SIEMENS AG noted the digitalization of the Philippines’s food and beverage (F&B) industry is promising. Digitalization is particularly important for the Philippines, as the country is growing rapidly in terms of population and production capacities, according to the German conglomerate company.
“Digitalization would lay the foundation of how the local [F&B] industry will perform in the next few years and be able to compete with other countries in the region,” a statement by Siemens AG said.
The Berlin and Munich, a Germany-headquartered firm, defines digitalization as the interaction of the virtual and real world.
“It is a major trend and innovation driver, creating completely new business and growth opportunities for companies,” said Roland Heymann, head of Siemens AG Global Food and Beverage Technical Account Management. “Digitalization of the entire value chain is crucial for catching new trends and ensuring competitiveness.”
The F&B industry in the Philippines is a highly competitive one, and it is expected to amount to approximately $26 million in revenue this year, Siemens said, sans citing where it acquired the data.
“For manufacturers in the industry, operating productive production facilities requires many factors for consideration, including a consistently high level of product quality, maximum plant availability, optimum resource efficienc—and, increasingly, the greatest possible flexibility in order to meet more and more individual customer requirements,” Heymann said.
Additionally, about 1.3 billion tons of food—which is about a third of all that is produced—around the world is wasted due to factors, such as poor equipment, transportation and infrastructure, rejection due to aesthetics, and overpurchasing.
The supply chain has to be more agile to allow companies to produce the right amount of products to cater to consumer demands, at the right time and at the right location, according to Heymann
“Digitalization is an integral part of the industrial revolution. You have this shift coming,” Enrico Buergo, Siemens Philippines vice president and country division lead, was quoted in a July 18 statement as saying. “It’s about the analysis, integration and standardization. We’re bringing it here to kick-start a very vibrant market, which is food and beverage, and we really want to use it as a way for each company to achieve whatever it is they are aspiring and not to be left in the game.”