Food Security - Last Mile Delivery

Quantum computing optimization of the food supply chain, in particular in the route planning of food delivery in underserved regions impacted by climate change or other crises.

OWNER

STATUS

Phase 1 – Outline

QUANTUM APPROACH

Combinatorial Optimization (Quantum Inspired)

SDGs

CONTRIBUTORS

QWorld

QAI Fondation

Hassan II University of Casablanca

Yale University

ORIRGIN OF CONTRIIBUTORS

CONTECT/IMPACT:

Last-mile delivery, the problem of delivering food directly to a retailer or customer, is considered the most complex, costly, and inefficient part of the food supply chain. Worldwide, 2.33 billion people lack regular access to sufficient nutritious food, of which 864 million are prone to periodically run out of food. Despite widespread food insecurity, one-third of the global food supply post-harvest goes to waste. Nearly 40% of this food waste is accounted for by the supply chain connecting producers and retailers. Inefficiencies in logistics can also lead to excessive emissions and air pollution, which have many negative consequences, including health issues. In less developed countries, where road logistics is not as ubiquitous as in developed countries, there can be many negative consequences due to the impact on air quality and climate.

 

HOW COULD QUANTUM HELP:

A fundamental challenge in logistics is determining how to optimally make a set of deliveries with a set of vehicles, which is also known as the Vehicle Routing Problem (VRP). VRP and its variants are NP-Hard, which means that it is unlikely that there exist fast (polynomial-time) algorithms that find optimal solutions in all cases. As a result, most practical solvers either employ heuristics or are carefully tailored to the given problem. Some modern approaches use machine learning techniques, but these methods are limited by the computational cost of dataset generation and training. A quantum approach could present an alternative to explore an efficient, scalable, and accessible solution for removing waste from food delivery systems across the world.

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Description:

The Open Quantum Institute (OQI) is a multilateral governance initiative that promotes global and inclusive access to quantum computing and the development of applications for the benefit of humanity. As a novel science diplomacy instrument, it brings together research, diplomacy, private sector and philanthropy stakeholders. OQI is hosted by CERN during its pilot phase (2024-2026).

 

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Accelerating applications for humanity: Realising the full potential of quantum computing to have the widest possible societal impact by accelerating the development of use cases geared towards achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and succeeding framework , thanks to the combined forces of researchers, developers and entrepreneurs from academia and private sector as well as the United Nations, and large NGOs
Access for all: Providing global, inclusive and equitable access to a pool of public and private quantum computers and simulators available via the cloud
Advancing capacity building: Developing educational tools to enable everyone around the world to contribute to the development of quantum computing and make the most of the technology
Activating multilateral governance for the SDGs: Providing a neutral forum to help shape multilateral governance of quantum computing for the SDGs

 

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Inclusivity, global scope
  • Enable people from all countries, regardless of whether they have any quantum computing capability of their own, to benefit from and to participate in the development of (i) quantum computing applications that address global challenges, in particular those that are closely related to their own specific challenges, and (ii) the multilateral governance of quantum computing for the SDGs
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