Conagra Brands’ ‘Green Jay’ and Graeter’s ice cream production facility take diverging paths for production, but both facilities meet the aims of their respective companies.
Conagra Brands’ ‘Green Jay’ and Graeter’s ice cream production facility take diverging paths for production, but both facilities meet the aims of their respective companies.
The rising cost of ingredients due to inflation and supply is deflating food and beverage manufacturers’ revenue, which has created movement in this year’s list.
The rising cost of ingredients due to inflation and supply is deflating food and beverage manufacturers’ revenue, which has created movement in this year’s list.
This year’s survey reveals an increase in demand for products, but supply chain and labor issues are preventing food manufacturers from a corresponding increase in revenue.
Survey results show an increase in demand for products, but supply chain and labor issues are preventing food manufacturers from a corresponding increase in revenue.
A line not running at optimum efficiency and producing less than expected might only be second to unplanned downtime in terms of headaches faced in manufacturing—both of which can be caused by a weak link in the production line. We spoke to Craig Souser, president and CEO of JLS Automation, about overall equipment effectiveness (OEE), about maintenance best practices and strategies to use in order to keep a line operating at its fullest.
Vital Farms hatched a plan to create a model of sustainability for Egg Central Station, which is why it’s FOOD ENGINEERING’s 2023 Sustainable Plant of the Year.
It only takes a few seconds after stepping into Vital Farms’ Egg Central Station (ECS) to realize that the company truly loves its egg-related puns. If there’s writing nearby, be it on a wall, memo or bulletin board, there’s a pun not far behind. They’re part of an ethos that starts from the top and flows down the company’s ranks to put a smile on someone’s face, even if just for a second. That idea of doing good extends beyond the facility walls to its other locations, the farmers who supply the eggs, the consumers who buy the product and, finally, to the planet itself. That visible commitment to the environment is why the addition at ECS was chosen as FOOD ENGINEERING’s 2023 Sustainable Plant of the Year.
Clemens Food Group’s Hatfield North facility was FE’s 2023 Plant of the Year Award winner for the project team’s vision and execution of improving business while focusing on human welfare.
Construction projects, like stories, tend to follow a regular, logical progression. Delivery systems vary, but they all typically start with a client’s need, selecting a project team, site visits, design meetings, groundbreaking and so on—but in the case of Hatfield North, the project began with the smokehouses.
Last November, the U.S. FDA announced that it had completed an evaluation of UPSIDE Foods’ cultured animal cell foods and had “no further questions at this time about the firm’s safety conclusion.” While the FDA pointed out that there were still other regulatory hurdles to overcome for cell-cultured foods could be brought to market, namely from the USDA and FSIS, the announcement was seen by many as an important step in adding another option to the alternative protein space—one of a number of trends involving alternative protein in the past year.