Sustainability in the Food Industry: Trends, Thematic Axes, and Emerging Topics from a Bibliometric Analysis

<ns3:p>With increasing concern about the environmental and social impacts of the food industry, sustainability has become a central focus of scientific research. To better understand how this field has evolved, a bibliometric analysis was conducted to identify publication trends, key themes, and emerging topics. The analysis was based on data from Scopus and Web of Science and examined the evolution of scientific output related to sustainability in the food industry. Methods included keyword co-occurrence analysis, assessments of country and author productivity, and thematic evolution analysis. In addition, a Cartesian framework was used to classify key terms according to their relevance and recency. The results show an exponential growth in scientific output, with notable increases in 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023, reaching a statistical significance of 99.65%. Three main country clusters were identified, with the United Kingdom, the United States, and Italy standing out for their productivity and impact. At the author level, Mangla and Luthra were the most productive, while Land, Beske, and Van Der Vorst had the greatest impact on the field. Thematic evolution analysis revealed a transition from early research focused on “soil erosion” to more recent themes such as “circular economy,” “supply chain management,” “food safety,” and “wastewater treatment.” The keyword co-occurrence network identified seven thematic clusters, with the most prominent cluster centered on “sustainability,” “waste management,” and “short supply chain.” Emerging topics included “Covid-19,” “blockchain,” and the “agri-food sector.” Overall, the study demonstrates a clear evolution and diversification of sustainability research in the food industry, underscoring the importance of emerging topics and international collaboration. It also proposes a multidisciplinary research agenda that prioritizes food security, sustainable agriculture, and supply chain management, and emphasizes the integration of innovative technologies to address current environmental, economic, and social challenges.</ns3:p>