Agriculture 4.0: The Promises for Sustainable Agricultural and Food Systems
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Date
2021-01
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Busitema University
Abstract
The transformative power of industry 4.0 in agricultural and food systems (Agri-food) can be
attested from the explosive disruption of agricultural production infrastructures such as connected
farms, new farm equipment, and connected tractors and machines which is well-known today as
Agriculture 4.0 or Agri-food 4.0. The driving force behind the emergence of Agriculture 4.0 is the
dire need to increase efficiency, productivity and quality in agri-food systems, and environmental
protection. This has gained attention of many researchers in the recent past and thus, making
Agriculture 4.0 a buzzword among the academic literature today. Despite the fact that a number
of studies have covered the applications of several disruptive technologies in agri-food, the key
technologies that are transforming the agri-food have been ill-defined. Therefore, the present paper
aimed at identifying the key disruptive technologies and highlighting their application areas in
agri-food. Massive exploratory literature search was conducted on the published papers obtained
from the electronic databases including Scopus, ScienceDirect, Wiley, Emerald insight, Taylor &
Francis, and Springer. The applications of 11 disruptive technologies in agri-food were analyzed
based on 119 published papers. The results showed that 5 key disruptive technologies including
Internet of things, Drones, Blockchain, Big Data, and Robotics are emblematic of Agriculture 4.0
epoch. The application areas of these technologies in agri-food are clearly highlighted. The present
study revealed the need for extensive research to expand the application areas of the disruptive
technologies in agri-food.
Description
Keywords
Internet of things, Drones, Big Data, Blockchain, Robotics, Industry 4.0, Agriculture 4.0, Disruptive technologies, Agri-food 4.0
Citation
Bongomin, O., Okello, C., Ocen, G. G., & Tigalana, D. (2012). Agriculture 4.0: The Promises for Sustainable Agricultural and Food Systems. Busitema University Science, Technology and Innovation Symposium.