When selecting ovens and proofers, labor savings and remote monitoring are at the top of bakers and snack makers lists.

The novelty non-chocolate segment is the largest and fastest-growing in the category.

When selecting belts and conveyors, snack and bakery producers prioritize automation and sanitation.

As is the case with many bakery products, better-for-you is a leading subcategory.

Greater efficiency, ease of sanitation, the ability to reduce labor, and more automation—along with the ability to download data—top the list of features and benefits that snack food and bakery companies are seeking from slicing, cutting, and portioning equipment. 

Snack food and bakery companies are looking for a number of features and benefits from seasoning and coating equipment, but machines that keep those seasonings and coatings evenly spread on their products probably top the list.

Like all types of food operations, snack food, and wholesale bakery plants need to monitor and maintain quality control, which prompts the need for inspection and detection equipment and technology to ensure that particles of glass, stone, and other contaminants don’t inadvertently get mixed into their formulations.

Top of mind for snack food and wholesale bakery companies who in the market for new or improved mixers are qualities like consistency, temperature control, and the ability to distribute raw materials fast and efficiently.

Picking robots, automated storage and retrieval, and software that predicts future demand are among a host of technology, equipment and strategic changes that snack food and wholesale bakery companies are undertaking in their warehousing and logistics functions.

Although the tortilla category is prospering overall and should continue to do so, labor shortages are prompting producers’ interest in automation—as long as the quality can be kept high—while tortilla consumers have turned toward healthier options and innovative flavors.