Operational constraints

Widespread obsolescence: Control systems installed decades ago are still reliable and make money. Narrow margins: Revenue in this industry doesn’t result in deeper pockets to rip and replace current systems. Uptime = non-negotiable: Continuous production leaves minimal maintenance windows. Scale across sites: Determining how common governance frameworks, risk methodologies and reporting standards work and scaling them across other plants.

IT vs OT: Standard IT methodologies applied to production systems create coverage gaps, adds risk or could impact production. Limited skillset: OT-specific security expertise is scarce industry-wide. Unmanaged third-party access: Most plants don't have a policy, procedure or tooling that lets their engineers check which contractors or outsiders are coming onto the floor.

The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA): CRA feeds the Conformité Européenne (CE) markings; meaning this obligation cascades from component vendors to distributors, integrators and OEMs to end users and affects food and beverage manufacturers through equipment purchased. NIS2: NIS2 places obligations directly on the end user surrounding governance, risk management, incident reporting and supply chain security at an organizational level Obsolete systems: The CRA requires supported systems. If they’re end-of-life, end users need a documented roadmap showing how each one will reach a supported state. Rising stakeholder expectations: Boards, insurers, retail customers and supply chain partners want cybersecurity maturity to be demonstrated.

Cybersecurity for Food & Beverage Manufacturers

Food and beverage manufacturers run on legacy systems with thin margins and production lines. We help you secure what you already have and build a roadmap you can fund.

Talk to an OT Security Specialist

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Cybersecurity

The food and beverage industry is moving steadily toward connected, data-driven production. Digital transformation is creating new levels of efficiency, quality and traceability that will lay the groundwork for what comes next.

At the same time, obsolete control systems, narrow margins, OT security knowledge gaps and limited asset visibility are exposing vulnerabilities that adversaries can exploit. This is a critical time for food and beverage manufacturers to invest in solutions that keep their lines running and help protect what they have already built.

Why OT Cybersecurity Matters in Food and Beverage

Whether it's a large or a family-owned manufacturer, they're all running production lines that are more connected than they were originally designed to be. The connections are coming through:

Remote access for OEMs, integrators and maintenance contractors
Digital transformation, quality monitoring and lot-level traceability
Industrial control systems (ICS) across batching, filling, capping, labeling and packaging
Enterprise and MES integrations for scheduling, yield and reporting

Cybersecurity helps food and beverage manufacturers protect production continuity, food safety and traceability and the brand trust that consumer supply chains are built on.

Unique Industry Challenges Facing Food and Beverage Manufacturers

Food and beverage manufacturers face a variety of constraints and risk that make cybersecurity difficult to implement and sustain:

Widespread obsolescence: Control systems installed decades ago are still reliable and make money.
Narrow margins: Revenue in this industry doesn’t result in deeper pockets to rip and replace current systems.
Uptime = non-negotiable: Continuous production leaves minimal maintenance windows.
Scale across sites: Determining how common governance frameworks, risk methodologies and reporting standards work and scaling them across other plants.

IT vs OT: Standard IT methodologies applied to production systems create coverage gaps, adds risk or could impact production.
Limited skillset: OT-specific security expertise is scarce industry-wide.
Unmanaged third-party access: Most plants don't have a policy, procedure or tooling that lets their engineers check which contractors or outsiders are coming onto the floor.

The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA): CRA feeds the Conformité Européenne (CE) markings; meaning this obligation cascades from component vendors to distributors, integrators and OEMs to end users and affects food and beverage manufacturers through equipment purchased.
NIS2: NIS2 places obligations directly on the end user surrounding governance, risk management, incident reporting and supply chain security at an organizational level
Obsolete systems: The CRA requires supported systems. If they’re end-of-life, end users need a documented roadmap showing how each one will reach a supported state.
Rising stakeholder expectations: Boards, insurers, retail customers and supply chain partners want cybersecurity maturity to be demonstrated.

A Practical Guide to Addressing Obsolescence Risk in OT

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A Practical Guide to Addressing Obsolescence Risk in OT

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Strengthening Cybersecurity for Food & Beverage Manufacturers

Rockwell Automation developed SecureOT™ solution suite specifically for OT environments to help proactively address and overcome cybersecurity challenges through a phased, programmatic approach.

Build a program that leads with governance first

Establish the policies, procedures and prioritized roadmap your workforce can follow so security investments deliver measurable business value and sustainable risk reduction.

Identify what you have and what matters

Surface your crown jewels and the exposure attached to them so you can build a case for your board.

Secure aging control systems without replacing them

Extend the life of profitable legacy assets while minimizing disruption and building a modernization plan tied to business priorities.

