SUSTAINABILITY
The industry is exceeding government expectations on sustainability This year is the first with key targets in the Food and Beverage Manufacturing Priority Road Map, yet the industry is already exceeding expectations. Food & Beverage Industry News explains.
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he Australian food and beverage industry’s future is being shaped by a focus on the importance becoming more sustainable and robust, with government investment and innovation helping to drive key changes. The industry has entered its second year under the Federal Government’s Food and Beverage Manufacturing Priority Road Map, a plan designed to strengthen manufacturing capabilities by overhauling six key areas. The priority road map is part of the government’s $1.5 billion investment into the Modern Manufacturing Strategy which looks to improve multiple industries, including food and beverage. One of the major goals of the road map is to see Australia’s food and beverage industry double in value by 2030 through a focus on smart food and
beverage manufacturing, innovative foods and beverages, food safety, origin, and traceability systems. The road map sets out four areas of approach to achieve the final goal, one by the end of 2022, another by the end of 2025 and finally the result in 2030. The first major goals expected to be achieved by the end of 2022 and centre on several key areas such as increasing manufacturing capability, boosting translation, integration, and collaboration, and identifying new industry opportunities through R&D and smart manufacturing. This will improve processing and packaging through co-investments in translation, integration, and collaboration. The four over arching areas of focus for each step starts with smart food and beverage manufacturing for consumerdriven products, innovative foods and
beverages, and food safety, origin, and traceability for quality assurance. Each has different goals to reach at the two-year, five-year, and 10-year mark of the industry road map. In terms of second year goals, an increase in the use of smart manufacturing is the first critical component. Smart manufacturing will look at automation of control systems with use of robotics and monitoring systems for hygiene, temperature, and other variables. Second is laying the foundations for the application of Industry 4.0 technologies, while the third is wholeof-government responsibility to be coordinated and clear programs for manufacturers laid out. And finally, government and industry partnerships to help identity policy changes to help achieve the
overall vision of the road map. The map defined innovative foods as products with higher nutritional value and the ability to improve health. Interestingly, the market has already seen growth in areas like sugar-free beverages as the consumer demands healthier alternatives. It stated that consumer preferences would shift to convenient pre-packaging meals and high value products, such as products with high proteins. This has so far proven correct with major readymeals providers like My Muscle Chef and Hello Fresh experiencing rapid growth. “Now, driven by both imperative and opportunity, we are adopting a whole-of-government strategy that will see Australian manufacturers scale-up, become more competitive and more resilient,” said Karen Andrews, Minister for Industry, Science and Technology..
The food and beverage industry is now in its second year under the Manufacturing Priority Road Map. 46 Food&Beverage Industry News | April 2022 | www.foodmag.com.au
