Modelling a nationwide crop planning problem using a multiple criteria decision making tool

Abstract

Multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) tools have been used in recent years to solve a wide variety of problems. In this paper we consider a nation-wide crop-planning problem and show how an MCDM tool can be used efficiently and effectively for these types of problems. A crop-planning problem is usually formulated as a single objective linear programming model. The objective is either the maximization of return from cultivated land or the minimization of cost of cultivation. This type of problem, however, normally involves more than one goal. We thus formulate a crop-planning problem as a goal program (an MCDM tool) and discuss the importance of three different goals for a case problem. We solve the goal program with a real world data set, and compare the solution with that of linear program. We argue that the goal program provides better insights to the problem and thus allows better decision support.