Food Supply Networks Research Articles

Revitalising food supply networks through trustworthy data sources: an emergent toolkit for data sharing clubs

Revitalising food supply networks through trustworthy data sources: an emergent toolkit for data sharing clubs

An Overview of the Public Health Risk Management Model: A Food Safety-Related Study

Food Safety (FS) in the Food Market (FM) is an essential aspect of Public Health (PH) since it impacts people of all ages, races, genders, and income levels. Regional and global FM continues to influence the FS and PH. The globalization of Health Risk (HR) is increasing because food supply networks span several nations the research aimed to identify prevalent PH issues associated with FS in the FM. A theoretical analysis employs the population, people's interests, and environment. The study evaluates the FS using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT). After analyzing 200 full-text papers, seven prevalent PH issues associated with FS in the FM were identified. This study evaluated the literature to identify the FM's predominant PH hazards related to FS. The findings suggest that local and worldwide FM influences PH. Countries must guarantee the security and reliability of the exported food products and meet their national standards.

A bibliometric analysis of quality and food safety management in the food development industry

Quality and food safety management (QFSM) presents significant concerns for developing countries worldwide. Researchers have not yet reached a consensus on the most complicated QFSM practices in the food industry. Our study aims to fill the research gap by visualising and analysing 537 articles on QFSM using Biblioshiny. Relevant publications from Dimensions, Scopus, and the Web of Science databases expose the current research status from 1982 to January 2024, without bias. We classified publications about Food Safety Management (FSM) and Food Quality Management (FQM) into four stages: the appearance stage (1982–1995), the stage towards increase (1996–2005), a rapid rise phase (2006–2014), and stable, rapid growth between 2015 and 2024. The review of QFSM recorded 5714 paper references and 1677 authors from 57 countries or regions. The most popular keywords are food quality, food industry, quality, and food safety management. China became the first in the group with 84 publications, while Belgium had the highest citations, with 738 total citations and 49.20 average article citations. The most productive institution is “Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates,” while Food Control is the most locally cited source. This study is the first to analyse QFSM resilience using biblioshiny. It is necessary to continue studying the strength of the food industry supply chain related to QFSM. The report identifies critical areas for improvement and future research to assist governments and businesses in developing adaptable food supply networks.

Beyond profit margins: Orchestrating social, economic, and environmental sustainability within the Norwegian Salmon Food Supply Chain

Food Supply Chains (FSCs) have become increasingly complex with the average distance between producers and consumers rising considerably in the past two decades. Consequently, FSCs are a major source of carbon emissions and reducing transportation costs a major challenge for businesses. To address this, we present a mathematical model to promote the three core dimensions of sustainability (economic, environmental, and social), based on the Mixed-Integer Linear Programming (MILP) method. The model addresses the environmental dimension by intending to decrease the carbon emissions of different transport modes involved in the logistics network. Several supply chain network characteristics are incorporated and evaluated, with a consideration of social sustainability (job generation from operating various facilities). The mathematical model's robustness is demonstrated by testing and deploying it to a variety of problem instances. A real-life case study (Norwegian salmon supply chain) helps to comprehend the model's applicability. To understand the importance of optimizing food supply networks holistically, the paper investigates the impact of multiple supply chain permutations on total cost, demand fluctuations and carbon emissions. To address fluctuations in retail demand, we undertook sensitivity analysis for variations in demand, enabling the proposed model to revamp Norway's salmon supply chain network. Subsequently, the results are thoroughly examined to identify managerial implications.

Linear Programming Model for Sunflower Oil Supply Chain Network

Food supply networks are vital to the global economy, producing and consuming products worldwide. Supply chain management (SCM) has emerged as a crucial technique to optimize the integrated network of suppliers, factories, warehouses, customers, and distribution channels. SCM aims to ensure efficient raw material sources, transformation, transportation, and timely customer delivery. Edible oil, a crucial ingredient for cooking and food preparation, is utilized by people from all social classes. Vegetable oils, particularly sunflower, soybean, peanut, and others, are the main source of edible oils, which have less unsaturated fatty acids compared to animal oils. The production and consumption of edible oils have substantial environmental impacts, necessitating increased research to address these implications. Sunflower, a valuable oilseed crop, is grown worldwide due to its short growing season and adaptability to various climates and soil types. Sunflower seeds have high oil and protein content, making them popular for their health benefits. This article uses a linear optimization model for the sunflower oil supply chain from the farmer to the end user. The objective is to minimize the overall transportation cost subject to capacity, demand fulfillment, and waste management.

