The adoption of generative artificial intelligence (AI) within food production lines has been identified as one of the most pressing priorities for food manufacturers in 2025 by a leading weighing, packaging and inspection machinery specialist.
The insight comes from Ishida Europe, who are reporting a spike in interest in this field of technology, especially when it comes to quality control and improving performance in food manufacturing factories. Ian Hodgson, Systems General Manager at Ishida Europe and a team of experts from across the business have already begun responding to growing interest in the implementation of AI from those looking to combat rising energy costs, labour shortages and other supply chain issues.
Ian said: “We are speaking to food manufacturers every day, from global conglomerates through to start-ups, and almost everyone we have spoken to is interested in leveraging AI to help their business and food production lines to perform better.
“Reducing downtime, maximising throughput and improving OEE are especially high on food manufacturers’ agendas going into 2025. Generative AI is perfectly positioned to help with these goals. This form of AI is advancing rapidly and means food manufacturers can rely on software capable of automatically tapping into an ever-expanding knowledge base, feeding back on production issues, and potentially solving these issues without an operator’s intervention. Ultimately, this type of AI transforms a production monitoring system from one merely capable of identifying a fault with a piece of equipment, to a system that actively solves problems and prescribes optimisations in food factories.“
To bring this idea to life, Ishida Europe unveiled its new AI-enabled remote monitoring and production software, Sentinel 5.0 at this year’s Gulfood Manufacturing exhibition in Dubai.
Sentinel 5.0 leverages generative AI to offer predictive maintenance and troubleshooting solutions. The system’s AI-driven anomaly detection highlights issues, triggering the AI to offer solutions and detailed reports that assist operators proactively, before the issue becomes a bigger problem that may introduce potential downtime.
Ian explained: “The new Sentinel 5.0 production monitoring platform can learn the normal behaviour of your machines, send alerts for deviations, and even detect cross-machine issues if one problem affects others in the line.”
Operators can also interact with Sentinel 5.0, asking questions about machine issues and troubleshooting methods, and the software can potentially provide step-by-step guides to remedying specific production issues.
Ian continued: “AI integration not only streamlines maintenance tasks but also allows manufacturers to maximise productivity through enhanced machine performance and reduced downtime. Ultimately, the AI-driven data insights can inform food manufacturers of areas for improvement, whether that’s machine to machine, or from shift to shift, or even from product to product, and it provides more joined-up thinking.”
One of the wider challenges that the food industry faces when it comes to adopting new technology and innovation is capital cost. Recognising this, Ishida Europe has made it as seamless and cost-effective as possible for new and existing customers to upgrade and adopt Sentinel 5.0. Ian also highlights that food manufacturers could see a payback on their investment in AI in a matter of months.
Ian said: “The application of generative AI in food production is advancing daily, and for forward-thinking manufacturers, adopting the technology now means they can begin to see and learn where there might be immediate areas for improvement. We’ve already run very successful trials of Sentinel 5.0 with many of our own customers who themselves have instant upturn on their food production lines, and are on their way to seeing a positive return on investment.”
