Europe’s agri-food chain is nowhere near ready for full digital transparency

Their findings highlight a sector in transition: ambitious in vision, active in experimentation, but far from achieving broad, fully integrated digital ecosystems. While digital tools are widely recognized as essential for the future of food governance, most initiatives are still confined to pilot programs, conceptual proposals, or fragmented deployments.

European governments, food producers, and consumers have placed soaring expectations on digital technologies to secure safer, more transparent, and more sustainable agri-food supply chains. A new scientific review finds that although digitalization is advancing across the sector, real progress remains uneven, hindered by technical, financial, organizational, and regulatory barriers that continue to slow large-scale implementation.

The study, “Digitalization in the European agri-food supply chain: a scoping review of traceability, transparency, and sustainability,” published in Frontiers in Blockchain, examines two decades of peer-reviewed work across European supply chains to assess how blockchain, the Internet of Things, RFID, QR codes, big data systems, AI tools, GIS platforms, and smart monitoring devices are being deployed to improve traceability, strengthen consumer confidence, and support sustainability goals.

Their findings highlight a sector in transition: ambitious in vision, active in experimentation, but far from achieving broad, fully integrated digital ecosystems. While digital tools are widely recognized as essential for the future of food governance, most initiatives are still confined to pilot programs, conceptual proposals, or fragmented deployments.

Digital innovation gains momentum but lacks large-scale integration

The review shows that blockchain remains the most prominent technology across European food systems. It appears alongside IoT sensors, cold-chain monitoring devices, QR codes, RFID tags, cloud platforms, and artificial intelligence tools. These technologies are increasingly being combined into end-to-end digital architectures that promise enhanced traceability, stronger recall systems, streamlined operations, and greater transparency for consumers.

Italy emerges as a regional leader, with numerous studies and pilots targeting the traceability of olive oil, wine, dairy products, and high-value niche items. Other Southern European countries also feature prominently due to their diverse agricultural systems and strong reliance on producer–consumer trust.

Across the studies reviewed, digitalization is associated with several recurring benefits. Traceability systems supported by blockchain and IoT devices can track products at every stage, identify vulnerabilities quickly, and improve enforcement of standards. Consumer-facing QR codes allow buyers to access supply-chain information instantly, reinforcing trust in product origin, quality, and safety. Automated data collection reduces manual paperwork and human error, while also supporting sustainability claims by documenting environmental practices.

Yet despite the progress, the authors find that very few projects have moved beyond prototypes or localized pilots. Most supply chains still rely on traditional paper-based or semidigital traceability systems. Even in technologically advanced regions, implementation is inconsistent along the farm-to-fork chain, with producers, distributors, processors, and retailers adopting different tools at different speeds.

This fragmentation undercuts the effectiveness of digital systems, which require synchronized, interoperable data flows to deliver reliable transparency.

High costs and technical barriers slow Europe’s digital shift

The review identifies economic and financial constraints as leading obstacles to wider adoption. Small and medium-sized producers, who represent a major share of Europe’s agri-food landscape, face the steepest barriers. Many cannot afford the hardware, software, onboarding, and maintenance costs associated with IoT sensors, blockchain platforms, or data-management systems. Limited technical skills and insufficient digital literacy deepen these divides.

The authors also highlight interoperability challenges. Many systems cannot communicate seamlessly because they use incompatible formats, data standards, or communication protocols. This inconsistency creates informational bottlenecks and forces companies to invest in custom integrations that are often expensive and difficult to maintain.

Data governance concerns also complicate adoption. Blockchain systems are valued for their immutability, but this feature raises questions about how to handle errors, privacy rights, and proprietary information along supply-chain stages. Companies remain wary of exposing sensitive data, especially in highly competitive sectors such as wine or cheese production. Compliance requirements under EU data protection law add another layer of complexity.

The review further identifies organizational challenges, including resistance to change, siloed decision-making, limited collaboration between supply-chain actors, and insufficient coordination among public and private stakeholders. Even when digital solutions are available, hesitation or poor alignment among partners can prevent technology from delivering its full benefits.

Infrastructure gaps present yet another barrier, especially in rural or remote areas where connectivity, network reliability, and technological readiness remain uneven. These disparities restrict the ability to deploy IoT sensors, cloud-based platforms, or real-time monitoring systems.

Sustainability gains remain promising but under-measured

Sustainability outcomes remain more hypothesized than demonstrated. While many studies frame digitalization as a tool to reduce food waste, improve resource management, strengthen climate accountability, or support environmentally friendly production, there is a lack of robust empirical data measuring these gains on a large scale.

Most sustainability claims are based on expectations, such as anticipating reduced emissions through optimized logistics or predicting lower spoilage rates through enhanced monitoring, rather than on long-term performance metrics. Without consistent, system-wide data, policymakers and supply-chain actors struggle to quantify the environmental value of digital technologies.

The authors also note that safety improvements, while frequently cited, are rarely backed by extensive evidence of real-world reductions in contamination incidents or large-scale recalls. Traceability systems enhance responsiveness, but measurable impacts remain difficult to track.

Despite these gaps, the review acknowledges that the potential for sustainability and safety improvements is significant. Digital tools can support climate and circular-economy strategies, enforce compliance with environmental standards, and help producers communicate sustainability achievements directly to consumers. However, realizing this potential requires systematic implementation, coordinated collaboration, and supportive policy frameworks.

Gaps between innovation and implementation highlight need for policy support

The researchers identify a clear mismatch between Europe’s technological ambitions and the practical realities faced by supply-chain actors. While the region leads globally in food-quality certification, labeling, and regulatory frameworks, digital adoption remains fragmented across countries, commodities, and organizational sizes.

To bridge this gap, the study calls for several strategic actions:

• Support for small producers to make digital tools financially accessible, reduce investment risk, and expand training programs.
• Harmonization of data standards, enabling interoperability across systems, sectors, and national borders.
• Development of integrated multi-technology architectures, combining blockchain, IoT, AI, and GIS tools into seamless traceability ecosystems.
• Stronger collaboration among supply-chain stakeholders, supported by public–private partnerships capable of coordinating technological transitions.
• More empirical, large-scale studies, enabling policymakers to measure sustainability outcomes, evaluate operational benefits, and quantify returns on investment.
• Clear governance frameworks addressing data protection, privacy, accountability, and shared responsibilities across the traceability chain.

Without these measures, Europe risks widening the digital divide between technologically advanced producers and those lacking financial or technical capacity to participate in digital ecosystems.