The Food and Beverage (F&B) supply chain has been one of the worst hit due to the COVID-19 pandemic. F&B brands are preparing to counter the long-term effects of various supply chain disruptions. A clear picture of challenges and opportunities is necessary for brands to build a well-oiled and resilient supply chain.
Top 5 challenges and opportunities in the Food and Beverage Industry (F&B)
Ineffective communication system
- Challenge
-
There are many gaps in the communication process that cause delay in delivering products. These delays lead to food spoilage, or damages.
- Opportunity
-
Food and Beverage (F&B) companies are increasingly focusing on improving their communication processes by investing in real-time tracking technologies.
Difficulty to optimize delivery schedules
- Challenge
-
The volatility in the food and beverage supply chain has made it difficult to optimize predictive delivery schedules.
- Opportunity
-
Food and Beverage brands are investing in proper logistics optimization solutions to eliminate scheduling bottlenecks, and minimize delivery costs.
Complexities in inventory management
- Challenge
-
Numerous complexities surrounding inventory management plague the food and beverage industry like; space management, perishability, scheduling, assembly, and delivery complexities. This results in excessive waste and huge rework, leading to a reduction in profit margins.
- Opportunity
-
The demand for enhanced inventory management software has increased among F&B brands. This helps them in canning goods, food processing and packaging products.
Increasing concerns on food shipping traceability
- Challenge
-
The public has become increasingly aware of food contamination dangers in the food supply chain.
- Opportunity
-
Food safety experts opine that food-borne illness either begins or expands within the food supply chain. Since the Coronavirus pandemic, food and beverage brands are keen on documenting the ‘what, where, when and who’ of the supply chain. This is the best time for food and beverage brands to work on increasing their visibility and transparency.
Coping up with increased e-commerce expectations
- Challenge
-
Unlike other industries, the food and beverage industry finds it difficult to keep up with the increasing customer expectations on e-commerce platforms. They have been slow when it comes to adopting e-commerce, but the pandemic has accelerated this adoption.
- Opportunity
-
This is the best time for F&B companies to gain customer attention and build a solid brand reputation. F&B brands are actively looking out for user-friendly delivery logistics solutions to reduce their delivery timelines and meet customer expectations of freshness and express delivery of food products.
The challenges faced by the food and beverage supply chain are unanticipated due to economic downfall, geopolitical issues and the COVID-19 pandemic. With the use of advanced technologies and strategic initiatives, the industry will witness extensive changes and healthy gains.
One such groundbreaking technology is Locus delivery logistics software that helps food and beverage brands optimize their last-mile logistics operations.
Share this infographic by using this embed code:
