Using Nanotechnology in Food Production: Ensuring Food Security Development in Iran

Abstract

In recent years, nanotechnology has been increasingly used in the food industry, especially to increase the food security. Nanotechnology provides the grounds to understand the food components on a small scale in the food industry. The present study aimed at analyzing the application of nanotechnology to improve the food security. The study sample included all experts (N= 90) of Iran's Nanotechnology Innovation Council selected by a census. This study used a descriptive-survey method. A questionnaire was developed based on the study’s theoretical framework and used for data collection. The validity (content and face) and reliability (factor loading, coefficient of composite reliability, and Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient) of the questionnaire were confirmed. The results of testing the hypotheses using Smart PLS, i.e., t-test and path coefficients (β), showed that the food packaging mechanisms directly and significantly affected food security improvement through using nanotechnology. The findings also displayed that the food preservation, processing, and production mechanisms influenced food security improvement through using nanotechnology. By using nanotechnology, the results indicated a direct relationship between foods' taste and color improvement as well as food safety and health improvement.