Fresh Product Supply Research Articles

Collaborating to Address Heavy Metals in Fresh Produce Supply—A Case Study of Cadmium in Spinach and Carrots Grown in Arizona and California

Providing consumers with safe, nutritious food is a common goal shared by the produce industry, the public health community, government agencies, and academia. To this end, these stakeholders have adopted a collaborative approach to address the challenge of improving the safety of food commonly eaten by infants and children. On 24 to 26 October 2023, Western Growers, in collaboration with federal and state government agencies, organized a pilot workshop in Salinas, CA, focused on cadmium in carrots and spinach grown in Arizona and California. Following a day of touring carrot and leafy green fields, workshop attendees participated in 2 days of panel discussions and presentations on cadmium toxicology and health effects, the nutritional benefits of carrots and spinach, Arizona’s and California’s carrot and spinach production practices, current research on plant uptake of cadmium, and mitigation methods and strategies. Panel discussions focused on obstacles that hinder adoption of methods to reduce cadmium, industry-regulator trust and communication, confidential data sharing, and industry-academia collaborative research. This article is a summary of workshop proceedings highlighting the stakeholders’ expectations and roles as perceived by the attendees and essential support needed for continuous improvement going forward.

Study on Optimizing Inventory to Minimize Waste in the Fresh Produce Supply Chain

Abstract: The increasing demand for fresh produce, particularly greens, presents unique challenges in inventory management due to their short shelf life and susceptibility to spoilage. Inefficient management often results in significant waste, leading to financial losses for retailers and increased environmental burdens from the disposal of spoiled goods. Despite various strategies being employed in the agri-food sector, gaps remain in understanding how to optimize inventory levels to minimize waste at the retails level while maintaining high service levels for customers. This research aims to develop an inventory management model tailored to fresh produce that can mitigate these issues by balancing stock availability and minimizing wastage, particularly in large retail shops. To address the research problem, a mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) model was developed, focusing on three service levels—90%, 92%, and 95%—to evaluate the trade-offs between customer satisfaction and total inventory costs. The model incorporates key constraints, including stock balance, shelf-life limitations, and demand satisfaction. The model was validated using actual data, including stock, sales, and wastage records for the month of August, 2024. The objective function aimed to minimize total costs, encompassing holding costs, wastage, and lost revenue. The findings indicate that higher service levels, while reducing stockouts, significantly increase costs due to excess inventory and waste. The most cost-effective solution was observed at the 90% service level, which balanced waste reduction and customer satisfaction. The study also emphasizes the importance of integrating total cost reduction and minimize wastage. Future work should focus on incorporating consumer behavior patterns and extending the model to multi-echelon inventory systems, which include both distribution centers and retail outlets, to capture a more holistic view of the supply chain.

An Operations Optimisation Model for Fresh Food Produce Supply Chain Considering Time-Varying Freshness and Consumer Utility

An Operations Optimisation Model for Fresh Food Produce Supply Chain Considering Time-Varying Freshness and Consumer Utility

Optimizing traceability scheme in a fresh product supply chain considering product competition in blockchain era

Fresh product traceability plays an integral role in ensuring food safety. Recently, many firms have introduced blockchain technology (BCT) for product traceability to guarantee product authenticity and consumer rights. However, introduction of the new technology has also intensified the competition among fresh products. Meanwhile, previous studies on traceability strategies only considered the impact of traceability cost and ignored the issue of increased product competition in blockchain era. Driven by these problems, we build a game-theoretical model to analyze the optimization of traceability schemes for both low-end fresh products (LEFP) and high-end fresh products (HEFP) in a fresh product supply chain (FPSC) in a competitive environment. Moreover, this paper investigates the impact of power structure on traceability schemes and identifies the conditions under which one scheme outperforms the others. We find that the cost per unit of product input has no effect on the traceability decision of the FPSC. Nonetheless, the introduction of BCT increases the number of consumers who choose LEFP and raises the selling price and wholesale price of corresponding products. Finally, from the supply chain perspective, it is best to adopt the same traceability scheme for both products. This study sheds light on the use of BCT in traceability can provide enhanced product authenticity and consumer rights while increasing product competition and demonstrates the significance of traceability schemes in the FPSC.