How did the COVID-19 pandemic impact consumers’ food safety knowledge, attitudes and practices? A multi-country study on the omicron variant

PurposeThe COVID-19 pandemic is not a foodborne infectious disease, but it has dramatically impacted food safety practices worldwide due to its potential for transmission through contaminated surfaces and food. Accordingly, the Omicron variant seems to have affected food-related activities and behaviours and disturbed food supply networks since its appearance in November 2021. Hence, this paper aims to assess how the Omicron variant impacted food safety knowledge, attitudes and practices amongst adult consumers in five countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro and Russia.Design/methodology/approachThe study is based on an online survey. The questionnaire was developed and revised based on previous research on the impact of previous COVID-19 waves on food-related activities in several countries. The questionnaire was distributed through the SurveyMonkey platform from January 15 to February 25, 2022. It consisted of 29 multiple-choice and one-option questions organised into three sections. A total of 6,483 valid responses were received. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25.0 was used to analyse the survey results.FindingsAccording to the survey findings, food safety practices evolved during the Omicron wave in the studied countries. Firstly, less than half of the sample used a face mask whilst purchasing food. Secondly, regarding food safety knowledge, the survey results suggest that there is still a lack of knowledge in the studied countries. Thirdly, the survey indicates a lack of knowledge amongst the respondents regarding food safety attitudes. For instance, more than a third of the sample (34.4%) are unsure whether the COVID-19 virus can be transmitted through food. These results are surprising and alarming, especially considering that our sample has a higher education than the population of the studied countries.Research limitations/implicationsThe main limitation of this research is the sample bias. Survey participants were randomly chosen, enrolled voluntarily and not rewarded. As a result, the questionnaire was self-administered and completed exclusively by people motivated by an interest in the topic. Consequently, our survey does not represent the general population of the studied countries. People with a high degree of education and women, for example, were overrepresented in our sample.Originality/valueThis study is unique in that it is the first to gather information and analyse people’s perceptions of the effects of the Omicron variant on food safety. As a result, the findings of this survey offer a solid basis for future investigations into the impact of the pandemic on food safety in the Balkan region and Russia. This study can help further understand the changes during the COVID-19 pandemic. It provides crucial insights that can be used to guide future decision-making and policy development regarding improving food safety practices. This and other future studies will be a foundation for organisational and government readiness for future shocks, crises and pandemics. The effects of the present Ukrainian conflict on agricultural systems and supply chains throughout the globe (e.g. increased food prices) show that this is timely, urgent and highly required.

Global environmental impacts of food system from regional shock: Russia-Ukraine war as an example

Different responses to external interference, such as regional conflict, could have distinct sustainability outcomes. Here, we developed a novel framework to examine global food shortages from the Russia-Ukraine conflict and quantify the embodied environmental impacts of disturbed and alternative food supply chains. The conflict could soon bring a 50–120 Mt shortage of nine dominant food products and cause temporal global cropland abandonment and greenhouse gas emissions decline. By contrast, the partial agricultural recovery in the next cultivation season will raise global cropland use and greenhouse gas emissions by 9–10% and 2–4% (mainly in China and Europe). However, optimized food supply networks with prioritized agricultural expansion in higher-efficiency countries could minimize food shortages and food-mile expenses, offsetting the postwar environmental increments from agricultural recovery by 45–89%. These results validate a framework to simulate the global social-ecological system, and underline the resistance opportunities and tele-connected consequences of regional disturbance.

Food supply networks in the Pearl River Delta mega-city region: Characteristics, resilience and security strategies

Food supply networks in the Pearl River Delta mega-city region: Characteristics, resilience and security strategies

Repurposing Food Supply Chain Management for Viability During COVID-19: A Systematic Review

