Analysis of national and international tomato trade routes through the simplex method

Abstract

Objective: To find the optimal national and international tomato trade routes through the simplex method to maximize profit. Design/methodology/approach: The apparent national consumption was determined from the production, the volume of exports, the imports, and the population of each state in the Mexican republic; based on this, the points of origin and destinations were established, to later optimize the routes through the simplex method taking into account two scenarios, a closed market economy and an open market economy. Results: Of the total offer, 21% is destined to the national market, where only 64% of the offerors supply tomato to national consumers. On the other hand, in the open economy it is evident that only 45% of the destinations through which tomato can be exported to North American territory are optimal, and it is also clear that 79% of national surpluses are destined to trade in a foreign market. Limitations on study/implications: The model was designed with data from 2020, considering all the tomato variants produced and exported in Mexico contained in the tariff classification 070200; the independent variable was the distance between offerors and destinations. Findings/conclusions: In conditions of closed market there is surplus production of tomato in 19 states that allows supplying the states with negative balance. Estado de México, Mexico City, and Veracruz concentrate the greatest demand due to their large population density. The two states with greatest surplus, Sinaloa and San Luis Potosí, destined the total of their offer to the foreign market, primarily because of their proximity to border customs. as.