The days of forecasting demand using historical sales data alone are disappearing fast.

For food and drink manufacturers, demand is no longer shaped by predictable seasonal patterns or traditional marketing campaigns. Instead, it can be driven overnight by a viral TikTok video, a celebrity endorsement, a new health trend or changing consumer habits influenced by GLP-1 weight-loss medications. The result is a market where yesterday’s forecasts can become obsolete within hours.

This presents both an opportunity and a challenge.

Artificial intelligence is increasingly being promoted as the answer to faster, more responsive demand planning. AI-powered demand sensing can analyse multiple data streams — from retail sales and weather forecasts to social media sentiment and online search behaviour — to identify emerging trends far earlier than traditional forecasting tools.

However, new research from Argon & Co highlights an uncomfortable reality: many food manufacturers are not yet ready to take advantage of these technologies.

Legacy IT systems, fragmented data and shortages of AI expertise continue to slow adoption across the sector. More concerning is that fewer than one in three food businesses have a clear roadmap for integrating AI into their operations.

Technology alone will not solve forecasting challenges.

Successful manufacturers will focus first on creating reliable, well-governed data, improving collaboration between commercial, production and supply chain teams, and building planning processes that can adapt quickly as demand changes. AI should enhance these foundations—not replace them.

The pace of change is unlikely to slow. Consumer purchasing decisions are becoming increasingly influenced by digital culture, health priorities, sustainability expectations and channel fragmentation. Businesses capable of recognising meaningful signals early and responding confidently will gain a significant competitive advantage.

For manufacturers, the question is no longer whether AI will become part of demand planning — it almost certainly will. The more important question is whether the business has laid the groundwork to ensure AI delivers better decisions rather than simply producing faster forecasts based on poor-quality data.

In an industry where margins remain under pressure, the ability to anticipate demand accurately may become one of the defining competitive advantages of the decade.

• Rodney Jack, editor, Food & Drink Technology. Keep in touch via email: [email protected] X: @foodanddrinktec or LinkedIn: Food & Drink Technology magazine.