RESTON, Va. (PMMI) — It’s been a bright spot in a sometimes-dismal economy. Globally, milk production is expected to reach 827 million tons in 2020 —19 percent over 2010 — and dairy product sales are expected to reach $494 billion in 2015. The need for efficiency has been driving that growth, according to the 2013 edition of “Dairy Industry — A Market Assessment,” a new study that PACK EXPO owner and producer PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, will release during PACK EXPO Las Vegas (Sept. 23–25, 2013; Las Vegas Convention Center). The study was last conducted in 2009.
“The dairy industry is very interested in optimizing production, and with that comes a willingness to adopt new technologies and doing more with less,” says Jorge Izquierdo, vice president, market development, PMMI.
As a result, 80 percent of the processors interviewed for this study reported that they’re evaluating their machine needs, and out of that group, 75 percent plan to purchase equipment in the next 12 to 24 months. Wish lists include robotic controls, greater output, more inspection systems and energy-savers like sleep mode.
Technologies like these will be front-and-center at the Center for Trends & Technology (CTT), sponsored by Rockwell Automation and its Partner Network™ Program, at PACK EXPO Las Vegas, Izquierdo notes.
“Line integrations, wireless configurations and diagnostics, mobile solutions, and safety are few of the areas the displays at CTT will cover,” he adds. “They’re also concentrating on solutions for enhanced productivity.”
Dairy manufacturers are also looking at product innovations, including aseptic processing, and changes in packaging shapes and materials, and food safety is always top-of-mind. However, in an industry that is already heavily monitored and regulated, good food safety practices are in place, so dairy processors are focusing more intently on the documentation and record-keeping requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act.
“The study found that increasing production is their first priority, and FSMA is second for two-thirds of the manufacturers,” says Izquierdo. “Dairy processors are performing internal audits and acting upon them, implementing or upgrading their track-and-trace programs, creating a compliance manager job function and working on FSMA documentation. Their future machinery needs will center on easy-to-clean features and data collection that facilitates documenting operations,” he says.
PACK EXPO’s Food Safety Summit Resource Center (FSSRC) (Booth S-7332), sponsored by BNP Media and GE Intelligent Platforms, will feature a roster of food safety experts who can help address these and other FSMA-related questions, he adds. Education sessions at the FSSRC and at Innovation Stage (Booths C-141, -142, -143) will cover the roles data and machine communications play in food safety.
Registration for PACK EXPO is open throughout the show. Register online at Packexpo.com or on site, for $60/person.
About PMMI
PMMI, the Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, is a trade association representing over 600 packaging and processing supply chain companies that provide a full range of packaging and processing machinery, materials, components and containers. PMMI actively brings buyers and sellers together through programs and events such as The PACK EXPO family of trade shows, packexpo.com, PMT Magazine, PACK EXPO Show Daily, networking events and educational programs.
PMMI organizes the PACK EXPO trade shows: PACK EXPO International, PACK EXPO Las Vegas, PACK EXPO East, EXPO PACK México and EXPO PACK Guadalajara, connecting participants in the packaging and processing supply chain with their customers around the world. Coming Up: PACK EXPO Las Vegas 2013, Sept. 23–25, 2013 (Las Vegas Convention Center); EXPO PACK México 2014 , June 17-20, 2014 (Mexico City, Mexico); PACK EXPO International 2014, Nov. 2-5, 2014 (McCormick Place, Chicago); Pharma EXPO, co-located with PACK EXPO International 2014, presented jointly with the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE); PACK EXPO East, debuting Feb. 2–4, 2015 (Pennsylvania Convention Center, Philadelphia); EXPO PACK Guadalajara 2015, March 18-20, 2015 (Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico).
Learn more about PMMI and the PACK EXPO trade shows at PMMI.org and Packexpo.com.