Clemens Food Group opens its second greenfield pork plant, this one in Hatfield, Pa.

When we recently surveyed architectural and engineering/construction firms (A&E/Cs) and asked what trends or forces they see driving automation projects, every firm mentioned “labor” or “workforce availability” in its initial response.

A greenhouse automation system can’t afford to make mistakes, because losing control of a single crop is prohibitively expensive.

This year’s plant construction survey hit the highest number of projects ever recorded.

FSMA’s Intentional Adulteration rule is still a work in progress for some sites, meanwhile processors and retailers are eyeing indoor grow facilities.

For locating facilities, operators look for geographical areas with an employable workforce and adequate logistics.

Cell-based milk, similar to cell-based meat, doesn’t need the animal—saving water and producing a lot less greenhouse gas too.

Processors are turning to automation to fill jobs where people are unavailable.

Good data—and lots of it—is key to making artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) production, inspection and packaging systems work without a hitch, plus well written algorithms to analyze the data and make decisions that will help people and machines function more intelligently.

Consumers may discard the stems of mushrooms when they prepare salads, or use them in cooking, but startup Chinova Bioworks has found a way to make use of the fibrous stems of white button mushrooms.