Fresh product supply chain coordination using vendor managed inventory and consignment with revenue sharing over a finite planning horizon

Fresh product supply chain coordination using vendor managed inventory and consignment with revenue sharing over a finite planning horizon

Social Sustainability Risk Assessment of Fresh Produce Supply Chain in China under Computer Technology and Digital Transformation

This paper investigates the social sustainability risks in China’s fresh produce supply chain amid ongoing digital transformation. As computer technologies reshape supply chain operations, understanding and mitigating associated social risks become paramount. This research aims to provide a comprehensive assessment of these risks, examining factors such as data and cyber security, inequality, and ethical sourcing concerns. Ten social risk criteria are identified through literature review and expert opinion. In a Sichuan case study, by integrating hybrid methodology Fuzzy Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) and Fuzzy VIKOR (VlseKriterijumska Optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje), Data Privacy and Security Risks (SR1) stands out as the most critical risk criterion in the supply chain with the highest Q value, followed by Ethical Use of Technology (SR4) and Digital Dependency (SR5). This paper offers insights into how stakeholders can navigate the intersection of digitalization and social sustainability to foster more resilient and equitable fresh produce supply chains.

An analysis of Strategies for Adopting Blockchain Technology in Fresh Product Supply Chain Under Freshness Misreporting

The application of blockchain technology can inhibit producers' freshness misrepresentation in fresh produce supply chains. In this paper, we consider consumers with fresh produce freshness information traceability preference. In a fresh produce supply chain with a single producer and a single seller, the seller's blockchain application decision is studied, the Stackelberg game models of the supply chain members in the two scenarios of the producer misrepresenting freshness and the seller applying blockchain are constructed, and the changes of the equilibrium solutions before and after the application of blockchain technology are analysed. The theoretical proofs and numerical simulation studies show that when the transaction cost is at a certain level, the sellers should choose to apply blockchain technology to improve their own revenue, and the level of applying blockchain technology is affected by the consumer's retrospective preference and the cost coefficient of blockchain technology.

Advance selling strategy of fresh products under two contracts

PurposeThis paper analyzes the advance selling and pricing strategies of fresh products supply chain where the e-retailer provides wholesale contract or agency contract to the fresh products supplier.Design/methodology/approachThis paper constructed a two-period sequential-move game of fresh products supply chain members.FindingsThis analysis showed that the supply chain members had different preferences for contracts under different market conditions. The advance selling of fresh products was not a decision of the seller, but also required the support of other supply chain members. And the advance selling strategy was not always beneficial to all supply chain parties. Under the two contracts, there were market conditions in which the profits of supply chain members were Pareto-improved through the implementation of advance selling.Research limitations/implicationsThe model presented in this study focuses solely on the context of monopoly, overlooking the competition from alternative suppliers or retailers. Consequently, exploring the competitive landscape within the fresh products supply chain, particularly in relation to pre-sale pricing, emerges as a crucial avenue for further investigation. By employing empirical research methods, valuable insights are gleaned, thereby significantly augmenting the existing body of relevant theories.Practical implicationsThe decision to pre-sell fresh products should be based on market conditions. Supply chain members can control production costs and fresh products circulation losses to maximize profits.Originality/valueFrom the perspective of game theory, this study analyzed the optimal advance selling and pricing strategies of fresh products supply chain members under two kinds of contracts. These results can provide practical implications for fresh products suppliers and e-retailers.

