The mediating role of supply chain quality management for traceability and performance improvement: Evidence among Chinese food firms

Abstract

With the frequent outbreak of food safety issues, supply chain traceability (SCT), using industry 4.0 technologies such as blockchain, Internet of Things, and cloud computing for end-to-end quality monitoring, has attracted increasing attention from academia and practitioners. However, whether and how supply chain focal firms can improve both quality and economic performance through SCT practices is still unclear and lacks studies. Built on the value of SCT and from the resource dependence theory (RDT) perspective, this study hypothesizes that supply chain quality management (SCQM) practices, including supply chain-based quality strategy and leadership (SCQSL), supply chain-based process integration and management (SCPIM), and quality-oriented supply chain relationship management (QSCRM), are necessary for focal firms to improve quality and gain economic benefit through SCT. Using survey data collected from 337 food firms in China, our structural equation modeling results reveal that SCT can bring quality performance while SCQSL and SCPIM are necessarily required. SCT can improve economic performance while SCPIM is essential and SCQSL is partially necessary. Moreover, SCRM is partially needed for firms to gain both types of performances. This study contributes new theoretical insights for food firms to highlight SCQM practices in support of their traceback investigation for associated performance gains.