IoT-Enabled Food Systems as Core Urban Infrastructure in Smart Cities

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.70862/CSIR.2026.0301-19

Keywords:

Food Safety 4.0, food systems, Internet of Things (IoT), smart cities, urban infrastructure

Abstract

This study examines the digitalization of food systems in smart cities, focusing on the role of the Internet of Things (IoT). In much of the research, food systems are viewed as a logistical element rather than as part of the core urban infrastructure. At the same time, they are essential for the functioning of the urban environment, as they are directly related to sustainability, resource efficiency, and quality of life. The lack of a clearly defined architectural framework limits the possibilities for their systematic integration and management. This necessitates a new conceptual approach within which food systems are viewed as a separate infrastructure layer. In response, this paper proposes a conceptual architecture that positions IoT-based food systems as an equal component of the smart city. The proposed framework provides a clearer basis for the analysis and design of smart food systems. It supports better management, higher efficiency, and sustainable development of the urban environment.

References

Zanella, A., Bui, N., Castellani, A., Vangelista, L., & Zorzi, M. (2014). Internet of things for smart cities. IEEE Internet of Things journal, 1(1), 22-32. https://doi.org/10.1109/JIOT.2014.2306328

Batty, M., Axhausen, K. W., Giannotti, F., Pozdnoukhov, A., Bazzani, A., Wachowicz, M., ... & Portugali, Y. (2012). Smart cities of the future. The european physical journal special topics, 214(1), 481-518. https://doi.org/10.1140/epjst/e2012-01703-3

Al-Fuqaha, A., Guizani, M., Mohammadi, M., Aledhari, M., & Ayyash, M. (2015). Internet of things: A survey on enabling technologies, protocols, and applications. IEEE communications surveys & tutorials, 17(4), 2347-2376. https://doi.org/10.1109/COMST.2015.2444095

Gubbi, J., Buyya, R., Marusic, S., & Palaniswami, M. (2013). Internet of Things (IoT): A vision, architectural elements, and future directions. Future generation computer systems, 29(7), 1645-1660. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.future.2013.01.010

Songhorabadi, M., Rahimi, M., MoghadamFarid, A., & Kashani, M. H. (2023). Fog computing approaches in IoT-enabled smart cities. Journal of Network and Computer Applications, 211, 103557. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnca.2022.103557

Badidi, E., Mahrez, Z., & Sabir, E. (2020). Fog computing for smart cities’ big data management and analytics: A review. Future Internet, 12(11), 190. https://doi.org/10.3390/fi12110190

Shalini, C. M. K. S., Roopa, Y. M., & Devi, J. S. (2019, July). Fog computing for smart cities. In 2019 International Conference on Communication and Electronics Systems (ICCES) (pp. 912-916). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/ICCES45898.2019.9002050

Ribeiro, P., Dias, G., & Pereira, P. (2021). Transport systems and mobility for smart cities. Applied System Innovation, 4(3), 61. https://doi.org/10.3390/asi4030061

Alavi, A. H., Jiao, P., Buttlar, W. G., & Lajnef, N. (2018). Internet of Things-enabled smart cities: State-of-the-art and future trends. Measurement, 129, 589-606. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.measurement.2018.07.067

Chilipirea, C., Petre, A. C., Groza, L. M., Dobre, C., & Pop, F. (2017). An integrated architecture for future studies in data processing for smart cities. Microprocessors and Microsystems, 52, 335-342. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.micpro.2017.03.004

Zou, T., Dawodu, A., Mangi, E., & Cheshmehzangi, A. (2023). Exploring current trends, gaps & challenges in sustainable food systems studies: the need of developing urban food systems frameworks for sustainable cities. Sustainability, 15(13), 10248. https://doi.org/10.3390/su151310248

Cohen, N. (2022). Roles of cities in creating healthful food systems. Annual review of public health, 43(1), 419-437. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-052220-021059

Blay-Palmer, A., Santini, G., Halliday, J., Malec, R., Carey, J., Keller, L., ... & van Veenhuizen, R. (2021). City region food systems: building resilience to COVID-19 and other shocks. Sustainability, 13(3), 1325. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13031325

Zou, T., Cheshmehzangi, A., Dawodu, A., & Mangi, E. (2022). The role of urban agriculture in enhancing urban food system sustainability and resilience: a literature review. Journal of Resilient Economies, 2(1), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.25120/jre.2.1.2022.3906

Zhong, Q., Wang, L., & Cui, S. (2021). Urban food systems: a bibliometric review from 1991 to 2020. Foods, 10(3), 662. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods10030662

Sonnino, R. (2023). Food system transformation: Urban perspectives. Cities, 134, 104164. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2022.104164

