Digital Technologies for Food Loss and Waste in Food Supply Chain Management
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Abstract
Food loss and waste (FLW) is a global concern, which can occur in five stages of the food supply chain (FSC) as follows: Farming and Agriculture, Processing and Packaging, Transportation and Storage, Retailing, and Consumption. FLW has a negative impact on the environment, social fabric, and the economy. Moreover, FLW is likely to continue to increase. In order to tackle sustainably problems, various solutions have been introduced. At present, several digital technologies (DTs) have been applied to the FLW management of the FSC. Through this study that involved searching for and analyzing literature on food loss and food waste, it was found that the three most popular DTs are the Internet of Things (IoT), Blockchain Technology (BCT), and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), for which are used to track food, to prevent it from being damaged during FSC activities. Then, Big Data Analysis (BDA) can be utilized to collect and analyze data throughout the FSC for accurate shelf-life management. In addition to the development of smart packaging (SPKG) to track food conditions, extend shelf life, and prevent the occurrence of FLW, there is also a Quick Response Code (QR CODE) which applied to provide information to consumers and prevent accidental purchases leading to FLW. The paper presents the benefits of DTs as well as providing guidelines for the management of FLW in the food supply chain.