Abstract
On-farm food loss and wastage accounts for 16% of the net agricultural related greenhouse gas emissions worldwide & reduction in these emissions have the potential to make a substantial impact on climate change. There is an array of research being undertaken in this area across different countries, food supply chains and multiple stakeholders. This narrative research paper highlights the pressing issues resulting in food loss and wastage along the agricultural supply chain & provides a critical overview of the current research landscape of on-farm and post harvest food loss and waste. It delves into the underlying causes of food wastage such as overproduction triggered by various determinants by fluctuating market demands and prices, changing consumer preferences and economic pressure.
In this paper, special focus has been given on proposing potential solutions, some of which have been implemented in different agro-centric economies to reap positive benefits. It emphasizes the importance of improving on farm practices, particularly in developing where rather rudimentary & harsh climatic conditions lead to significant losses of perishable goods. The implementation of cutting edge and advanced technologies such as precision agriculture, ICT, historical data based crop yield prediction, digital agriculture among a plethora of other technologies has been discussed as a means to enhance monitoring and control throughout the food supply chain. This research also investigates the potential solutions including but not limited to anti-ethylene bags, solar dryers, specialized cold storage with thermal energy backup .
