Microsoft Word HenryOkupa2020

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Cybersecurity and the future of agri-food industries 
by 
Henry Okupa 
B.S., Rivers State University of Science & 
Technology, Nigeria, 1983 
A THESIS 
Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements 
for the degree 
MASTER OF AGRIBUSINESS 
Department of Agricultural Economics 
College of Agriculture 
KANSAS STATE UNIVERSITY 
Manhattan, Kansas
2020 
Approved by: 
Major Professor 
Vincent Amanor-Boadu 

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ABSTRACT 
The agri-food sector has been undergoing rapid changes in the areas of food 
production and distribution over the past decades. Over the years, the sector has moved 
from disconnected, independent and uncoordinated operations to a highly interconnected, 
dependent and coordinated operations that have enhanced efficiency. The principal cost of 
this highly efficient system of production is the increased complexity and the exposure to 
potential risks networked organizations face in the age of the fourth industrial revolution.
Increasingly, the physical value of the agri-food sector’s activities has declined even as the 
intangibles (data, information, insights) have increased in value. As precision agriculture 
becomes the mainstream and global positioning systems and RFIDs are deployed to 
enhance traceability and safety, the importance of data protection and security also become 
exponentially critical to the integrity of the system. That the sector is ahead of the general 
economy in the adoption of autonomous machines and artificial intelligence implies that 
the crucial valuation in the sector would be on data generation, organization and analytics, 
and machine learning. The combined complexity of these systems and processes 
interacting together create value and at the same time exposes the industry to significant 
operational risks. For while it was much difficult for cows and grains of corn to be stolen, 
stealing the data supporting the value embedded in these commodities is becoming 
increasing easy and riskier. 
This research is an exploratory excursion into developing an awareness of the scope 
of the potential risks creeping into the agri-food sector. It raises concern about the nature, 
typology and structure of these cybersecurity risks, that identifies the skills and capabilities 

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that are needed for the sector to continue producing value to its customers even as it 
sustains its competitiveness. It focuses attention on building the internal capacities along 
the agri-food supply chain to ensure that all stakeholders have the appropriate capabilities 
and capacities to address the impending and emerging challenges. After all, every chain is 
as strong as its weakest link. Cybersecurity threat has become a very critical challenge 
facing all businesses. And the agri-food sector is not immune to the threats it presents. 
Being prepared is a necessary condition for securing the sector’s future.

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