Effects of digitalisation on food safety

Abstract

This paper reviews food safety within the agri-food supply chain (AFSC) literature and presents a comprehensive framework for understanding how digitalisation has reshaped food safety practices within the AFSC. Its significant contribution lies in its identification of novel research streams in food safety that are underpinned by digitalisation techniques, a focus that can be expected to benefit both academic researchers and practitioners who are seeking solutions to pressing challenges related to the efficient achievement of food safety goals. In this paper, the powerful bibliometric analysis capabilities of Biblioshiny and VosViewer were utilised to conduct a comprehensive review of the relevant literature. Biblioshiny’s strengths in data visualisation and network analysis were instrumental in identifying key trends and patterns in the research, while VosViewer’s ability to create insightful maps of collaboration networks provided valuable insights into the relationships between researchers and institutions. The evolution of the published reviews from the past 10 years and the trending AFSC articles were thus revealed. The used databases were Web of Science and SCOPUS. Based on bibliometric coupling, the identified seven underlying research streams are (a) traceability challenges in AFSC, (b) quality management in AFSC, (c) Agri-food 4.0, (d) future trends of AFSC, (e) impact of the Blockchain, (f) smart packaging, and (g) circular economy. Results show that besides contributing to the efficiency and profitability of companies, digital developments also help to promote sustainable practices and mitigate environmental impacts, while ensuring traceability, proactive risk management and incident prevention.