State-Of-The-Art and Future Trends of Information and Communication Technologies in Agri-Food Sector: A World-Wide Review

Marco Pellegrini

 

Review I Published June,2019

 

Journal of Agricultural Science and Food Technology  Vol. 5 (4), pp.58-71.

 

ABSTRACT

World population is expected to grow considerably by the end of this century and in particular, the number of people living in the least developed countries is estimated to triple. As a consequence, also the food production will have to increase. Beyond production, feeding an increasing population brings new challenges in terms of food safety and quality but, at the same time, also opportunities for human and technological development. In the next future, food science will have to focus on developing sustainable and ecological technologies, taking into account modern developments in neighboring fields of science and engineering. In this framework, Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) can play a key role in ensuring an inclusive development of agri-food chains. The objective of the present study is twofold: to review the state-of-the-art of using ICTs in food technology and to outline how the evolution of these technologies could be useful for the whole agri-food sector. Wireless communication networks, intelligent sensors and embedded systems software will be increasingly pervasive in the food industry. United Nations (UN) 2030 Agenda provides many business opportunities for both information technology and food industries but standardization and interoperability between different technologies are major challenges to a fair development of ICTs. In order to promote reusability, reliability, scalability and platform independence, future investments related to ICTs in agri-food sector should be focused on solutions independent of any vendor or specific product; by embracing such an approach, even developing countries can benefit from technological progress.

KeyWords: Agri-food, Food quality, Food safety, Information and communication technologies.

 

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