Food Supply Chain Transformation through Technology and Future Research Directions—A Systematic Review

Abstract

Background: Digital and smart supply chains are reforming the food chain to help eliminate waste, improve food safety, and reduce the possibility of a global food catastrophe. The globe currently faces numerous food-related issues, ranging from a lack of biodiversity to excessive waste, and from ill health caused by excessive consumption to widespread food insecurity. It is time to look back at how technology has tackled food supply-chain challenges related to quality, safety, and sustainability over the last decade. Moreover, continuous transformations of the food supply chain into a more sustainable business model with utmost resilience is the need of the hour due to COVID-19 disruptions. Method: This study aimed to systematize literature (2010–2021) in the described context and propose a future research direction, with the assistance of a systematic review and bibliometric analysis on the research agenda proposed above. Results: The findings reveal that technological Industry 4.0 (IR 4.0) tools face specific barriers due to the scope and objective of the application. Conclusion: The Internet of Things has received more attention than any other IR 4.0 tool. More integration between the specialized tools is needed to address this issue. Furthermore, the authors have proposed a food supply chain-based operational framework on technological inclusion to facilitate the roadmap for food supply chain 4.0 for more resilience and food supply chain viability.

Keywords

• food supply transformation
• supply chain 4.0
• food safety
• food quality
• food sustainability
• COVID-19 disruptions