Time to market is critical for food processors: logistical issues play a major role in...

THE FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRY IS USUALLY IMMUNE TO THE WHIMS OF the economy. Whether the economy is on a roll or stagnant, consumers have to eat.

That's not to say that the industry is immune to all outside influences. Food safety continues to be a major issue that the industry has to deal with. The recent outbreak of E. coli 0157:H7 in bagged spinach forced supermarkets and other retail outlets to remove the product from their shelves. The beef industry is still coping with one case of mad cow disease in December 2003, which led to a suspension of beef exports, most no