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Top1. Introduction
A food supply chain (FSC) is an intricate process encompassing agricultural production, processing, distribution, retail, and consumption. This extensive network connects producers, farmers, and distributors collaborating to deliver secure and safe food to consumers (Dania et al., 2018; Antonucci et al., 2019). To ensure efficient and safe food handling, key requirements in food SC include traceability, quality assurance, inventory management, packaging, transportation, sustainability, visibility and resilience in the FSC. The “United Nations General Assembly” is seeking to address food scarcity, a global concern, through “Sustainable Development Goals” (SDGs), with a commitment to eliminate hunger by 2030 (UN report, 2022). To guarantee food security, optimizing food production and minimizing food loss is crucial. In addition to these key requirements, the FSC encounters other challenges, including population growth, consumption patterns, transportation issues, demand fluctuations, adherence to regulations, food waste, and concerns about sustainability (Rathore et al., 2017; Kamble et al., 2020). Food loss and waste are major issues in the FSC (Borrello et al., 2016) with detrimental consequences on society, environment, and the economy. A substantial amount of waste happens during the conversion of raw food gathered by farmers into processed food and its subsequent shipment to consumers (Mourad, 2016; Gardas et al., 2018; Bene et al., 2019). FAO (2019) estimates that almost 14% of the global food supply, with a value of $400 billion, is lost each year from the point of harvest to the point of sale, with an additional estimated 17% wasted at the retail and consumer levels (UNEP, 2021). Almost 931 million tons of food are wasted, while around 45 million people in 43 countries grapple with food insecurity emergency1. Surprisingly, global hunger levels have surged to 2005 levels, with persistently high food costs compared to the 2015-2019 period in several nations2. COVID-19, the recent Russia-Ukraine conflict, and other geopolitical crises have aggravated these challenges (He et al., 2021).
FSC management has recently attracted greater research focus for practitioners and academics (Darbari et al., 2018). Evolving challenges and the rising awareness of stakeholders and consumers are reshaping perspectives on FSCs (Lusk et al., 2018). In addition to key requirements, the FSC encounters challenges, including population growth, consumption patterns, transportation issues, demand fluctuations, adherence to regulations, food waste, and concerns about sustainability (Kamble et al., 2020). Further, environmental, social, economic, and consumer-related issues facilitate the transition from a conventional linear supply chain to a circular supply chain. Integration of circular economy practices and sustainability initiatives is crucial in the food sector to efficiently address rising demand, costs, and the depleting of energy and natural resources (The State of Food and Agriculture, 2014). Industries and policymakers aim to integrate circular economy principles and sustainability measures to address food waste and safety issues (Bhattacharya, 2023), promoting overall improvement in FSC (Grimm et al., 2014). Circular economies and sustainability practices not only provide a robust foundation for promoting policies but also yield tangible economic benefits. These implementations are essential for reducing waste, minimizing environmental impact, and ensuring the long-term viability of food systems (Leon-Bravo et al., 2017; Bayona-Saez et al., 2017) by adhering to the principles of reducing, reusing, and recycling (Mahroof et al., 2022).