On the Value of Smart Contract and Blockchain in Designing Fresh Product Supply Chains

On the Value of Smart Contract and Blockchain in Designing Fresh Product Supply Chains

Online sales mode selection of competing suppliers in a fresh product supply chain

This paper studies the selection of sales mode in a fresh product supply chain consisting of two competing suppliers and an e-tailer providing online platform. Suppliers can choose an online sales mode and provide freshness-keeping service. Considering the product freshness level, platform commission, supplier’s market share and cross-price coefficient between two channels, we study three sales scenarios and obtain the optimal decision and profit of the two suppliers and the e-tailer. Then, we get some conclusions through theoretical and numerical analysis. The lower the commission rate charged by online platform, the less the e-tailer likes the marketplace mode. The best action of the suppliers is also related to this commission. The lower the commission rate, the more the suppliers tend to choose the marketplace mode. And their best action is different under different sales scenarios. If the two suppliers adopt different modes, the one who chooses the marketplace mode will have more advantage. We also get an interesting conclusion that when suppliers make the same choice, the commission does not affect their competition and decision-making.

Equilibrium Decisions for Fresh Product Supply Chain Considering Consumers’ Freshness Preference

Equilibrium Decisions for Fresh Product Supply Chain Considering Consumers’ Freshness Preference

The Current Trends of Research on Mathematical Programming Models for Perishable Fresh Produce Supply Chain: A Thematic Review

The Current Trends of Research on Mathematical Programming Models for Perishable Fresh Produce Supply Chain: A Thematic Review

Fresh Produce Supply Chain Coordination Based on Freshness Preservation Strategy

Today, consumers are increasingly demanding higher quality in fresh agricultural products. The issues that need to be addressed now are how to keep fresh products fresh and how to coordinate the operations of supply chain participants. Three decision models are developed in this paper using the Stackelberg model: supplier-led decision making, retailer-led decision making, and centralized decision making. The comparative model analysis shows the following: (1) Regardless of the decision model, the supply chain system under centralized decision-making is always more profitable than the supplier-led or retailer-led one. (2) The optimal profit and freshness preservation strategy of the supply chain system depends on the sensitivity coefficient of consumers to price and freshness. (3) Suppliers and retailers can coordinate the costs of freshness inputs according to how the cost-sharing coordination contract is structured. (4) Finally, the numerical analysis is applied to demonstrate the correction of the model.

Cooperation Mode Selection and Information Sharing in a Fresh Produce Supply Chain With Freshness-Keeping Effort

ABSTRACT This article considers a fresh produce supply chain where the supplier provides freshness-keeping effort and the e-commerce platform owns private demand information. The supplier can choose to cooperate with the platform in reselling or agency selling mode, and the platform can choose whether to share information. Considering that demand is affected mainly by freshness and price, we model a multistage game and explore the supplier’s cooperation mode choice and the platform’s information sharing strategy. We reveal that the supplier should consider scale economics while investing in freshness-keeping resources. The platform should be cautious in setting the commission fee because she does not always benefit from the increased commission rate. We also show that the platform may benefit or suffer from information sharing, depending on the freshness sensitivity and the cooperation mode choice. As information sharing benefits responsive decision making, we reveal that the supplier may choose agency selling to induce information sharing even at a high commission rate. We also find that the interaction between cooperation mode selection and information sharing may lead to a win–win or lose–lose equilibrium strategy. Specifically, the supplier and the platform may achieve win–win cooperation under agency selling (reselling) at a low (high) commission rate. Then, to improve supply-chain performance, we design incentive contracts to motivate information sharing and adjust the cooperation mode choice. After the strategy adjustment, we find that the supplier may adopt a strategy of high quality with a low price under agency selling.

