Food and Beverage ERP Buyers' Guide

Food manufacturing and distribution companies encounter unique challenges that set them apart from other industries. To tackle these obstacles effectively, selecting an ERP solution tailored to your needs is crucial. However, with so many options available, knowing where to begin can feel overwhelming.

That’s where we come in. This guide, informed by insights from industry professionals and project managers, aims to simplify the ERP selection process for food and beverage businesses.

It will help you address critical questions, such as:

• What features should you prioritize in an ERP for food manufacturing?
• Which food ERP software vendors should you consider?
• What are the costs associated with food ERP, and how can you budget effectively?

Key business challenges in Food ERP selection

The food manufacturing and distribution industries face a range of challenges that impact daily operations. To stay competitive and compliant, these issues must be addressed through your ERP system. Some of the most pressing challenges include::

• Compliance and traceability: the food industry, like all consumables markets, is regulated by a number of industry and government bodies to ensure product safety
• Speed: food expires quickly, so inventory needs to be turned around quicker than in non-consumables markets

When building a list of requirements for your ERP, it’s essential to keep these factors in mind. This is just the tip of the potential ERP selection iceberg, so it's worth spending some time on - use this guide to selecting process manufacturing ERP to ensure you’re doing it right.

Which compliance requirements should a food ERP system help me hit?

In the U.S., the two major regulatory bodies overseeing food safety are the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). A good food ERP system should help your business meet key compliance initiatives from these organizations:

• HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points): Identifies potential hazards in the production process and establishes control measures to minimize risks.
• FSMA (Food Safety Modernization Act): Requires each facility to develop a comprehensive food defense plan.
• CGMP (Current Good Manufacturing Practices): Ensures the quality of processed foods and dietary supplements by maintaining standards for production and handling.

For further details, check out our food manufacturing compliance checklist.

Which features does food ERP need?

A comprehensive food ERP should go beyond basic functionalities like financial management and accounting. To truly support your business, an ERP designed for the food and beverage industry should offer features tailored to your specific operational needs.

Core features include:

• Recipe management: This is essential for automating recipe formulation and handling unit conversions (e.g., converting lbs to kg). A good recipe management system can also adjust
• Lot tracking: Bidirectional tracking is crucial for traceability and compliance, allowing you to quickly manage recalls in case of a safety issue.
• Inventory optimization: This should include advanced functionalities such as put-away rules based on product type (e.g., allergens or kosher items), picking and packing efficiency, and integration with the shop floor.

Advanced features:

• Coproduct and byproduct management: Many food manufacturing processes yield coproducts (byproducts that can be sold in secondary markets). A strong ERP system can manage these efficiently, turning potential waste into additional revenue streams.
• Catchweight functionality: In situations where exact measurements are difficult (such as unpackaged meat or produce), catchweight capabilities help convert inexact units into precise, usable inventory.
• Extended Warehouse Management System (WMS) functionality: A fully-featured WMS enhances your ability to reduce human error and prevent spoilage by optimizing storage and handling processes.

For more functionality to consider during your requirements-gathering phase, check out this guide to 70 ERP features to consider for your next software purchase.

Which food ERP vendors should I consider?

Many vendors offer ERP for the food industry. Some of these are specifically designed for food or process manufacturing companies; others are general-use ERPs that can be customized to food-specific processes.

We profile a few of the most prominent below, but you can find an extensive comparison of ERP providers that sell into the food manufacturing and distribution industries here.

ProcessPro ERP: Ideal for small and medium-sized batch process manufacturers, ProcessPro offers recipe management, lot traceability, and quality control—key features for food manufacturing.

Aptean JustFood ERP: Designed for companies of all sizes, JustFood offers flexibility with both on-premise and cloud-based solutions. It’s particularly well-suited for businesses transitioning from smaller systems like QuickBooks.

DEACOM ERP: This standalone ERP is built for multi-geographic batch or process manufacturing needs and is commonly used by larger enterprises. Its comprehensive inventory management and traceability features make it a top choice for food manufacturers.

Aptean Ross ERP: Aptean’s process manufacturing-specific offering is used by process manufacturers of all sizes who need a flexible on-premise solution. Ross is modular, meaning that users can add functionality as and when they require it. The ‘Trace Express’ module provides comprehensive forward and backward trace and product recall functionality.

bcFood ERP: Built on Microsoft Dynamics NAV, bcFood is designed specifically for food manufacturers. It expands on NAV’s core ERP features with quality control, recipe definition, and advanced notification features.

Each vendor brings something unique to the table, so it’s essential to match the ERP’s strengths to your company’s specific needs.

How much does food ERP cost, and how should you build a budget?

It’s not easy to put an exact figure on how much a food ERP should cost you.

WorkWise (now under Aptean) estimates that the total cost of selecting and implementing an ERP could fall anywhere between $75,000 to $750,000 for a small to medium-sized business.

As a start, you can use this ERP pricing guide to gather some baseline costs for a number of ERP systems. Here are a couple of examples from vendors who provide food-specific solutions:

• ProcessPro: $3000 per user (annual subscription)
• Epicor: $645 per user (annual subscription)
• DEACOM: $7000 per user (perpetual license)

Remember: these are baseline prices only. Some vendors will charge more for more advanced features, support packages, training, and implementation consultancy.

Once you’ve budgeted for the price of your food ERP software itself, you’ll need to add the following costs to your overall total:

• New hardware (particularly for on-premise solutions) 
• Extra staffing requirements during implementation (including staff overtime and external temporary staff, e.g consultants)
• Staff training
• Any extra support costs agreed with your vendor