Circular Economy in the Food Supply Chain: A literature review

The recent economic, social, and environmental developments are compelling industries and businesses to transition from a linear model to a circular one, based on the so-called 3Rs. The concept of a circular economy is capturing increasing interest from academics and policymakers, particularly in the food industry. Agri-food supply chains typically face complex challenges in achieving sustainable development, and solutions are needed to make the entire food chain more sustainable, improving agricultural production, food processing, packaging, distribution, and consumption. Despite the presence of several literature reviews on the subject, recent studies primarily concentrate on identifying specific drivers or barriers in the implementation of the circular economy within the food supply chain. The aim of this study, on the other hand, is to identify the prevailing research areas related to the topic to understand the key subjects of research focus. This facilitates future research on the most relevant topics. To achieve this, we conducted a bibliometric analysis and keyword research.