Khan, N., Ray, R. L., Kassem, H. S., Hussain, S., Zhang, S., Khayyam, M., ... & Asongu, S. A. (2021). Potential role of technology innovation in transformation of sustainable food systems: A review. Agriculture, 11(10), 984. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture11100984

Azmat, F., Safdar, M., Imran, A., Arshad, M., Shafiq, A., Afzaal, M., ... & Zahra, S. M. (2024). How Sustainable Food Systems Shape Smart Cities. In Interdisciplinary Technological Advancements in Smart Cities (pp. 95-120). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-69441-7_5

Rejeb, A., Rejeb, K., Simske, S. J., & Keogh, J. G. (2022). Blockchain technology in the smart city: a bibliometric review. Quality & quantity, 56(5), 2875-2906. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-021-01251-2

Kamilaris, A., Fonts, A., & Prenafeta-Boldύ, F. X. (2019). The rise of blockchain technology in agriculture and food supply chains. Trends in food science & technology, 91, 640-652. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tifs.2019.07.034

Ikram, A., Mehmood, H., Arshad, M. T., Rasheed, A., Noreen, S., & Gnedeka, K. T. (2024). Applications of artificial intelligence (AI) in managing food quality and ensuring global food security. CyTA-Journal of Food, 22(1), 2393287. https://doi.org/10.1080/19476337.2024.2393287

Abdi, Y. H., Bashir, S. G., Abdullahi, Y. B., Abdi, M. S., & Ahmed, N. I. (2025). Artificial intelligence applications for strengthening global food safety systems. Discover Food, 5(1), 391. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44187-025-00678-y

De Amorim, W. S., Deggau, A. B., do Livramento Gonçalves, G., da Silva Neiva, S., Prasath, A. R., & De Andrade, J. B. S. O. (2019). Urban challenges and opportunities to promote sustainable food security through smart cities and the 4th industrial revolution. Land use policy, 87, 104065. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2019.104065

Haikal, R., Firdaus, T., Herdiansyah, H., & Chairunnisa, R. S. (2025). Urban Planning Policies and Architectural Design for Sustainable Food Security: A Case Study of Smart Cities in Indonesia. Sustainability, 17(16), 7546. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17167546

Talebkhah, M., Sali, A., Marjani, M., Gordan, M., Hashim, S. J., & Rokhani, F. Z. (2021). IoT and big data applications in smart cities: recent advances, challenges, and critical issues. IEEE Access, 9, 55465-55484. https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2021.3070905

Fahlevi, M., Asetya, D. R., Matroji, F. J., Dahlan, S. P., Dandi, M., & Asyrof, R. A. (2024, September). What Happens When IoT Meets Big Data? Revolutionizing Urban Agriculture for Future Cities. In 2024 International Conference on ICT for Smart Society (ICISS) (pp. 1-6). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/iciss62896.2024.10751358

Singh, D. K., Sobti, R., Jain, A., Malik, P. K., & Le, D. N. (2022). LoRa based intelligent soil and weather condition monitoring with internet of things for precision agriculture in smart cities. IET communications, 16(5), 604-618. https://doi.org/10.1049/cmu2.12352

Tripathi, A. K., Akul Krishnan, K., & Pandey, A. C. (2023). A novel blockchain and internet of things-based food traceability system for smart cities. Wireless Personal Communications, 129(3), 2157-2180. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11277-023-10230-9

Zohrabi, N., Jones, J. C., Keegan, B., Adhikari, S., Verrelli, B. C., & Abdelwahed, S. (2025). Addressing Urban Food Insecurity through Data-Driven and Community-Centric Smart City Frameworks. IEEE Access. https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2025.3589963

Nagarajan, S. M., Deverajan, G. G., Chatterjee, P., Alnumay, W., & Muthukumaran, V. (2022). Integration of IoT based routing process for food supply chain management in sustainable smart cities. Sustainable Cities and Society, 76, 103448. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2021.103448

Heitlinger, S., Bryan-Kinns, N., & Comber, R. (2018, August). Connected seeds and sensors: co-designing internet of things for sustainable smart cities with urban food-growing communities. In Proceedings of the 15th Participatory Design Conference: Short Papers, Situated Actions, Workshops and Tutorial-Volume 2 (pp. 1-5). https://doi.org/10.1145/3210604.3210620

Fatorachian, H., Kazemi, H., & Pawar, K. (2025). Digital technologies in food supply chain waste management: A case study on sustainable practices in smart cities. Sustainability, 17(5), 1996. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17051996

Downloads

Published

28-03-2026

Issue

Section

Interdisciplinary Research

Categories

How to Cite

[1]
T. Markov, M. Terziyska, and B. Milenkov, “IoT-Enabled Food Systems as Core Urban Infrastructure in Smart Cities”, Comp. Sci. and Interdiscip. Res., vol. 3, no. 1, Mar. 2026, doi: 10.70862/CSIR.2026.0301-19.