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From strategy development to system operation
Digitalization of the Food Industry
To remain competitive and future-ready, the digitalization of the value chain has become a top priority in the food industry. valantic combines industry expertise, process know-how, and technological proficiency to support companies in successfully transforming their businesses and unlocking the full potential of AI.
From dairy to baked goods producers to the beverage industry, for more than 30 years, we have been an award-winning digitalization partner supporting companies in the food industry. We understand their needs as key players in public services, and we are familiar with the complex business environment in which they operate. To remain successful in the face of globalization’s challenges, high price pressure, complex regulatory requirements, and increasing customer expectations, it is essential to use state-of-the-art digital technologies. Our experts will provide comprehensive support for all your digitalization tasks, from consulting and technology selection to the development of IT and AI strategies, customized solutions, as well as implementation and operation. And this in 18 countries worldwide.
Jürgen Brunner
Head of Group IT at Hochland
”We now have a stable and sustainable overall architecture in place. The networking of our systems and data in the digital core opens up a new SAP world, the potential of which we can use step by step with the toolbox of the SAP Business Technology Platform.“
Florian Kellner
Chief Financial Officer of the Bauer Group
”The SAP S/4HANA transformation is a major, future-proofing project for the Bauer Group and will keep us busy over the next few years. In valantic, we have a strong partner with a holistic view by our side, and thanks to the roadmap assessment, a sound common knowledge base for all those involved. “
Sven Markschläger
Chief Digital Officer at Krombacher
”For companies like Amazon or Zalando, it's natural and crystal clear: User Centricity is winning the hearts of consumers. For companies like us, it's a transformation that's happening now. We have recognized that CRM is our channel of the future. And the currency of this channel is customer experience.“
What Drives the Food Industry
Innovation
New products, processes, and business models are driving innovation in the food industry as it responds to shifting markets, evolving consumer demands, and global challenges. Food tech is transforming the value chain from cultivation to the end consumer. From vertical farming and 3D-printed steaks to lab-grown cheese, hyper-automation, blockchain traceability, AI-driven quality control, smart packaging, or personalized nutrition.
Digitalization & IT security
The digitalization of the value chain, facilitated by technologies like artificial intelligence, robotics, or cloud computing, is key to achieving greater customer proximity, efficiency, agility, and innovation in the food industry. Companies in the food industry need to plan strategically, invest in the right technologies and IT security measures, and involve their employees in this technological and cultural transformation.
Market environment
The food industry market is dynamic and demanding. Price fluctuations in raw materials, energy, and packaging increase cost pressure and impact profitability. Additionally, competition is intensifying due to international players and innovative start-ups. On top of that, rising customer expectations, greater price sensitivity, and new consumer trends are reshaping the market. Retail demands, such as purchase prices, as well as competition from private labels, present further challenges.
Compliance & sustainability
Manufacturers in the food industry must comply with numerous legal requirements to ensure the quality, safety, and sustainability of their products – from the cultivation of raw materials to the delivery of food to the retail market. The strict requirements for transparency and traceability as well as required national and international certifications and quality seals result in extensive documentation, auditing, and reporting obligations.
Globalization
Globalization presents both challenges and opportunities for companies in the food industry. The complexity and vulnerability of international supply chains increase in the event of geopolitical conflicts or natural disasters. Regulatory differences must also be taken into account, for example, with regard to food standards, customs, labeling, and packaging regulations, as well as safety requirements. The same applies to cultural peculiarities in the individual markets.
Trends & Perspectives in the Food Industry
Food Tech
Technological innovations are revolutionizing both the entire food value chain and the food system itself with the aim of making it more efficient, healthier, and sustainable. In a sense, the food industry and technology providers are merging, creating a dynamic ecosystem of innovation. Food tech encompasses topics such as smart and vertical farming, alternative proteins derived from plants, insects, or laboratory sources, including 3D-printed meat, as well as smart supply chain management and food waste management to minimize waste.
Health & ethics
Health awareness and sustainability have established themselves as a megatrend in nutrition. Consumers are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of resource conservation and reducing plastic packaging. They question their meat consumption and resort to vegetarian and vegan alternatives. Animal welfare, fair trade, and clean label products with as few natural ingredients as possible are gaining in importance. The new approaches to obesity therapy with GLP-1 agonists also have an impact on consumption behavior.
