Business and management research trends of sustainability assessment in the food sector

Abstract

PurposeThis study aimed to identify research trends and topics in sustainability assessment in the food sector within the scope of economics, business and management research.Design/methodology/approachThe authors conducted a bibliometric analysis by applying a rigid and systematic research protocol, employing bibliometric techniques and a keyword co-occurrence network. Further, the Visualization of Similarities viewer software was used to analyse publications between 1994 and 2021.FindingsThe knowledge trends regarding “sustainability assessment” in the research area of business economics demonstrated a notable evolution of the topics analysed, ranging from indicators and policy analyses in agriculture and fishery sectors, to the topic of sustainability life cycle assessment (LCA) and management systems. In business and management research areas, the main theoretical frameworks used for sustainability assessment in the food sector included the triple-bottom line (TBL) and the LCA, and the main research topics were food chain logistics, bio-based products, retailers, consumption patterns and crop-based biodiesel options.Research limitations/implicationsThis study employed only the WoS database and future studies could incorporate other scientific databases. Regarding future research, more emphasis could be laid on food retailers given their prevalence as demonstrated by the study and past research.Practical implicationsThe findings can help all participants in the food global value chain to make better decisions to guide their sustainability efforts and assessment. Moreover, this research reveals that companies need to be actively engaged with their stakeholders and pay special attention to consumer patterns and perceptions.Originality/valueThe bibliometric research focus on business and management research areas using the Web of Sciences categories, starting from the research area of business economics to the analysis of the food sector's sustainability assessment.