Quality/

Compliance:

Competitive

Pressures

Seasonal

Supply

Limitations

Employee

Satisfaction

Inventory

Management

and Logistics

Shelf-life

Awareness

Sustainability: Technology

Needs:

Evolving

Distribution

Outlets:

FARM FACTORY TABLE 

The Food and Beverage Manufacturing Industry 

How many people does the industry employ? 

US Food and Beverage Manufacturing Employment, 2019 

Animal Food (56,889) 

Grain & Oilseed Milling (58,623) 

Sugar & Confectionery Product 

Manufacturing (81,524) 

Dairy Product Manufacturing 

(151,698) 

Fruit & Vegetable Preserving & 

Specialty Food Manufacturing 

(162,402) 

Other Food Manufacturing 

(222,882) 

Beverage Manufacturing (243,534) 

Seafood Product Preparation 

& Packaging (31,026) 

Tobacco Manufacturing (12,661) 

Animal Slaughtering 

& Processing (532,575) 

Total Employment: 

1,837,494 

Bakeries & Tortilla 

Manufacturing (296,341) 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2019 County Business Patterns 

Where do food & beverage manufacturers represent the largest portion of manufacturing establishments? 

Food & Beverage Manufacturing Establishments as a Percent of Total State Manufacturing Establishments 

WA 

MT ND 

NH 

VT ME 

OR 

ID SD 

MN 

WI NY 

MA 

RI 

20 - 38% 

WY MI 

IA PA NJ

CT 16 - 19%

NE NV OH IN DE UT IL 

CO WV 

CA VA MD KS MO KY 

NC DC 

TN 

AZ OK NM AR SC 

MS AL GA 

TX LA AK 

FL 

HI 

Industry 9 Challenges 

(What Manufacturers Face) 

Key Challenges and Trends 

 National regulations:  Packaging/labelling  Cloud computing 

FSMA (Food Safety  Production  Supply chain analytics Modernization Act) 

 Distribution  Embedded analytics  State regulations 

 Water and waste  Mobile access  Third party management certifications: GFSI  Artificial intelligence (Global Food Safety  Decarbonization 

Initiative)  Assurance of product/ 

ingredient traceability 

Consumer 5 Trends 

(What People Want) Green/Eco Recycling Dietary Plant-based Food 

Sources Ease Restrictions Foods Safety 

How Food Gets from There to Here 

Consumed with 

minimal processing 

Start: 

Farm 

Inputs into 

processed 

products 

Meat 

Processing 

Next stop: 

First Level 

Processing Measuring/ 

Weighing 

Oil/Seed 

Crushing 

& Refining 

Grain 

Sugar Milling 

Refining Dairy 

Processing 

Final stop: 

Your 

Plate 

Manufacturer 

MEP Center 

Challenge 

Solution 

Results 

Next stop: 

Secondary 

Processing 

Boiling/ 

Mixing 

Next stop: 

Retail or 

13 - 15% 

11 - 12% 

≤ 10% 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 

2019 County Business Patterns 

 E-commerce/ home 

delivery services 

 Personalization 

(e.g., ingredients 

based on health 

needs, 3D printing, 

allergen scanners) 

Packaging 

Assemby/ 

Portioning 

Baking/ 

Drying 

Shaping 

(dicers, extruders) 

Food Service 

Outlets 

Supermarkets, Convenience Stores, 

Drugstores, Gas Stations, Restaurants, 

Cafeterias, Hospitals, Institutions 

MEP National Network Expertise: A Vital Ingredient for Its Clients 

APC Paper, uses 

100% recycled 

product to produce 

consumer products 

and food packaging 

CITEC, part of NY 

MEP (New York) 

Compliance to both 

the FSMA, to prevent 

contamination, and 

to Federal Trade 

Comission Green 

Guides, which 

implemented new 

recycled material 

definitions. 

Food safety 

guidelines review 

and development 

of a food safety plan. 

Recycled material 

guidelines review 

and development 

of labelling system. 

