Preliminary Product Planning and Equipment Recommendations for Food Production Facilities (Part 1)

Jun. 11, 2025

Food Production Facilities: Product Planning & Equipment Recommendations

(June 12, 2025)


 Preliminary Product Planning and Equipment Recommendations for Food Production Facilities (part 1)


Establishing an efficient food production facility requires meticulous product planning and proper processing equipment to ensure scalability, compliance, and profitability. Whether you are setting up a food processing kitchen for clean vegetable/meat distribution, ready-to-eat meal production, or packaged food, a well-structured approach can minimize risks and maximize output. Many enterprises often aim to build an end-to-end meal distribution system covering the entire process and achieve intelligent production of all categories at one go in the early stage of central kitchen construction. However, the construction of a central kitchen is a systematic project that needs to be promoted step by step.


The construction of a central kitchen must be based on the enterprise development strategy, after sufficient preliminary market research, scientific product planning, and reasonable equipment selection. Meanwhile, attention should be paid to the construction of the post-operation management system. Blind pursuit of large equipment investment and large-scale plant construction often leads to the following problems:


●   Excessively long construction period affecting business development

●   Huge capital investment is increasing operational pressure

●   High operational costs reduce profitability

●   Difficulty in controlling the investment return period
●   All these may cause irreparable economic losses.


As a professional overall solution provider for central kitchens, FXFM MACHINE provides you with the following scientific and reasonable product planning suggestions and equipment selection schemes based on years of industry experience, and details the characteristics of relevant equipment



Ⅰ、Preliminary Product Planning for Food Production Facilities


1.1、Define Product Categories & Market Demand

(1) Determination of Core Product Directions

●   Clarify core product positioning

It is necessary to combine the enterprise's resources and advantages. For example, enterprises proficient in meat processing can take chilled meat and prefabricated meat products as core products; those with experience in vegetable processing can focus on clean vegetables, vegetable salads and other products.

●   Consider the target customer group of products

To supply chain catering enterprises, standardized semi-finished products may be required; for the consumer market, more ready-to-eat meals and packaged foods may be needed.


Preliminary Product Planning and Equipment Recommendations for Food Production Facilities (part 1)


(2) Main Distribution Channels for Pre-cut Vegetables and Meat :

●   Chain Restaurant Systems 

  •      Fast Food Chains 

  •      Hotpot Chains 

  •      Group Catering: Schools, hospital canteens (>60% supplied by central kitchens)

  • ●   Fresh Retail Outlets

  •      Supermarket Pre-made Meal Sections 

  •      Community Fresh Stores 

  •      New Retail Lockers 

  • ●   Food Processing Enterprises

  •      Frozen Food Factories 

  •      Ready-to-Eat Meal Suppliers 

  •      Condiment Manufacturers 

  • ●   Special Supply Channels

  •      Airline Catering 

  •      High-speed Rail Catering 

  •      Military Field Rations 

  • ●   E-commerce Channels

  •      Community Group Buying 

  •      Livestreaming Sales 

  •      B2B Platforms 

  • ●   Export Processing

  •      Japanese Bento Ingredients 

  •      Korean Kimchi Ingredients 

  •      Middle East Halal Meat Products 


Preliminary Product Planning and Equipment Recommendations for Food Production Facilities (part 1)


(3) Product Portfolio Planning

●   Form a reasonable product structure

Including flagship products, auxiliary products and featured products. For example, take Chinese-style set meals as flagship products, match with snacks, soups and other auxiliary products, and then launch seasonal featured products.

●   Consider the production difficulty and the cost of the products

Avoid overly complex product categories, which may lead to low production efficiency.


(4) Product Standardization Design

●   Establish standards for product specifications, quality, taste, etc.

Ensure product consistency and stability, such as the weight and cooking degree of staple food products, and the seasoning proportion of dishes.

●   Define the packaging form and specifications of products

Determine according to market demand and sales channels, such as takeaway packaging, retail packaging, etc


1.2、Food Processing Flow & Facility Layout

(1) Food Processing Flow

●   Raw Material Receiving and Inspection

Upon arrival at the central kitchen, raw materials undergo strict receiving and inspection to ensure their quality and quantity meet requirements. Inspection items include the appearance, color, odor, and shelf life of raw materials.

Qualified raw materials after inspection are stored categorically, labeled, and managed according to their types, specifications, shelf life, etc.

●   Raw Material Pretreatment

According to product requirements, raw materials are subjected to pretreatment operations such as washing, peeling, cutting, and sorting—for example, washing vegetables, cutting meat, and peeling and pitting fruits.

During pretreatment, attention should be paid to preventing contamination and loss of raw materials to ensure that the pretreated raw materials meet production requirements.

●   Processing and Production

Process the pretreated raw materials according to the product's production technology, including operations such as cooking, baking, frying, and steaming.

During processing, strictly control process parameters such as processing temperature, time, and pressure to ensure product quality and taste.

●   Finished Product Packaging and Labeling

Package the finished products, with the packaging form and specifications determined according to product needs and market sales channels. Pay attention to the tightness and hygiene of packaging during the process.

Label the packaged finished products, including information such as product name, specifications, production date, shelf life, and manufacturer.

●   Finished Product Storage and Distribution

Store the packaged finished products in suitable environments such as cold storage or freezers to ensure their quality and shelf life.

Distribute the finished products according to customer needs and order status. During distribution, maintain product temperature and hygiene to ensure product quality and safety.

Preliminary Product Planning and Equipment Recommendations for Food Production Facilities (part 1)


(2) Facility Layout Principles

●   Reasonable Process Flow

Arrange facilities in a continuous assembly line according to the food processing flow, from raw material receiving to storage and distribution. Avoid detours and cross-transportation of materials to improve efficiency. Maintain moderate distances between processes for smooth material transfer and easy operation.

●   Hygiene & Safety:

Layout must comply with food hygiene standards. Separate raw material, processing, and finished product areas. Plan personnel flow, material flow, and air flow to prevent contamination. Use easy-to-clean and corrosion-resistant materials for floors, walls, and ceilings. Regularly clean and disinfect equipment and tools.

●   Efficiency Priority

Optimize equipment and workstation arrangement to minimize movement distances for personnel and materials, enhancing equipment utilization and productivity. Reserve sufficient operation spaces and passages for easy maintenance and operation.

●   Flexibility & Adaptability

Layout should be flexible and scalable, allowing convenient equipment addition and layout adjustment as product types or production scale change. Reserve space and interfaces for future technological upgrades and equipment updates.


(3) Facility Layout Schemes

●   Zoning Layout

Divide the central kitchen into raw material, pretreatment, processing, packaging, storage, and office areas, each with independent functions. Locate raw material areas near entrances for easy receiving/storage, processing areas adjacent to pretreatment/packaging areas for smooth material transfer, and storage areas near finished product exits for efficient distribution.

●   Assembly Line Layout

Arrange equipment and workstations in sequence according to the processing flow. Materials enter from the raw material inlet, go through each process, and exit as finished products. This layout enables continuous automated production to improve efficiency and quality.

●   Modular Layout

Group equipment and workstations with similar functions into modules, each responsible for specific tasks. Suitable for multi-variety, small-batch production, it enhances equipment utilization and production flexibility.

●   Hybrid Layout

Combine the advantages of zoning, assembly line, and modular layouts based on the central kitchen’s actual needs. This approach maximizes the benefits of different layouts to enhance overall efficiency.


Preliminary Product Planning and Equipment Recommendations for Food Production Facilities (part 1)



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