Image-Based Solutions for Precision Food Loss Evaluation

The high amount of food loss and waste significantly challenges the sustainable development. The agriculture needs rapid and fundamental transformation to enhance its efficient and sustainabile operation. However, to measure precisely the effect of the new policies and practices is also difficult. The present study analyses the applied methods’ data sources, as one of the key factors regarding the effective estimation of food loss and waste. By conducting a systematic literature review using the PRISMA approach, a lack of scientific focus was found related to the new data collection methods. Based on the selected articles reasonably slight amount joined the application of image processing to food loss estimation related purposes. The reviewed studies principally used the image-based solutions for the prevention and reduction of on-farm food loss. This recognition lighted up the application of image processing in agriculture, but only the thematic map analysis revealed the privileged status of ”plant disease detection” within the studied area. The results suggest the possibility of applying image-based data sources to quantify food loss. Even though the limitations of agricultural image processing, the application of new data sources, and methods could considerably improve the accuracy of food loss and waste quantification in addition to the operation on farm level in short term.