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine existing studies on recycled food supply chain management during the COVID-19 epidemic. Theoretical framework: The theoretical framework of the study includes research areas, research agendas, and implications for the viability during the crisis. Design/Methodology/Approach: Mendeley Desktop Software retrieved articles from ScienceDirect.com and Google Scholar. This review included 63 full papers published in 2019–2021. Findings: This review covers food waste management, food safety, insecurity, crises, wellness, food supply chains and chain management, impact on alternative and local food systems, consumption, evaluation of alternative food provision systems, scaling and food policies, proposed business models, strategies, and mechanisms, logistics, economics, and resilience building. The research agendas include refusing, reducing, reusing, repurposing, recycling, and rescaling abandoned or outmoded goods, and rescaling. Implications include food supply chain management, food network viability, impact evaluation, and nutrition risk management. Research, practical, and social implications: This study presents research themes and agendas for adaptive management to ensure viability throughout the COVID-19 outbreak and its long-term impacts. It provides insights into food waste management, food safety, security, insecurity, wellness, food supply networks, chain management, etc. Socially, it offers future studies on outbreak viability, food network vitality, effect evaluation, and nutrition risk management. Originality/Value: In view of the current COVID-19 situation, this study revises food supply chain management. Food supply chain management on a worldwide scale has been impacted by this outbreak. This situation calls for an out-of-the-box solution.

Maintaining Cross-Border Cargo Movements Between Jordan and Saudi Arabia During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

One of Jordan's essential border crossings, the Al-Omari border crossing, is 1 of 3 land crossings between Jordan and Saudi Arabia and is located 160 km west of the capital city of Amman. Given its economic importance and essential role in the functioning of food supply networks across the region, Jordan undertook evidence-driven actions to keep the border crossing safely open during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. Cross-border coordination and collaboration, specifically with international contact tracing and case management, have been critical elements of Jordan's response. While several bottlenecks and delays led to documented clusters of infections among truck drivers, this case study illustrates the use of evidence to mitigate disease exposure and spread. Plans to manage public health threats need to consider sustainable strengthened surveillance and laboratory capacities coupled with efficient cross-border communication and coordination plans implemented across multiple sectors engaged in cross-country health.

Discounts as a Barrier to Change in Our Food Systems

Despite the wealth of discussion and ideas on how food systems might change, and all the plans and schemes created to provide solutions to unsustainable food systems, very few researchers have examined the accounting practices that define socio-economic relationships around food. In this article, I show that the imperative for each entity in food supply networks to obtain a discount on costs involved in food supply to survive on very thin margins, inhibits large-scale change. The approach here is introductory, providing an explanation of the accounting issues involved for a non-accounting audience, and an illustrative case study is used to show the embeddedness of always ‘getting a discount’. The case study is drawn from interview data with those involved in intermediary companies and in alternative food distribution in Canada and the USA. The difficulties faced by organisations distributing food on a more local level and the lack of lasting and widespread change despite their endeavours, is shown to linked to the inevitability that they too need to ‘get discounts’ to survive. This interdisciplinary study is important to provide context for sociological thinkers and activists seeking to understand the barriers to change in food behaviours and food strategies.

A qualitative peptide biomarker approach to identify piscine gelatine in products to support food security

Due to allergy concerns, it is mandatory under EU law to declare in food products all ingredients derived from fish. Gelatine is prepared from the waste collagen of animal carcasses, including piscine, bovine and porcine materials, and is an ingredient in a wide range of foods. The Elliott Review into the integrity and assurance of food supply networks highlighted requirements for analytical surveillance methods to support due diligence, food safety and authenticity. We present the development of a method to extract gelatine from foods and determine the presence of piscine gelatine by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry using a suite of sixteen piscine marker peptides. The method has been successfully applied to gelatine granules, capsules and composite retail food products. While a study is required to determine parameters including the limit of detection of this method, the data indicate the method is reproducible between replicates of sub-samples and applies to a range of piscine gelatines collected over 16 years. Once validation studies are complete, there is potential for enforcement officers to apply the technology to verify the authenticity of fish products to support consumers in ensuring food safety and also food provenance relating to animal origin.

Preventing waste in food supply networks - a platform architecture for AI-driven forecasting based on heterogeneous big data

