World events and technological innovations have ushered in a new era for the food supply chain sector. How consumers look at, purchase, and consume food has changed drastically over the past several years in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and an increasing desire for complete transparency.

Here is how consumer behavior has shifted in such a short period, the ways that online shopping growth will affect the food supply chain, and what companies can do to provide greater transparency moving forward. 

The beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic exposed weaknesses in the global food supply chain as retailers and food manufacturers worked tirelessly to keep up with consumer demand. But, even earlier than that, traceability and transparency were becoming hot-button issues for companies that wanted to cater to consumer desires to know more about their food as well as a need to prevent product recalls. 

But, before you can make transparency a goal, you have to understand it. Here is what transparency in the food supply chain means, why it’s important, and how some businesses are beginning to address the issue.

Given that prices are continuing to increase alongside customer expectations, lowering warehouse operating costs has become a growing priority for most distribution centers and any business that finds itself "storing stuff." There's much more associated with the cost of warehousing than just space. Warehouse costs involve obvious factors like rent and utilities, but also other elements such as productivity, accuracy, and safety. 

Of course, most businesses have thought about warehouse automation. But, there are many misconceptions around automating that tend to make it seem scary and expensive. The truth is that it's completely achievable and affordable. Here's what you need to know about the true cost of warehouse automation and what it can do for your business.

Technology has become a driving factor of nearly every sector in the modern world. And warehouses are no different. The need to mass produce the handling of materials has necessitated the incorporation of technology in warehouse operations. 

Many of us are just getting used to asking our smartphones for directions or coming to terms with Alexa being a fixture in the home. Voice recognition technology has been around for several decades and is making people’s lives easier and more enjoyable. But, what about in the workplace? And, particularly, in the warehouse environment? 

Believe it or not, voice technology has been a fixture in some warehouses for about two decades. But, similar to those flip phones, what was considered high-tech voice technology in the 90s looks much different today. Here are some of the ways voice technology can benefit your warehouse and a list of the ways you can apply it to your operations.

Distribution center operations may not seem driven by technology. But times are changing rapidly, and anything that facilitates the management and organization of your operations can provide a huge advantage. 

Remember, a distribution center can encompass millions of square feet of space. Managing all of that with pen and paper invites error and can be tedious at best. Fortunately, RFID technology can have a tremendous impact on the modern warehouse and distribution center in terms of efficiency and results.

When searching for ways to reduce costs and improve efficiencies in the supply and distribution chains, many warehouses look to new hardware, software, and processes. But there’s a lot to be said for taking a second look at the labels that you use. A label is pretty much affixed to and used on everything that comes in and out of a warehouse. So poorly designed labels or the processes involving creating them can lead to bottlenecks or inefficiencies.

Fortunately, tech has entered the label arena, and Zebra Technologies has a multitude of solutions for warehouse environments and processes. Here is how your warehouse can leverage Zebra Technology solutions to maximize labeling accuracy and help you gain efficiencies in your warehouse operations.

With the last eighteen months have been unique in regards to how often the supply chain and logistics industries were featured in mainstream news, RFID technology continued to quietly inject itself into more and more corners of the industry – and beyond. While we have all been busy keeping up with the basics of our old supply chain, new versions of it continued to evolve even more rapidly.

We’ve all justifiably spent a lot of time over the last year focusing on the issues our industry is facing in keeping supply chains intact and running smoothly in the face of unprecedented demand and disruptions stemming from the pandemic. Amid all the shortages, delays and price changes, and like an exclamation point on a very memorable year, we also had a global shortage of containers due to the blockage of the Suez canal.

Last month the world briefly experienced a unique drama that involved no natural disasters, lost lives or homes or pile-ups of cars on the freeways. What got the world's attention like it never did before was a giant container ship stuck in a canal! 

While the sight of a large, fully-loaded ship sitting stationary in a canal for week did not have the "drama" of other disasters, it was a disaster in its own way - just a very slow-building one. While no property was destroyed nor lives lost, there was a significant cost to what was really a "Supply Chain Chokepoint" on a global scale.

How much did it cost? Numbers are still being crunched, but some early data points illustrate the monumental impact it had on global trade.

Where are the chokepoints in YOUR supply chain?