Functionality & personalization
Functional food, that is, foods enriched with vitamins, minerals, or plant substances, serves a growing global market. Whether ACE juice or a high-protein snack, all these products promise health benefits. In addition to sugar reduction, colors, and flavors, personalized nutrition is also trending, from customized food to DNA-based individual diets. Here, health-tech tools such as apps and wearables enable precise nutrition solutions by collecting biometric data. These advancements are not only transforming consumer habits but also driving innovation in the food industry.
Digital customer interface
Big data, Artificial Intelligence, and automation make it easier for manufacturers in the food and beverage industry to access end customers directly. Apps, social media, chatbots, and e-commerce solutions enable data-driven and personalized customer experience, promoting brand loyalty and innovation. The contact points support new business models, including subscription boxes, direct marketing, and tailored offers for individual preferences.
Robotics, AI & automation
Robotic process automation, the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, and other digital technologies provide comprehensive support to companies in the food industry. They can, among other things, reduce time-consuming manual tasks, increase efficiency and productivity, facilitate more accurate market trend predictions, and accelerate innovation development. Delivery drones hold significant potential for the future of logistics, particularly in urban areas.
Smart Packaging
Smart packaging – packaging solutions with additional features – improve freshness, safety, transparency, and sustainability. Active packaging can, for example, extend shelf life with moisture regulators. Intelligent packaging, in turn, communicates with the environment, allowing sensors to monitor and document status, while augmented reality features provide advanced information. These innovations are paving the way for more efficient supply chains.
Our Solutions & Services for the Digitalization of the Food Industry
From strategy development to selecting and implementing the right technologies, as well as ensuring smooth operation and support, valantic supports companies in the food industry in all aspects of digitalization. By combining cutting-edge technology with deep industry expertise, process knowledge, and a proven methodology, we deliver tailored, future-focused solutions. Our team empowers you to unlock value through innovative technologies and seize the opportunities offered by AI.
The digital heart of every business is a powerful ERP system, whether it’s on-premises or in the cloud. With SAP S/4HANA and SAP Cloud ERP, food and beverage manufacturers will be fit to meet the requirements of a dynamic, networked business world. valantic assists customers with all phases of their transformation projects.
Our service areas:
- In-depth preparation: valantic SAP S/4HANA roadmap assessment to define the target image and project guidelines
- Project management excellence: Clear project management, transparent leadership, and a proven project methodology based on SAP Activate
- Ensuring efficient business processes: Consistent business process management with SAP Signavio. Leverage an integrated toolchain with SAP LeanIX, Cloud ALM, and WalkMe
- Long-term agility, efficiency, and ease of maintenance: Establish the clean core principle and platform-as-a-service architecture with the SAP Business Technology Platform (SAP BTP)
- Integration, expansion, and innovation: Use SAP BTP as strategic middleware, develop new applications, integrate SAP, non-SAP, on-prem & cloud applications, expand system environments, and automate processes
- Exploit the potential of artificial intelligence: valantic’s SAP Business AI helps you create added value with AI
- Systematic change management: Ensure project success by involving employees
- Efficient operation: Professional cloud & application management from valantic
Authorities and consumers demand full transparency from producers: Where does the raw material come from? How was it produced? Which batches are in which product? Companies can meet these requirements with specific solutions for traceability and batch management.
Our service areas:
- Batch tracking: Complete traceability of raw materials and finished products
- Genealogy of products: Documentation of production processes for quick identification in case of complaints or recalls
- Serialization: Assignment of unique identifiers for products and packaging
Short shelf life and fluctuating demand – in the food industry, precise and flexible production planning, along with fine control, are crucial.
Our service areas:
- Resource planning: Real-time optimization for the deployment of machines, personnel, and raw materials
- Campaign planning: Minimize setup times by processing similar products
- Just-in-Time (JIT): Production in sync with demand to reduce inventory
- Batch size management: Optimize production series to avoid waste and increase efficiency
Innovation, development, design, and production must work together seamlessly.