Waste is a major challenge in today´s food supply networks. It induces economic, ecologic, and social implications. Current advanced supply and demand planning frameworks consider waste as an expected lost value in a profit-seeking trade-off. Consequently, existing initiatives for food re-distribution tackle the problem at the end of the supply chain, i.e., at the retailer stage. Advanced forecasting is foreseen as a facilitator of planning towards food waste prevention. However, companies in food production and retail seldomly utilize advanced forecasting methods, i.e., artificial intelligence. Deterrents for inadaptability rank from the differentiation between the role of pure data driven reliance and the human factor. Furthermore, no remarkable endeavor has so far combined heterogeneous external data integration with advanced forecasting techniques for food waste reduction. This paper proposes an architecture for a collaborative digital demand and supply matching platform for perishable food supply chains. Focus lies in the integration of heterogeneous big data (i.e., mobile transaction data and weather data) with AI-based forecasting methods. Building on the Design Science Research methodology, problems and requirements from the perishable food industry form the base for the platform architecture as the core artifact. The validation of the proposed architecture is undertaken by a panel of selected business experts from food retail and wholesale. The designed platform architecture consists of the core modules “data layer”, “logic layer”, “interaction layer”, and “data visualization”, and includes governance rules for sensible knowledge protection and data security. The present work contributes to the research area of food waste prevention by combining collaborative supply chain management approaches with advanced data-driven technologies including artificial intelligence and heterogeneous big data integration. Further research will extend this study by a use-case implementation.

A participatory tool for assessing land footprint in city-region food systems—A case study from Metropolitan Copenhagen

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the fragility of current food systems to feed populations around the world. Particularly in urban centers, consumers have been confronted with this vulnerability, highlighting reliance on just-in-time logistics, imports and distant primary production. Urban food demand, regional food supply, land use change, and transport strategies are considered key factors for reestablishing resilient landscapes as part of a sustainable food system. Improving the sustainability of food systems in such circumstances entails working on the interrelations between food supply and demand, rural and urban food commodity production sites, and groups of involved actors and consumers. Of special significance is the agricultural land in close proximity to urban centers. Calling for more holistic approaches in the sense of inclusiveness, food security, citizen involvement and ecological principles, this article describes the use of a new decision support tool, the Metropolitan Foodscape Planner (MFP). The MFP features up-to-date European datasets to assess the potential of current agricultural land use to provide food resources (with special attention to both plant- and animal-based products) and meet the demand of city dwellers, and help to empower citizens, innovators, companies, public authorities and other stakeholders of regional food systems to build a more regionalized food supply network. The tool was tested in the context of the food system of the Copenhagen City Region in two collaborative workshops, namely one workshop with stakeholders of the Copenhagen City Region representing food consultancies, local planning authorities and researchers, and one in-person workshop masterclass with MSc students from the University of Copenhagen. Workshop participants used the tool to learn about the impacts of the current food system at the regional and international level with regard to the demand-supply paradigm of city-regions. The ultimate goal was to develop a participatory mapping exercise and test three food system scenarios for a more regionalized and sustainable food system and, therefore, with increased resilience to crises. Results from this implementation also demonstrated the potential of the tool to identify food production sites at local level that are potentially able to feed the city region in a more sustainable, nutritious and way.

Food supply network disruption and mitigation: an integrated perspective of traceability technology and network structure.

The 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic has caused serious disruptions in food supply networks. Based on the case of the remerging epidemic in China, this paper aims to investigate food supply network disruption and its mitigation from technical and structural perspectives. To solve the optimal policy choice problem that how to improve mitigation capability of food supply networks by using traceability technology and adjusting network structure, the occurrence mechanism of food supply network disruptions is revealed through a case study of the remerging COVID-19 outbreak in Beijing’s Xinfadi market. Five typical traceability solutions are proposed to mitigate network disruptions and their technical attributes are analyzed to establish disruption mitigation models. The structure of food supply networks is also controlled to mitigate disruptions. The structural attributes of three fundamental networks are extracted to adjust the network connections pattern in disruption mitigation models. Next, simulation experiments involving the disruption mitigation models are carried out to explore the independent and joint effects of traceability technology and network structure on mitigation capability. The findings suggest that accuracy makes a more positive effect on the mitigation capability of food supply networks than timeliness due to the various technical compositions behind them; the difference between these effects determines the choice decision of supply networks on traceability solution types. Likewise, betweenness centralization makes a positive effect but degree centralization makes a negative effect on mitigation capability because intermediary firms and focal firms in food supply networks have different behavior characteristics; these effects are both regulated by supply network types and exhibit different sensitivities. As for the joint effect of technical and structural attributes on mitigation capability, the joint effect of accuracy and betweenness centralization is bigger than the independent effects but smaller than their sum; the joint effect of timeliness and betweenness centralization depends on networks type; while the positive effect of accuracy or timeliness on mitigation capability is greater than the negative effect of degree centralization; theses joint effects are caused by the complicated interactive effects between technical composition and behaviors of intermediary firms or focal firms. These findings contribute to disruption management and decision-making theories and practices.

