Technology Adoption in Food Supply Chain Management in Developing Countries: A Review

Abstract

Food loss and waste is one of the major reasons for global food insecurity. Food losses occur at all stages of the food supply chain, including agricultural produce, harvesting, transport, storage, and processing. Food loss and waste are exacerbated by a lack of adequate and effective food supply chain management (FSCM). An effective food supply chain (FSC) includes designing processing and distribution centres, managing the cold chain, and designing reverse logistics. It also includes functions like allocating warehouse storage capacity, vehicle routing and material flow issues, delivery scheduling, and inventory management issues. Adoption of new information technology such as big data and Internet of Things can improve FSC performance and have a significant impact on reducing food waste and loss. An effective system for sharing information can enhance FCC performance, and intelligence in automated retail ordering can prevent food spoilage, while machine learning, and blockchain can improve FSC traceability. However, there are several obstacles to the use of technology in the FSC, particularly in developing countries. These are classified as technical, financial, social, operational, educational, and governmental. This paper provides an in-depth review of the existing literature on the FSC, technology applications in improving FSCM, key challenges associated with technology adoption, and interventions that may help overcome these challenges. It adds to the existing literature on FSCM, especially on issues related to technology adoption in the FSC by developing countries, and is a useful resource for students, researchers and food supply chain professionals.