Production planning in the food industry is a specialized field

The food industry places high demands on production planning. You have to deal with limited shelf life, fluctuating demand, strict food safety requirements, allergens, batch production, and raw materials that are not available in unlimited quantities. At the same time, you want to improve delivery reliability, reduce waste, and make optimal use of production capacity.

Many companies still do most of their planning in ERP systems or Excel. That works as long as the situation remains stable. But as soon as a machine breaks down, a rush order comes in, or a raw material is delivered late, it takes a lot of time to redo the schedule. Moreover, it’s difficult to predict the consequences of changes in advance.

As a result, more and more food companies are opting for a smart, data-driven approach to planning.

Why Traditional Production Planning Falls Short

ERP systems are excellent at tracking orders, inventory, and production data. But they are not designed to continuously calculate the optimal production schedule.

A planner must therefore often weigh the following options:

• • delivery times;

• • available capacity;

• • shelf life of products;

• • availability of raw materials;

• • changeover times;

• • staffing;

• • cleaning times.

As the number of products, production lines, and constraints grows, it becomes virtually impossible to assess all scenarios manually.

AI calculates the optimal production schedule

Artificial Intelligence can calculate millions of possible schedules and select the one that best aligns with your organization’s objectives.

In doing so, AI can take into account, among other things:

• • machine capacity;

• • available staff;

• • changeover times;

• • delivery times;

• • customer priorities;

• • available raw materials;

• • energy consumption;

• • production constraints.

Instead of spending hours figuring it out, the planner receives an optimal proposal within minutes. The planner always remains in control and can easily compare alternative scenarios.

Production Scheduling and APS for the Food Industry

In addition to production planning, the food industry also frequently refers to “production scheduling ” or a “production schedule.” While production planning determines what is to be produced and when, production scheduling focuses on the optimal sequence of production orders, machines, and available capacity.

More and more food companies are using an APS (Advanced Planning & Scheduling) solution for this purpose. An APS system goes far beyond traditional ERP planning because it automatically takes into account factors such as:

• • FIFO and FEFO;

• • shelf life of raw materials and finished products;

• • batch sizes;

• • changeover times;

• • cleaning times;

• • allergens;

• • machine capacity;

• • staff availability.

Planwisely combines the power of APS with artificial intelligence and a digital twin. This not only creates an optimal production schedule, but also allows you to simulate various planning scenarios before production actually begins.

Simulation Using a Digital Twin

A key advantage of modern production planning is that you don’t just create a schedule—you can also test it before implementing it.

A Digital Twin creates a digital replica of your factory. This allows you to simulate various scenarios without putting actual production at risk.

For example:

• • What happens if a packaging line breaks down?

• • How does a rush order affect other customers?

• • Is an extra shift cost-effective?

• • What happens if a supplier delivers late?

• • Which schedule yields the highest output?

This way, decisions are based on data rather than assumptions.

Specific Challenges in the Food Industry

Every sector has its own planning challenges. In the food industry, these are often particularly complex because quality, food safety, and shelf life directly impact planning.

FIFO and Shelf Life

Raw materials and finished products have a limited shelf life. Therefore, production planning must take FIFO (First In, First Out) or FEFO (First Expired, First Out) into account. By scheduling the right batches at the right time, you can prevent waste and reduce the likelihood that products will expire before they are processed or delivered.

Batch Production and Allergens

Many food products are produced in batches. The order in which products are scheduled is crucial in this process. Incorrect scheduling can result in additional cleaning cycles or lead to unnecessary product changeovers. For products containing allergens, there are also additional requirements to prevent cross-contamination.

Fluctuating demand

Promotions, seasonal factors, and weather conditions regularly cause significant fluctuations in demand. Flexible production planning helps to respond quickly to these changes without overproduction or shortages.

Limited availability of raw materials

Raw materials are not always available on time and, moreover, their quality or shelf life can vary from batch to batch. Smart planning automatically takes these constraints into account and prevents production lines from coming to a standstill unnecessarily.

Why a Digital Twin Adds Significant Value, Especially in the Food Industry

In the food industry, small changes often have major consequences for the entire production schedule. An additional rush order can lead to changes in batch sequences, extra cleaning, increased waste, or missed deliveries.

By first simulating these scenarios digitally, we gain insight into the consequences before actual production begins. This makes the planning more reliable and better-founded.

The Benefits of AI-Powered Production Planning

Companies in the food industry experience the following benefits, among others:

• • greater delivery reliability;

• • less food waste;

• • better utilization of machinery;

• • less changeover time;

• • less planning pressure for planners;

• • respond more quickly to changes;

• • more effective use of staff;

• • greater insight into alternative scenarios.

PlanWisely: AI-Powered Production Planning with a Digital Twin

PlanWisely combines artificial intelligence with a digital twin to make production planning smarter, faster, and more reliable.

Instead of simply recording what is happening, PlanWisely continuously calculates the optimal schedule based on the current situation in your factory. This allows planners to simulate various scenarios and immediately see which option yields the best results.

This way, production planning is no longer a daily puzzle, but a data-driven process that helps you make better decisions, reduce waste, and maximize available capacity.

Curious about how AI-powered production planning works in the food industry? Contact us for a demonstration and discover how a Digital Twin can optimize your production planning.