Labor shortages are nothing new for food and beverage processors, but the ongoing pandemic has created new challenges.

With women’s workplace progress stalled across some industries despite their increased pursuit of higher education and skill building, the Women’s Foodservice Forum (WFF) is expanding its mission to include both women’s leadership development and providing strategies to the food industry to eliminate barriers, accelerate advancement, and lead the way to gender equity with data-driven solutions.

According to research by the Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, almost a third of food processing operations already use robotics in their facilities. What’s more, half of those surveyed said they will increase their level of automation in the next three to five years. However, not every food manufacturer is an automation convert.