An Adaptive Fuzzy Multi-Criteria Model for Sustainability Assessment of Sugarcane Agroindustry Supply Chain

Abstract

Supply chain sustainability assessment is key to maintaining and improving the performance of agroindustry supply chains, particularly in sustainable agroindustry development. The assessment of agro-industrial supply chain performance is a complex and dynamic process. Hence, there is a need for an adaptive fuzzy multi-criteria sustainability assessment model as an alternative method of analysis and improvement. This study aimed to design an adaptive fuzzy multi-criteria sustainability assessment and improvement model for the sugarcane agroindustry supply chain. In this study: (1) a fuzzy inference system (FIS) was developed to assess the performance of the sustainability dimensions. This study proposed 24 indicators for four dimensions: economic, social, environmental, and resource. (2) An adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) is designed to aggregate the overall supply chain sustainability performance. (3) The proposed fuzzy multi-criteria assessment model was compared with the common multidimensional scaling (MDS) and linear models. This study proved that the proposed synthesis of the FIS and ANFIS models is powerful and adaptive for evaluating supply chain sustainability and providing accurate results. (4) The strategies to improve sustainability performance were developed using the cosine amplitude method (CAM). The proposed model determined that the overall supply chain sustainability value was 68.58%, which was almost sustainable. Several strategies have been suggested to improve sustainability performance, including maintaining the sugarcane supply by strengthening the partnership program and improving the mill’s overall recovery, followed by factory revitalization or new factory investment.