Evaluating the adoption of Industry 4.0, sustainability and circular economy drivers to achieve sustainable development goals–oriented agri-food supply chains

The consideration of Industry 4.0, sustainability and circular economy (I4.0-S-CE) drivers plays a pivotal role in the development of agri-food supply chains (AFSCs) that aim to achieve sustainable development goals (SDGs). Establishing SDGs-oriented AFSCs is critical for meeting the agricultural needs of developing countries, prioritizing agricultural SDGs and developing effective agricultural policies. However, this requires integrating I4.0-S-CE into AFSCs. This study is the first to propose this integration to create SDGs-oriented AFSCs, aiming to identify key I4.0-S-CE drivers and rank agricultural SDGs in developing countries. A literature review and expert opinions were utilized to identify the three main drivers and 18 subdrivers to achieve this goal. Then, the importance level of each driver was determined using the fuzzy best worst method (FBWM), and the agricultural SDGs were ranked based on their fuzzy weighted aggregated sum product assessment (FWASPAS) scores. The validity of the findings was assessed through comparison with other decision-making techniques and one-at-a-time sensitivity analysis. This study demonstrates how the integration of I4.0-S-CE drivers contributes to the achievement of the SDGs-oriented AFSCs. Moreover, this study offers valuable guidance to practitioners regarding the prioritization of agricultural SDGs and identifying drivers to support the development of SDGs-oriented AFSCs in developing countries.