Logistics strategy (FIFO, FEFO or LSFO) decision support system for perishable food products

Abstract

Food waste is one of the major challenges to be faced in the world and, therefore, its elimination is one of the most important issues in the perishable product market. Thus, it is necessary to develop and/or apply algorithms and mathematical tools that relate food products perishability with their cost, i.e, how the value of a product varies as function of its deterioration over time until spoilage. This decision support system aims to assist in the product's price definition during its shelf life, maximizing the profit and reducing the spoilage and consequently waste, this means that this system has the objective to relate sales efficiency and the reduction of losses in perishable food products, allowing to answer to which logistics strategy provides a higher profit and consequently less food waste. The proposed easy and expedite computational decision support system compares the FIFO, FEFO or LSFO logistics strategies. The system is tested for two cases of perishable products. First, the system is explained and tested in detail for the yogurt. The second product to be considered is the apple, where the results are briefly presented in order to compare and justify the proposed method.