Industry 4.0 Implementation in Food Supply Chains for Improving Sustainability
A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (9 June 2022) | Viewed by 651
Special Issue Editors
Interests: sustainable food supply chains; industry 4.0; food manufacturing; digitalisation of supply chains; circular economy; sustainable manufacturing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: geo spatial science; food system; semantic web technologies; IoT
Interests: improving sustainability and reducing waste in the food and drink sector; assisting manufacturers with efficient food processing techniques; manufacturing; automation and robotics
Interests: sustainable manufacturing systems; green manufacturing; environmental impact assessment; simulation; modelling
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
This research topic addresses how food supply chain (FSC) actors, i.e., entities within the farm to fork process, will embrace Industry 4.0 (I4.0)-related technologies to reduce food waste and improve sustainability to feed the increasing population, which is estimated to reach 9.2 billion by 2050. Several industries have implemented fourth industrial revolution technologies to enhance their performance and efficiency. Industries are attempting to undergo a digital transformation by adopting I4.0 technologies such as Internet of Things (IoT), big data, augmented reality, 3D printing, cloud analytics, blockchain, robotics, automation, etc., to meet the UN sustainable development goals.
Similarly, FSC actors are experiencing tremendous pressure from consumers to be more transparent with all the activities that affect them. Likewise, FSC actors are also utilising I4.0 technologies to add value to their existing systems, products, and services and comply with the environmental, social, and economic aspects of sustainability. In this context, this Special Issue will focus on research related to implementing and adopting I4.0 technologies in FSC.
We welcome research papers focused on, but not limited to, the following topics:
- Case studies and I4.0 solutions highlight improvements in resource efficiency, food loss, and waste reduction.
- New I4.0 approaches and methodologies for enhancing food sustainability.
- The utilisation of I4.0 technologies for monitoring, capturing, and analysing data and transparent sustainability reporting.
Applications that reduce energy and water use and improve FSC actors’ actions regarding auditing, eliminating slavery, ethical trades, and compliances.
Dr. Sandeep Jagtap
Dr. Wayne Martindale
Prof. Martin Howarth
Prof. Dr. Konstantinos Salonitis
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- food supply chain
- resource efficiency
- food waste
- industry 4.0
