A review on blockchain smart contracts in the agri-food industry: Current state, application challenges and future trends

With the continuous development of the new crown epidemic and the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war, the world is facing a serious food crisis, especially the agri-food (agricultural and food) crisis. The research of blockchain smart contracts in the agri-food industry has attracted great attention. To judge its trend, this research adopts the methods of bibliometric analysis and content analysis to conduct a comprehensive review and content analysis of the blockchain smart contract research in this industry. A general framework for blockchain smart contract research applied to the agri-food industry is proposed. Firstly, 78 relevant literatures were screened from 6 databases including the web of science and the Derwent Innovations Index for this review. Bibliometrics analyzes previous research from five dimensions, including publication year, document type and publication journal, country, author, and keywords. Secondly, the content analysis identified 4 issues, such as agri-food data storage, agri-food information management and control, agri-food data traceability, and agri-food data rights confirmation. Thirdly, the general framework provides a general research method for blockchain smart contracts. Finally, the advantages, challenges and development trends of blockchain smart contract research in the agrifood industry are discussed. This paper makes a qualitative and quantitative analysis of blockchain smart contracts in the agri-food industry, and clarifies the research status, challenges and development trends. We provide a common framework that contributes to the body of knowledge that will facilitate greater strategic adoption and use of blockchain smart contracts in the agri-food industry.