Robust optimization of sustainable food supply chain network considering food waste valorization and supply uncertainty

Abstract

Increasing pressure from customer expectations to government regulation for sustainable food products warrants research in the sustainable food supply chain (FSC). One-third of the food produced is wasted, despite the potential to valorize food wastes. Additionally, the uncertainty associated with the supply of food products has a significant impact on the FSC decisions, steering the need for robust and sustainable models. Lastly, the issue of food perishability is missing in most optimization models. In line with the gaps identified, this study presents an integrated robust multi-objective optimization model for designing the FSC network considering all three dimensions of sustainability (economic, social and environment), whilst including FSC perishability, food waste valorization and supply uncertainty simultaneously. The proposed model is applied to a real-time case of the Indian mango pulp supply chain and yields several insights for transforming the FSC towards sustainability. This study shows the impact of focusing only on one dimension of sustainability on the other dimensions and the trade-offs among sustainability dimensions which would help the decision-maker select an appropriate non-dominated solution that aligns with the organization's sustainability goals.