A Zebra AltiZ 3D Profiler is capturing detailed 3D surface maps of frozen meals to ensure accurate fill levels, detect improperly filled containers, and provide automated feedback to minimize waste and maintain consistent product quality.

By Enrique Herrera | May 26, 2026

Machine Vision Solves Critical Labor Shortage Challenges in Food Production and Packaging

Food and beverage facility leaders face a difficult reality. A significant labor crisis continues to challenge the manufacturing sector, creating immense pressure to hit production forecasts and reduce downtime. According to industry projections, the U.S. manufacturing skills gap could result in 2.1 million vacant roles by 2030, potentially costing the economy a staggering $1 trillion annually. This situation directly impacts the food and beverage manufacturers, where some organizations report productivity losses as high as 40% while operating below full capacity.

This operational strain carries a heavy financial weight. In the United Kingdom, labor shortages cost food manufacturing businesses an estimated £1.4 billion in lost output in the year leading up to July 2022. The constant cycle of hiring and training, driven by a high quit rate, adds to the burden. These challenges demand a new approach, one that empowers the existing workforce and builds more resilient operations.

Seeing a Clearer Path with Machine Vision

Intelligent automation offers a practical and powerful solution. By automating repetitive and error-prone tasks, manufacturers create a higher-purposed workforce, allowing employees to focus on more complex and valuable activities. A key pillar of this strategy involves advanced machine vision. These AI-powered systems provide the foundation for intelligent operations, performing 100% in-line inspection with a level of speed and accuracy that manual checks cannot match. This move toward digitized, automated, and intelligent quality control helps organizations improve manufacturing and production with higher levels of quality and productivity.

Modern machine vision software platforms, such as Zebra Aurora^TM, give manufacturers tools to deploy and manage a full portfolio of machine vision hardware. We design these automation solutions for the frontline to simplify the entire process, from setup to daily operation, reducing training time and complexity. For example, one food manufacturer successfully used machine vision to automate the inspection of "variety codes" on its cans before labeling. This single change reduced manual labor and paperwork, showcasing what becomes possible when you achieve real-time insight.

Another powerful success story comes from Marexi Marine Technology, a company that integrated Zebra AltiZ 3D profile sensors into its automated TUNASCAN system. High-speed machines process up to 20 tons of frozen tuna per hour, scanning and classifying the fish by species and size with accuracy rates approaching 100%. Operating flawlessly in harsh freezing environments without requiring maintenance, such technology demonstrates how advanced scanning systems optimize workflows for the most demanding supply chains.

Automating Quality, One Inspection at a Time

Applications for machine vision in food and beverage manufacturing directly address the industry’s most critical quality control points. Using Deep Learning Optical Character Recognition (DL-OCR), a machine vision system can accurately read date and lot codes, even on challenging reflective or damaged surfaces common in a production environment. This capability proves essential for robust traceability.

Other systems use 3D laser profilers to check for proper fill levels and inspect the integrity of bottle caps and safety seals, preventing costly leaks and contamination. Machine vision technology can also verify that the correct number of items, like cheese slices, go into a package or sort products like fish pieces by size.

These automated checks catch errors at the source, long before they become larger problems. Advanced features can even capture multiple images of a single item with different settings, ensuring a perfect picture for reliable inspection every time.

If you’re ready to optimize production, improve quality, and protect your brand, connect with our team today. You’ll find a partner that understands your challenges and the machine vision solutions that can help build a more resilient future for food and beverage processing, production, and packaging.

Topics

Blog, Transportation and Logistics, Manufacturing,

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