Control third-party access to the plant floor

Maintain control over third-party physical or remote access to support operations efficiently while mitigating cyber risk to production environments.

Scale OT security with Managed Detection and Response

Strengthen security operations with specialized OT expertise without expanding internal headcount.

Prepare for recovery

Minimize operational disruption with a clear, tested path to respond and recover from cyber incidents.

How SecureOT Delivers Real Value to Food & Beverage Manufacturers

By aligning cybersecurity efforts to core business outcomes, food and beverage manufacturers can drive meaningful operational and financial benefits to:

Improve Operational Resilience

Minimize production disruption when a cyber incident occurs
Build resilience into operations through policies and procedures
Reduce your time offline with disaster recovery planning

Increase Financial Efficiency

Move cybersecurity into a business case the board can evaluate on return
Invest where cyber risk poses the biggest threat to output

Protect Brand Trust

Protect the consumer confidence your brand is built on
Protect the supply chain relationships that depend on you delivering

Strengthen Compliance Posture

Help meet the obligations arriving through your equipment supply chain
Turn end-of-life systems from an audit finding into a documented plan

Prepare for Your Future State

Treat cybersecurity as readiness for what’s next
Adopt next-generation technology on your own timeline
Stay proactive when it comes to obsolescence risk vs. reactive
Create the jumping-off point for Industry 4.0 and autonomous operations

Why Food & Beverage Manufacturers Choose Rockwell Automation

Rockwell Automation brings the best of both worlds: 120 years of manufacturing experience and a focus on OT cybersecurity for the last 30 years. We understand OT environments and can help provide specific methodologies, solutions and services.

Most food and beverage manufacturers already trust us with their control systems, and this goes beyond Rockwell-branded and control products. Leading with a vendor-neutral, compliance-focused approach helps ensure your environment is protected.

The goal is to think global and act local. For global manufacturers, cybersecurity has to be coherent across the board in different regions. We have programs and workforces around the globe, plus NOC and SOC centers to match.

For regional manufacturers, the same reach becomes a wealth of experience applied to your unique needs. We:

Secure what you have
Identify what you need to secure
Develop a roadmap to solving the problems, including incident response and disaster recovery

Food Manufacturer Transforms OT Risk with Calculated Insight

Challenge

A leading global food manufacturer headquartered in the US and operating in over 150 countries needed a more precise way to manage cybersecurity risk across its OT environment. Its existing approach leaned on traditional NVD and CVSS frameworks. This framework was effective for IT but lacked the contextual awareness needed for OT environments.

Solution

In partnership with Rockwell Automation, the manufacturer adopted a Calculated Risk Rating framework built for OT environments. A calculated impact rating quantified the potential impact of each asset, while an exploit prediction scoring system estimated the likelihood of a vulnerability being exploited within 30 days. Together they produced a dynamic heat map of risk.

Result

The manufacturer gained contextual, asset-specific visibility across its global OT operations and could direct resources to the highest-risk assets first. Cybersecurity initiatives came into alignment with compliance and strategic objectives, and the organization moved from reactive risk identification to proactive, intelligence-driven risk management.

Read the Case Study

Take the Next Step Toward Cyber Resilience

OT Cybersecurity at the Core of Smart Manufacturing

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OT Cybersecurity at the Core of Smart Manufacturing

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Cybersecurity Preparedness Assessment

It’s not a question of if your business will be subjected to a cybercrime, it’s when. Take this quiz to evaluate your cybersecurity preparedness.

Take the Assessment

Industrial OT Cybersecurity – Rockwell Automation SecureOT

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Industrial OT Cybersecurity – Rockwell Automation SecureOT

SecureOT combines OT‑specific designed software, expert services, and global scale to reduce risk, improve uptime, and simplify compliance for industrial operations.

Schedule a Consultation

Industry Resources

Cybersecurity for Automotive

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Cybersecurity for Water & Wastewater

Protect critical water infrastructure and public safety while improving resilience with integrated cybersecurity for water and wastewater operations.

Manufacturing Cybersecurity Solutions

Manufacturers are at increased risk of cyber attacks. Rockwell Automation provides cutting-edge manufacturing network security. Learn more here.

Life Sciences Cybersecurity Solutions

Secure your Life Science operations & address cyber risk with Rockwell Automation. See our pharmaceutical & biotech cybersecurity solutions here.

Schedule a Consultation

You don’t have to replace your plant to secure it. Let’s discuss where you stand and develop a plan that protects your most valuable assets and scales for the future.

Talk to an OT Security Specialist

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