"Consumers are already impacting changes in packaging, such as the push for more sustainable materials and packages that meet a particular need, like single-serve packages for on-the-go consumption and multi-compartment packaging for convenient ready meals. You can expect more of that in 2020 and beyond," King says.

"Inspection technologies are keeping pace with and are often in front of such market forces to help manufacturers reach their goal of providing safe, satisfying products."King shares Eagles predictions on emerging packaging and inspection trends for 2020, along with examples of solutions:

Versatility: As food and beverage manufacturers produce a greater and more diverse range of offerings, they will seek versatile systems that allow for different package formats and easy changeover.

"There will also be a greater degree of line consolidation, as manufacturers work to get more out of their systems. That ties into versatility as well," King remarks.

To meet demands for such versatility, Eagle continually updates its inspection technologies, with new systems like the EPX100, used to inspect a broad range of hard-to-find contaminants in a variety of packaging formats, using adjustable power settings.

Speed: "Food and beverage companies will also strive for increased throughput rates," projects King.

To keep up with demand from retail and foodservice customers, manufacturers will invest in equipment that maximises line efficiencies and uptime. For inspection systems, that means x-ray equipment that can keep up with targeted throughput without sacrificing accuracy, and that offers better overall equipment effectiveness to run optimally as long as possible.

Automation: As manufacturers run faster and more nimble operations, they are also operating leaner, in an economy with low unemployment and high turnover rates. Greater automation and the utilisation of robotics will become more common in such settings, according to King, but such features need to be integrated with inline inspection systems to ensure that contaminants are found and removed and that quality checks, like component count, mass measurement, product integrity and more, are regularly and properly conducted.

Responsible packaging: More than two-thirds or 68 percent­ of consumers say its important for them to choose "responsibly packaged" foods or beverages, according to a recent Evergreen Packaging report on packaging trends. Responsible packaging encompasses various elements of packaging, including more sustainable materials and formats, as well as products packaged in a way that ensures quality, integrity and safety for the end-user.

Accordingly, many companies have announced packaging changes as part of their overall drive toward responsibility, and are working with or pursuing new materials and forms, including packaging made from renewable materials or recyclable materials. Todays x-ray systems are versatile enough to inspect a variety of package types, including flexible and rigid packaging and the many formats that fall under those categories. Advanced inspection covers another facet of responsible food and beverage production and packaging: food safety and quality that can be traced and verified. X-ray systems driven by powerful software allow manufacturers to provide more information about the products and trace back packages to the point of inspection, with important production information and images.

"Its not mandatory yet to have item-level traceability for food and beverage products, but with the increased complexity and demands on the supply chain, manufacturers are looking for solutions to meet these needs," says King.