Ethical, Legal and Social Aspects (ELSA) for AI: An assessment tool for Agri-food

• AI ethics has emerged to respond to broader social and ethical challenges posed by AI, however, regulations and guidelines are not sector or context specific. • This research provides a template of 25 questions to identify ethical, legal and social aspects (ELSA) for responsible AI design for those developing and using AI in the agri-food sector; the ‘ELSA Scan’. • The workings of this assessment were empirically explored in the context of the agri-food domain through 2 case studies (arable and dairy farming). • The ELSA scan is relatively easy to implement at a low cost. • Quadruple helix stakeholders were involved in to validate the questions. • Additional in-depth assessment is needed to identify additional ELSA aspects and provide tailored recommendations to mitigate risks and take opportunities towards responsible AI development in agri-food. As Artificial Intelligence (AI) continues to emerge in various sectors, ethical frameworks and guidelines aim to contribute to responsible AI development. While AI ethics has gained prominence in addressing broader societal concerns, existing regulations and guidelines often lack specificity for certain domain-specific applications (e.g. agri-food). AI is rapidly developed and deployed throughout the agri-food sector, but there is little practical guidance on how to do this responsibly. This study examines if the agri-food sector needs domain-specific guidance for the development and use of responsible AI and, if so, what it could look like. This research proposes it does and aims to fill this gap by introducing a novel approach for responsible AI in agri-food: the ethical, legal, and social aspects (ELSA) Scan. This assessment comprises 25 targeted questions aimed at identifying ELSA considerations. These questions were developed and based on 23 ELSA aspects of AI in agri-food literature and from testing in two case studies (arable and dairy farming). The ELSA Scan provides a clear and implementable approach for identifying ELSA in the development and use of AI in agri-food with AI developers and organisations.