As 2021 winds down to a close, the promise of a better year ahead is now much more reassuring. Although the impact of COVID-19 is still palpable in Southeast Asia, many countries are cautiously opening up for business. But much remains to be seen. 

Taking their cue from changes as a result of the pandemic, companies serving the food and beverage market have a lot to take on as they forge ahead; many have carried on well in the face of unexpected issues with supply chain, manpower, and other production woes, while still bearing in mind how to please their consumers with products delivered on time, products that are safe, and services that meet the standards. 

With health and nutrition of tremendous importance to consumers, this issue of FoodPacific Manufacuring Journal features several new ingredients for bakery products, confectionery, yogurt, and snacks which enhance product characteristics as well as raise quality in terms of nutrition. Some of these are Chr. Hansen's Vega™ Culture Kit, Olam Food Ingredients’ sugar reduction solutions, and Euromed’s pomegranate extracts.

The section on automation includes a report on the growing applications of collaborative robots in agriculture, particularly in urban farming where cobots are working as pollinators and harvest partners, according to Universal Robots.  Also read a case study shared by China-based Golden Pak on how it has upgraded its machinery and processes through the company’s partnership with Mitsubishi Electric and Qingdao Keling.