 $7,770,000 in 

retained sales 

 $2,890,000 in new 

investment and 

sustainability 

Olympia Provisions, 

craft charcuterie 

manufacturer 

OMEP (Oregon) 

Improving training for 

entry-level production 

employees. 

Developed 

standardized training 

materials, improved 

cross-training 

between 

departments. 

 5 jobs created 

 $297,000 in cost 

savings 

 40% reduction in 

training time for 

entry-level 

positions 

New Mexico Sabor, 

salsa maker 

New Mexico MEP 

(New Mexico) 

Business growth 

meant higher fees for 

shared commercial 

kitchen and 

increased inefficiency 

of equipment and 

ingredient deliveries. 

Creation of inventory 

control spreadsheet, 

changes in 

production process, 

and development of 

future plant layout for 

owned facility. 

 20% reduction in 

kitchen and staff 

time and 

equipment rental 

led to cost savings 

 Cut direct 

expenditures by up 

to $320 a month 

 Actionable growth 

plan that minimizes 

risk 

Cream of the West, 

natural cereal 

products 

MMEC (Montana) 

Increase number of 

employees qualified 

in Hazard Analysis 

Critical Control Point 

(HACCP) principles 

and prepare for Good 

Manufacturing 

Practices review. 

Gap analysis of 

manufacturing 

practices and specific 

strategies to resolve 

them. 

 $25,000 in new or 

retained sales 

 3 created or 

retained jobs 

 $10,000 in new 

investment 

Fluker’s Cricket 

Farm, Inc., supplying 

crickets, feeder 

insects, and supplies 

to the fishing industry 

MEPOL (Louisiana) 

Improving weakest 

segments of 

business processes. 

The performance of a 

360° GrowthWheel 

Assessment and 

creation of 

action-focused 

processes to build 

the business. 

 $250,000 in 

increased or 

retained sales 

 80 new or 

retained jobs 

 $250,000 in new 

investments 

 $100,000 in 

cost savings 

 $500,000 

investment in 

new products 

www.nist.gov/mep/mep-national-network 

1-800-MEP-4MFG 

Sources: Top 8 challenges of food and beverage industry to watch out for, Iyer, Saipriya, Global Market Insights, 5/13/20; The top 5 challenges food and beverage manufacturers are facing today, Infor Blog, 12/23/19; Challenges for Food Manufacturing, Ray, Linda, Houston 

Chronicle.com; Main Challenges facing Food Manufacturing Companies in 2017, agile/chilli, 1/16/17; Supply Chain Analytics Solutions for Food and Beverage Companies – A Quantzig Case Study, quantzig.com; Solutions to Some of the Most Common Problems in Food 

Manufacturing Facilities, Taylor, Sam, 8/12/19, stancold.co.uk; 2020 State of Food Manufacturing Survey, Laughman, Casey, foodengineeringmag.com, 9/29/20; Innova Identifies Top 10 Food and Beverage Trends to Accelerate Innovation in 2021, 10/20/20; Trends and 

Advances in Food Packaging & Processing, Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies (PMMI); Why More Training? FPSA News, 9/15/20; Making a business case for your food facility expansion, Kulkarni, PhD, Niranjan, crbgroup.com; Plant-based food 

manufacturing, Robertson, Jason, crbgroup.com; Food Retailers Put Technology Front and Center, Baker, Doug, Food Industry Blog, 11/5/20; Innovation is the Future of Food Safety, Eisenbeiser, MS, CFS, Ashley, Food Industry Blog, 11/4/20; What the Food Industry needs 

to Know about the FDA Food Traceability Proposed Rule, Thesmar, PhD, RD, Hilary, and Harris, Stephanie, Food Industry Blog, 10/27/20, The Food Company of Tomorrow?, Wiley, Carol, foodindustryexecutive.com, 10/26/20; Industry Sectors, The Global Food Equipment 

and Technology Show, Food Processing Suppliers Association (FPSA); Economic Contribution of the Food and Beverage Industry, Committee for Economic Development, The Conference Board, 3/2017