A Framework for Food Supply Chain Digitalisation: Lessons from Thailand

The promise of digitalisation is enormous and nowhere is it more critical than in its potential to transform food supply chain. Consumers have become more educated and are demanding real-time updated information on foods they consumed through digital media. They are also increasingly demanding to know if the foods they consuming are environmentally and socially sustainable or not. As a result, food product traceability, safety, and sustainability issues have become crucial concerns to food retailers, distributors, processors, and farmers. Digitalisation allow food supply chains to be highly connected, efficient, and responsive to customer needs and regulation requirements. However, digitalising a traditional food supply chain is challenging and resource demanding. This is more so for developing countries where moving food from farms to consumers can take months as it travels through an array of middlemen. Unfortunately, little is available in the existing literature on food supply chain digitalisation. So far, current researchers mainly explore the benefits of digitalisation. Using cases in three companies, this paper explores the practices, challenges, and opportunities faced by Thailand food manufacturers in digitalising their food supply chains. A framework for food supply chain digitalisation is proposed and its implications for research and practices are discussed