2017 Trends in Food Processing Operations, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, examines evolving operational priorities across food processing by synthesizing interviews and public data sources from the 2012–2016 period and industry benchmarks. The analysis indicates converging focus areas — workforce development and retention, knowledge capture and documentation, and digital-tool adoption and IIoT-enabled process control — alongside equipment modernization and sanitary design. Emerging patterns show companies tending toward integrated procurement, modular equipment, and greater automation to improve uptime and changeover flexibility; charts highlight comparative segment dynamics and regulatory readiness. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
Published by PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies (authored by Jorge Izquierdo and Paula Feldman) in January 2017. Based on 40 industry interviews and secondary analysis of 150 references from brand manufacturers across nine food segments collected in 2016.
