Industry 4.0 technologies in quality and safety control systems in food manufacturing: A systematic techno-managerial analysis on benefits and barriers

As the food industry faces growing demands for safer and higher-quality products, traditional quality control methods are proving insufficient. This new review paper – authored by Ayse Selcen Semercioz-Oduncuoglu, Pieternel A. Luning
Food Quality and Design, Department of Agrotechnology and Food Sciences, Wageningen University – explores how Industry 4.0 (I4.0) technologies—such as artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT)—are being applied to modernize quality and safety systems in food manufacturing.
The review categorizes the technical and managerial benefits and barriers of these technologies using a structured, techno-managerial lens. Findings highlight AI’s role in product quality control and IoT’s use in process monitoring, with data analysis being the most developed area. While technical benefits like real-time contamination detection are clear, implementation is hindered by challenges such as data quality, model accuracy, and human-related issues.
The paper underscores the need for a multidisciplinary approach to overcome these obstacles and accelerate the adoption of I4.0 technologies in real-world food industry settings.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tifs.2025.105144
Link to the publication here