Applications and Opportunities for Internet-based Technologies in the Food Industry

has been incorporated in most development activities. The food production industry is one of the recent industries to embrace IT in their major daily operations. This study discusses applications and opportunities for Internet-based technologies in the food industry and highlights state-of-the-art technologies and trends in the field. These technologies are mainly classified into Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID) for supply chain management, quality and safety monitoring, e-commerce, robotics, Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN), and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Since all emerging technologies are coupled with challenges, the study addresses both challenges and benefits of incorporating IT in the food industry. Safety and quality of food products is a vital issue in the context of the food industry. As a result, this paper discusses how IT can be integrated to enhance the safety and quality of food products. The paper concludes by arguing that awareness be raised within the agro-food industry on the importance of the adoption of Internet-based technologies as a critical success factor in the twenty-first century. Keywords- food industry; information technology; Internet; RFID; e-commerce