Nanotechnology in food sector and agriculture

Abstract

Proper nutrition and a clean environment promote human health. Nanotechnology is used to a limited extent at the moment for achieving these aims although it has the potential to revolutionize agriculture and food sectors by their ground breaking scientific innovations. So far, the use of nanotechnology in agriculture has been mostly theoretical, but it has begun and will continue to have a significant effect in the main areas of the food industry: development of new functional materials, product development, and design of methods and instrumentation for food safety and bio-security. The effects on society as a whole will be dramatic. The article reviews some of the current nanotechnology research that is applicable to agriculture and food technology and project what the future will bring to the newly emerging field of Agrifood Nanotechnology.