Our service areas:
- SAP RM/RD/EPF: PLM capabilities for the process industry in Core ERP
- SAP IPD: SaaS solution for the discrete and process industries, separately or in the public cloud
- SAP ECTR: PLM capability for the discrete and process industries, including integration of artwork and packaging design
- Additional SAP portfolio: SAP QM, SAP BTP, SAC, SAP Ariba, SAP EPPM, SAP product compliance
Master Big Data and use data in a targeted manner. We help companies quickly perform accurate analyses, create optimized reports, and make data-driven decisions.
Our service areas:
- Intelligent data management with SAP BDC
- Real-time dashboards: Visualize key metrics such as OEE, throughput, downtime, and quality rates
- Traceability reporting: Create traceability reports for audits or analyses
- Performance analytics: Identify production vulnerabilities using historical data
- KPI monitoring: Monitor key metrics such as scrap, efficiency, and production time
The food industry must meet environmental, social, and governance (ESG) requirements. Taking sustainability into account across the board is both a challenge and an opportunity for companies.
Our service areas:
- ESG Consulting: Developing and implementing ESG strategies
- CO₂ reduction: Optimize energy-intensive processes, use of SAP sustainability solutions
- Waste management: Recycling of by-products, minimizing production waste
- Consumption measurement: Integration of energy and water consumption data into the MES
- Sustainability reporting: Analyze production data to optimize resource utilization
Hyper-automation and AI are playing an increasingly important role in food companies’ research, production, and logistics, for example, to optimize processes and products, individualize recipes, or conserve resources.
Our service areas:
- Development of AI strategies and use cases, for example based on SAP Business AI, and their implementation
- MS-ERP integration: Automated information flow through networking with ERP systems (e.g., SAP)
- IoT and IIoT usage: Monitoring and control of production using IoT sensors
- Cloud and edge computing: Processing and storage of production data with state-of-the-art technologies
- Safety standards: Protect against cyberattacks and ensure IT security
Selected References in the Food Industry
- SAP
- SAP S/4HANA
- SAP Signavio
Hochland sets standards with international SAP S/4HANA transformation
- FMCG
- CX
- CDXP
- Bloomreach
- Salesforce Service Cloud
- elastic.io
- Bloomreach
- Salesforce
- elastic.io
Krombacher establishes direct customer relationship
- SAP
- SAP Analytics
- SAP Analytics Cloud
- SAP S/4HANA
Burgis analyzes its sales thanks to comprehensive revenue reporting in SAP SAC
- SAP S/4HANA
- SAP
- SAP S/4HANA
SAP S/4HANA Roadmap: Bauer takes the next step toward innovation
Lorenz optimizes material creation processes in SAP with Master Data Cockpit from valantic
Center of Gravity analysis and logistics tendering at Hitschler
- SAP
Automated SAP master data maintenance for Südzucker
- E-Commerce
- UX/UI
- Shopware
Melitta makes coffee a pleasure – online, too
valantic as a Digitalization Partner for the Food Industry: What Sets us Apart
From raw materials to the shelf, digitalizing the value chain demands more than just innovative technology. Success relies on partners who truly understand your industry and can drive effective implementation and transformation. Our experts have deep expertise in the requirements and processes of the food industry and work closely with you to implement tailor-made solutions. Our mission is to help you maximize the value of your project and secure long-term success for your business. We stand for:
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Expertise & implementation power
With more than 4,300 experts and many years of project experience, valantic supports our customers’ digital transformation, from strategy development to implementation. To do this, valantic combines the advantages of decentralized entrepreneurship with the strength of a large organization.
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Proven results
Bauer, Ehrmann, Hochland: Our references from renowned manufacturers from the food industry demonstrate how our clients drive their digitalization forward with valantic.
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Customer orientation & technology neutrality
Our focus is on our customers. We integrate exactly the solutions that will have the most significant impact. It doesn’t matter to us where the technology comes from, but how it advances your business.
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Specific food & beverage practice
valantic’s food & beverage practice ensures the seamless integration of industry expertise, technology expertise, and process know-how. Our experienced team handles the implementation of complex projects from strategy development to IT operations.
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Excellent advice
We are proud of our numerous “Best Consultant” awards, including once again from Brand eins and Statista in the “agar, food and beverage” industry.
Some of our Technology Partners
We work closely with leading technology providers to deliver the most appropriate solutions for our customers.
Your Contact
Kim An Nguyen-Weigand
Vice President & Head of Sector Consulting Food & Beverage
valantic