It’s no surprise that Snack Food and Wholesale Bakery magazine is calling ERP “essential for snack and bakery companies” in a recent article, “Snack and bakery companies search for new and improved ERP software”. Concerns around traceability and food safety, after all, very much remain in the post-pandemic era.
QAD Director for the Consumer Products and Food and Beverage vertical markets Stephen Dombroski describes the unprecedented disruptions transforming the marketplace, challenges the food and beverage industry is all too familiar with:
- Fluctuations in consumer preferences, such as plant-based options, healthier foods and locally sourced products
- Changes in dietary habits and growing allergen concerns
- A focus on sustainability and environmental issues in packaging and production
- Supply chain weaknesses exposed and exacerbated by the pandemic
Add these challenges to ongoing compliance requirements, traceability, stringent food safety issues and the pressures on the industry continue to mount.
In an industry outlook article from RSM consulting group, the authors look at how food and beverage companies are still reeling from the pandemic. Cost drivers that predate the pandemic will continue to add pressures. To attract and retain labor talent, manufacturers need to factor in not only wages but effective onboarding and continual training. Logistics costs from global supply chain weaknesses may be here to stay. A competitive landscape may keep companies from passing higher costs on to consumers.
“These issues and disruptions are forcing snack food and bakery manufacturers to rethink how they manage their business from both a process and system standpoint,” Dombrowski points out.
Two Supply Chains in Food & Beverage
When talking about the supply chain, Dombrowski adds that “manufacturers need to speak about both supply chains: the physical and digital.” We know that this means the physical supply chain that moves product, materials and supplies AND the digital supply chain that moves data and information. Manufacturers need to mesh these two supply chains together to achieve their goals and face down the ever-present challenges.
“Snack and bakery manufacturers that can do this consistently are what we call Adaptive Manufacturing Enterprises,” explains Dombroski. Cloud-based, adaptive ERP is secure and can be deployed, scaled and extended while being user friendly. “Snack and bakery manufacturers need an adaptive ERP solution that is simple to implement, manage, and upgrade, allowing resources to focus on strategic initiatives that the market dictates to maintain a competitive advantage,” Dombroski explains.
How Does an Adaptive ERP Help?
The most effective way for snack and bakery manufacturers to respond to business challenges is to automate quality assurance, financial management and human resources with an industry-focused ERP designed specifically for food and beverage, to optimize food safety monitoring, respond to changing consumer trends and streamline supply chain operations. A complete manufacturing and supply chain solution suite helps food and beverage manufacturers automate inventory, operations and supplier coordination, in addition to improving traceability, producing compliance documentation and conducting quality monitoring.
QAD Adaptive ERP gives food and beverage processors and manufacturers the tools to effectively track and trace product, respond to quality requirements and deliver products safely and on time, all while maintaining profitability. It offers forecasting options and integrated planning tools, streamlines production processes and minimizes inventory, among others.
In addition to ERP, QAD also offers food and beverage manufacturers QAD EQMS (Enterprise Quality Management System) to comply with FSMA and related quality requirements, and QAD DynaSys DSCP (Demand and Supply Chain Planning) to streamline sales and operations planning for supply chain optimization.
To learn more about how ERP can enable snack and bakery manufacturers to produce higher quality and safer foods and meet consumer and compliance requirements, read the full article in Snack Food and Wholesale Bakery magazine.
