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The journey from farm to fork has never been more complex or more critical. As global demand rises and consumer expectations evolve, the food and beverage industry is under increasing pressure to deliver products that are not only safe and high-quality, but also sustainable, innovative and transparent. Deb Roepke, senior market development specialist for production process and analytics; and Kyle Mcnally, senior market development specialist for analytical instruments, from Thermo Fisher Scientific’s chemical analysis department, explore.

The food and beverage industry is undergoing a significant transformation. Collectively challenged by feeding a growing population, accommodating shifting consumer preferences and prioritising sustainability, every stage of the food value chain is under scrutiny. To navigate this complexity, food scientists, producers and manufacturers are turning to advanced analytical technologies that bring precision and confidence to every decision.

These cutting-edge tools, coupled with strong partnerships with technology providers, enable industry professionals to ensure safety, quality and transparency. Whether creating new varieties of food products, such as plant-based ‘meat’ products, or meeting international trade regulations for toxin-free foods before export, modern instruments, software and digital ecosystems help food and beverage producers adapt and thrive in an evolving industry.

Tech-led innovation to meet consumer expectations

In recent years, consumers have been prioritising health and wellness. From drinking non-alcoholic cocktails to upping their protein intake, many are interested in buying products that meet their modern lifestyle. Even traditional markets like soda have been upended by health-conscious consumers choosing to pop open probiotic-enhanced beverages over regular or sugar-free offerings. This has forced food and beverage makers to innovate to stay competitive. Advanced technologies, such as extrusion and rheology, are essential for characterisation and quality assurance in research and development.

When food engineers are developing a new product, they need to consider the different properties and flow behaviour of food products, as it can impact everything from texture to mouthfeel. Rheometers can help R&D teams understand technical requirements that will help the end product meet consumer expectations, such as steady shear viscosity, yield stress, viscoelasticity, morphology, droplet size distribution and stringiness.

Take vegan cheese, for example. Makers of plant-based dairy alternatives must have accurate rheological measurements that can be used to quantify the viscoelastic properties of cheese-like formulations, as consumers expect a similar look and feel compared to milk-based dairy products.

Twin-screw extruders are also essential to production, especially for the encapsulation of flavours and mixing active ingredients. Food extrusion is a versatile and cost-effective technique that helps producers make a variety of food products, from candies to breakfast cereals, that can be customised with specific textures, shapes and nutritional profiles.

Consumers today are also demanding more sustainable food and beverage products. Technologies like process mass spectrometers sit at the intersection of sustainability and innovation, enabling the development of bio-based food products that use novel enzymes and alternative proteins. Because these ingredients can greatly impact texture and flavour, producers need highly precise, real-time insights throughout development. This helps them not only make safe, high-quality products that consumers want to enjoy, but also optimise their process.

Scientific rigour in food analysis

In addition to maintaining process control, advanced analytical technologies are also essential for food and beverage analysis. Quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC) labs use analytical techniques like ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, rheology and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis to ensure product quality, integrity and safety.

UV-Vis analysis offers a quick and simple way to test for things that contribute to quality and integrity, such as colour validation, authentication of ingredients and composition. This is especially important for producers of beer, wine, honey and oil, as they have definitive characteristics and need to remain within specification.

Continued vigilance throughout food and beverage production is required to identify any unwanted contaminants, such as pieces of metal or rubber debris, that may contaminate the final product. FTIR spectroscopy can provide rapid analysis that producers need for QC testing and material identification on everything from snack food to dairy products. Handheld XRF analysers can be deployed for non-destructive, in-line testing to ensure foreign bodies don’t make it into final packages. With these technologies, food and beverage manufacturers can send safe and delicious products to stores around the world.

Prioritising efficiency and safety in production

Once the food and beverage products make it to the final stages of manufacturing, there are essential tools that can be used to improve food weighing and inspection. From checkweighers and web gauging platforms to metal detectors and X-ray systems, these cutting-edge technologies are highly sensitive and can enable the detection of even the smallest contaminants.

X-ray inspection systems scan for both metallic and non-metallic contaminants, delivering additional quality control when it’s needed most. Checkweighers and inline scales can weigh, count and reject packaged products that may be over-or under-filled. Depending on the size and scale of the operation, some makers may choose a combination system, which is designed to provide a wide range of weighing and contaminant detection capabilities in a condensed footprint.

With advanced analytical technologies in their toolkits, food manufacturers, processers and packagers can eliminate costly errors as they look to consistently deliver high-quality products that meet rigorous safety standards.

A connected ecosystem for the future of food

There’s a wide variety of technologies that can help address challenges in different stages of food and beverage manufacturing, and utilising them from farm to fork will be critical as the industry continues to evolve. Technology will evolve, too, as digital technologies make way for seamlessly connected operations and adopting next-generation solutions enables deeper insights. By collaborating with a technology provider, industry professionals can determine which solutions they need today and feel empowered to innovate in the future.

Whether it’s consumer preferences, the need to have holistically more sustainable operations or changing regulatory guidelines, modern technologies can take the guesswork and stress out of making products that their customers want to buy. While secret recipes may be coveted across the food and beverage industry, it’s no surprise that advanced analytical technologies are the key ingredient when it comes to quality and safety.