Blockchain for Fresh Food Management

Farmers markets are regular, recurring gatherings at a common facility or area where farmers and ranchers directly sell a variety of fresh fruits, vegetables, and other locally grown farm products to consumers. Markets rebuild and maintain local and regional food systems, leading to an outsized impact on the food system relative to their share of produce sales. Previous research has demonstrated the multifaceted impacts that farmers markets have on the communities, particularly economically. Recent scholarship in the United States has expanded inquiry into social impacts that markets have on communities, including improving access to fresh food products and increasing awareness of the sustainable agricultural practices adopted by producers, as well developing tools for producers and market stakeholders to measure their impact on both producers and communities. This paper reviews the recent scholarship on farmers markets to identify recent trends and synthesizes the current evidence describing the ways in which farmers markets contribute to the wellbeing of their communities, as well as identifying areas for additional future research.

Download Full-text

Potential Use of Indoor Living Walls in Canadian Dwellings

J ◽

10.3390/j4020010 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 4 (2) ◽

pp. 116-130

Author(s):

Daria Smolova ◽

Avi Friedman

Keyword(s):

Global Warming ◽

Food Production ◽

Air Purification ◽

Traditional Food ◽

Production Chain ◽

Environmental Threats ◽

Fresh Food ◽

Living Wall ◽

Potential Use ◽

Potential Integration

Current social and environmental challenges have led to the rethinking of residential designs. Global warming, food insecurity, and, as a result, costly fresh produce are some of the causes of the reconsideration. Moreover, with obligatory isolation following the global COVID-19 pandemic, some are realizing the importance of nature and air quality in homes. This paper explores the potential integration of indoor living walls (ILWs) in Canadian homes for agricultural and air purification purposes. By reviewing a number of case studies, this paper investigates how the development of such walls can alter the traditional food production chain, while reducing environmental threats. The findings show that current indoor living wall practices can be transformed into a useful source of fresh food, and, to some degree, alter traditional food supply. They can also help in creating inexpensive methods of air purification.

Download Full-text

Biodegradable and Compostable Shopping Bags under Investigation by FTIR Spectroscopy

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app11020621 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (2) ◽

pp. 621

Author(s):

Silvana Alfei ◽

Anna Maria Schito ◽

Guendalina Zuccari

Keyword(s):

Principal Component Analysis ◽

Ftir Spectroscopy ◽

Principal Component ◽

Poly Lactic Acid ◽

Chemometric Methods ◽

Industrial Sectors ◽

Fresh Food ◽

Extruded Films ◽

Productive Process ◽

Non Destructive

In the recent years, plastic-based shopping bags have become irregular and progressively replaced by compostable ones. To be marketed, these “new plastics” must possess suitable requirements verified by specific bodies, which grant the conformity mark, and the approved physicochemical properties are periodically verified. The fast, inexpensive, non-destructive, easy to use, and reproducible Fourier-Transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy is a technique routinely applied to perform analysis in various industrial sectors. To get reliable information from spectral data, chemometric methods, such as Principal Component Analysis (PCA), are commonly suggested. In this context, PCA was herein performed on 4, 5, and 21 × 3251 matrices, collecting the FTIR data from regular and irregular shopping bags, including three freshly extruded films from the Italian industry MecPlast, to predict their compliance with legislation. The results allowed us to unequivocally achieve such information and to classify the bags as suitable for containing fresh food in bulk or only for transport. A self-validated linear model was developed capable to estimate, by acquiring a single FTIR spectrum if, after the productive process, the content of renewable poly-lactic-acid (PLA) in a new produced film respect the expectations. Surprisingly, our findings established that among the grocery bags available on the market, irregular plastic-based shopping bags continue to survive.

Download Full-text

Tyrosol-Enriched Tomatoes by Diffusion across the Fruit Peel from a Chitosan Coating: A Proposal of Functional Food

Foods ◽

10.3390/foods10020335 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 335

Author(s):

Silvia Tampucci ◽

Antonella Castagna ◽

Daniela Monti ◽

Clementina Manera ◽

Giuseppe Saccomanni ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Tomato Fruit ◽

Storage Period ◽

Food Matrix ◽

Fruit Peel ◽

Fresh Food ◽

In Vitro Permeation ◽

Active Transfer

Chitosan is receiving increasing attention from the food industry for being a biodegradable, non-toxic, antimicrobial biopolymer able to extend the shelf life of, and preserve the quality of, fresh food. However, few studies have investigated the ability of chitosan-based coatings to allow the diffusion of bioactive compounds into the food matrix to improve its nutraceutical quality. This research is aimed at testing whether a hydrophilic molecule (tyrosol) could diffuse from the chitosan-tyrosol coating and cross the tomato peel. To this end, in vitro permeation tests using excised tomato peel and an in vivo application of chitosan-tyrosol coating on tomato fruit, followed by tyrosol quantification in intact fruit, peel and flesh during a seven-day storage at room temperature, were performed. Both approaches demonstrated the ability of tyrosol to permeate across the fruit peel. Along with a decreased tyrosol content in the peel, its concentration within the flesh was increased, indicating an active transfer of tyrosol into this tissue. This finding, together with the maintenance of constant tyrosol levels during the seven-day storage period, is very promising for the use of chitosan formulations to produce functional tomato fruit.

Download Full-text

A Study on the Optimization of Distribution Routes for Fresh Food under Epidemic Situation

Proceedings of the 2020 2nd International Conference on Big Data and Artificial Intelligence ◽

10.1145/3436286.3436303 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Xiangyu Jin ◽

Chao Wang ◽

Wenli Hu

Keyword(s):

Fresh Food

Download Full-text

Development of Safe Halal Food Management System (SHFMS)

Food Control ◽

10.1016/j.foodcont.2021.108137 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 127 ◽

pp. 108137

Author(s):

Kohilavani ◽

Wan Nadiah Wan Abdullah ◽

Tajul Aris Yang ◽

Saad Al-din Sifat ◽

Wahidu Zzaman

Keyword(s):

Management System ◽

Food Management ◽

Halal Food

Download Full-text

Urban Food Autonomy: The Flourishing of an Ethics of Care for Sustainability

Humanities ◽

10.3390/h10010048 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

pp. 48

Author(s):

Esteve Giraud

Keyword(s):

Urban Agriculture ◽

Ethics Of Care ◽

Co2 Absorption ◽

Culture Of Care ◽

The People ◽

Fresh Food ◽

Climate Action ◽

Autonomy Movements ◽

Zero Hunger ◽

Education Platform

Urban agriculture is often advanced as a sustainable solution to feed a growing urban population, offering a number of benefits: improved fresh food access, CO2 absorption, social justice and social cohesion among others. Going beyond these direct tangible/objective benefits from urban agriculture, in this paper we ask: How can growing food in the cities teach us about taking care of each other and the natural environment? We use the example of urban food autonomy movements to discuss the transformative potential of a grassroots-led initiative promoting permaculture, which is anchored in three “ethics”: care for the earth, care for the people, and fair share. Through examining the philosophical underpinnings of “autonomy” and “care”, we explore how urban food autonomy initiatives can enable the development of an ethics of care, especially using permaculture inspirations. Our theoretical review and case analysis reveal that “autonomy” can never be achieved without “care” and that these are co-dependent outcomes. The urban food autonomy initiatives are directly relevant for the achievement of the three of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals: “Zero Hunger,” “Life on Land” and “Climate Action”, and contribute to a culture of care. Indeed, urban agriculture can act as a powerful education platform for the engagement of diverse stakeholders while also supporting a collective transformation of values.

Download Full-text