez, editor-in-chief of Refrigerated & Frozen Foods, and Alyse Thompson-Richards, editor-in-chief of FOOD ENGINEERING, discuss the biggest trends impacting the food industry in 2025 and beyond.

To make good decisions, people, automation and AI systems need quality data — but to let an AI agent make an autonomous decision without input from operators and key decision makers means a processor needs to have lots of accurate data based on real and known sensory inputs, which may not exist in many plants and enterprises.

The agency says agentic AI deployment will enable its staff to further advance the use of AI to assist with more complex tasks, such as meeting management, pre-market reviews, review validation, post-market surveillance, inspections and compliance and administrative functions.

Collaborative robots — or cobots — are gaining traction not just as an entry point to automation but as a strategic lever for resilience and growth. And among them, pre-engineered cobot systems are emerging as a fast path to impact.

Food manufacturers who use today’s demand environment as a sandbox will face future chaos with a prepared AI that knows their operations intimately and can respond faster than any human team alone.

Reduced sensor size, multiple transmitter offerings and advanced software further expand Coriolis flow meter capability.

IFS, provider of industrial AI software, and Boston Dynamics, a leader in mobile robotics, are collaborating to transform how asset-intensive organizations manage and optimize their field operations.

The initiative forms part of Barry Callebaut’s multi-year digitalization agenda, where Barry Callebaut is entering into the AI era and reinforcing the company’s commitment to deliver innovation.