A hybrid optimization method to design a sustainable resilient supply chain in a perishable food industry.

To integrate the location, inventory, and routing (LIR) problems arising in designing a resilient sustainable perishable food supply network (RSPFSN), a bi-objective optimization model is developed. To improve the resiliency and sustainability of the RSPFSN, a dynamic pricing strategy is used to cope with the disrupting events, along with minimizing the total cost and CO2 emission of the whole network. One of the important features of the proposed model is taking into account the effects of route disruptions and traffic conditions on the deterioration of products. To solve the mixed-integer nonlinear bi-objective optimization model, a novel hybrid method is developed using the Heuristic Multi-Choice Goal Programming and Utility Function Genetics Algorithm (HMCGP-UFGA). To improve resiliency, the dynamic pricing strategy, considering the traffic condition, can lead to around a 20% improvement in both cost and CO2 emission, based on the results of our case study in a dairy supply chain. Besides, the results of sensitivity analysis display the high flexibility of the proposed approach for various problems.

"Food Village": An Innovative Alternative Food Network Based on Human Scale Development Economic Model.

Although the different alternative food networks (AFNs) have experienced increases worldwide for the last thirty years, they are still unable to provide an alternative capable of spreading on a large scale. They in fact remain niche experiments due to some limitations on their structure and governance. Thus, this study proposes and applies a design method to build a new sustainable food supply chain model capable of realizing a “jumping scale”. Based on the theoretical and value framework of the Civil Economy (CE), the Economy for the Common Good (ECG), and the Development on a Human Scale (H-SD), the proposed design model aims to satisfy the needs of all stakeholders in the supply chain. Max-Neef’s Needs Matrix and Design Thinking (DT) tools were used to develop the design model. Applying the design method to the food chain has allowed us to develop the concept of the “Food Village”, an innovative food supply network far from the current economic mechanisms and based on the community and eco-sustainability.

Enhancing Food Supply Chain Security through the Use of Blockchain and TinyML

Food safety is a fundamental right in modern societies. One of the most pressing problems nowadays is the provenance of food and food-related products that citizens consume, mainly due to several food scares and the globalization of food markets, which has resulted in food supply chains that extend beyond nations or even continent boundaries. Food supply networks are characterized by high complexity and a lack of openness. There is a critical requirement for applying novel techniques to verify and authenticate the origin, quality parameters, and transfer/storage details associated with food. This study portrays an end-to-end approach to enhance the security of the food supply chain and thus increase the trustfulness of the food industry. The system aims at increasing the transparency of food supply chain monitoring systems through securing all components that those consist of. A universal information monitoring scheme based on blockchain technology ensures the integrity of collected data, a self-sovereign identity approach for all supply chain actors ensures the minimization of single points of failure, and finally, a security mechanism, that is based on the use of TinyML’s nascent technology, is embedded in monitoring devices to mitigate a significant portion of malicious behavior from actors in the supply chain.

Analyzing the Effects of Covid-19 on Food Supply Chains: A Case Study on Ranking the Obstacles with ANP Methodology

Coronavirus pandemic has severely affected the supply chain network of many industries. Various activities have been disrupted throughout supply chains due to the increasing number of patients, death rate growth, quarantine regulations, social distancing, closed borders, and the phenomenal decrease in travel rate. Furthermore, the pandemic had dramatic effects on consumers’ behavior all over the world, making them more eager/reluctant to purchase certain industrial products. In this paper, considering the actual supply chain of an Iranian company, the disruptive obstacles that the pandemic can create against properly undertaking activities in a food supply chain, are investigated. The examined obstacles are ranked and prioritized using the Analytical Network Process (ANP) technique. For this purpose, pairwise comparison questionnaires have been designed and completed by 28 managers and supervisors active in the food supply network. The answers are collected and the geometric mean of the matrices and their incompatibility rates are calculated. Based on the obtained results “labor shortage” and “low flexibility” have respectively the highest and lowest priorities among all analyzed obstacles.

Multi-objective Inventory Optimization Problem for a Sustainable Food Supply Network under Lateral Inventory Share Policy

This study dives deep into a lateral supply chain network for perishable food products and aims to determine optimal re-order and order up to levels for multiple e-groceries within a common network using a simulation-based optimization technique. The algorithm aims to minimize the average inventory carried within the network while accounting for parameters like reduced wastage, improved customer satisfaction level, and a limited number of replenishments.