F&B exploring S&T for growth in 2020 The year 2019 saw the rush of next generation technologies such as Artificial Intelligence AI and the Internet of Things IoT being singled out as driving innovation in a number of industries. The Food & Beverage F&B industry was also not far behind and started embarking on its biggest transformation in decades, leveraging new technology to improve food quality, increase plant efficiency and boost productivity. In the past year, food and beverage manufacturers have benefited hugely from the implementation of Industry 4.0 and plan to continue to do so in 2020 as well. The F&B industry, which is expected to see a growth rate of 7.2 per cent, is moving towards investing constructively in science and technology S&T to address the existing challenges of unhealthy eating, poor nutrition, sustainable packaging and supply chain management etc. in 2020.