Demand-driven production system for the sustainable food industry

Purpose and goal

The food industry is well fitted for developing new and innovative products; however it is less efficient in managing the large variety of products and the variations in consumer and customer demand. Through innovative holistic technology development along with improved, customized management and visualization methods, the aim of this project is to support the food industry in developing demand driven production systems, which in turn will lead to less food waste, lower energy use and improved profitability.

Results and expected effects

The project results include the recruitment of new project partners, a workshop for identifying needs and knowledge gaps and possible solutions. An environmental scanning was carried out based on a set of current strategic publications highlighting the stat-of-the-art and current trends relating to food waste and production management. Based on the environmental scanning and the workshop three demonstration projects were sketched for the bakery, dairy and processed meat industry addressing innovative technology and managerial solutions for a demand driven supply chain.

Approach and implementation

The work was carried out within 4 distinct work packages addressing: The recruitment of project partners, Identification of needs, Identification of solutions addressing the needs and Description of the solutions. The recruitment of project partners was carried out all along the project time reported. A workshop was held attracting 28 delegates from 10 different companies active in the food sector. An outcome from the workshop was a list of needs and priorities based on their own experiences. The solutions were then further developed into three demonstration projects.