Analysis of procurement strategies in a two-period fresh product supply chain

PurposeMotivated by the wide application of procurement strategies in retailing, this paper aims to examine the effect of procurement strategies on decisions and profits and strategic inventory (SI) is considered.Design/methodology/approachThe game-theoretic models are developed under a two-period fresh product supply chain (FSC), and consist of the mode of purchasing products only in the first period without SI (Scenario S), the mode of purchasing products in every period without SI (Scenario T) and the mode of purchasing products in every period with SI (Scenario TS).FindingsConducting the calculating and comparing, some major findings can be concluded. In general, two-period purchasing strategies (Scenarios T and TS) promote a higher freshness-keeping effort than the single buying strategy (Scenario S). Regarding the pricing strategy, SI and Scenario S can both contribute to obtaining a lower wholesale price, the retailer's pricing is relatively complicated and hinges on the consumer's sensitivity to freshness-keeping effort and the holding cost. Besides, comparing the sales quantity and the profit, the authors find that Scenario TS stimulates more demands and brings more profits for the manufacturer. However, Scenario TS is not the optimal selection for the reason that SI sometimes hurts the retailer and even the whole supply chain. Whereas, when the holding cost is in a certain range, Scenario TS will lead to a win-win situation.Originality/valueThe main findings of this study can give the enterprises some advice on the procurement strategies of fresh products and the decisions of pricing and the freshness-keeping effort.

Fresh Product Supply Chain Analysis in Cauca, Colombia — A Hass Avocado System Dynamics Approach

In recent years, agriculture has become an essential activity in Colombia, despite the challenges faced by farmers due to low yields and insufficient resources to improve their main activities, such as irrigation systems, agricultural practices, and industrial machinery. This Hass avocado approach has been addressed in previous research considering system dynamics simulation to evaluate farmers’ behavior strategies and improve their competitiveness. However, these studies typically examine a single strategy effect and avoid multiple integrated strategies. Other studies focused on the complex interactions between different factors in the production chain and their feedback effects on farmers’ productivity and cash flow. For these reasons, this research provides a comprehensively dynamic model and evaluates long-term strategies and their effects on supporting and improving small farmers’ productivity and profitability. A system dynamics methodology was used to model complex systems processing Hass avocado farmer association data and explore their effects on competitiveness for long-term sustainable and profitable agriculture. This research proposes optimal scenarios for small farmers, including strategies such as low-interest credit access, logistics practices, and government technical support. The scenarios provide a proactive tool for decision makers and promote rural farmers’ development, aligning high-quality fresh product supply and demand.

Numerical Analysis and Service Quality Evaluation of the Fresh Agricultural Produce Supply Chain Platform

The traditional performance evaluation method, which is mainly based on financial indexes, is no longer applicable to the current dynamic, complex, and coordinated evaluation of the service quality of fresh agricultural produce supply chains. Comprehensive evaluations regarding the quality of coordination-based supply chain services are now required. Specific analyses of index weights, the identification of potential problems, the exploration of the best solutions, and efforts to improve the current situation—regarding the circulation of fresh agricultural products—are also required. By carrying out this research, this paper aims to construct a coordination-based service quality evaluation index system for the fresh agricultural produce supply chain platform. The evaluation system that was created covered the four dimensions involved in platform supply chain coordination. These dimensions are capital flow, logistics, business flow, and information flow. On this basis, this study designed a survey questionnaire to collect data to evaluate customer service quality satisfaction. The research used AHP and the Fuzzy Comprehensive Evaluation method to calculate and analyze indexes and models in the “Fresh Networking” project. Furthermore, this paper proposed a sensitivity analysis model of MCDM evaluation indexes and their weights. In order to verify whether the numerical analysis method was suitable for use in the MCDM evaluation system, in this paper, the sensitivity analysis process of the indexes and their weights was introduced in the evaluation of the “Fresh Networking” project. The evaluation results may reflect the real quality of service in the “Fresh Network” supply chain. The final conclusion to be drawn from this paper is that capital flow is the most sensitive weight, which means that it should be designed and implemented in accordance with optimization-based decisions. The novelty of this paper lies in: (1) the proposal of a coordination-based service quality evaluation index system which includes four dimensions: capital flow, logistics, business flow, and information flow; (2) the design of a research questionnaire for data collection; and (3) the introduction of an improved sensitivity analysis method for the MCDM index. The results presented in this paper will enrich the theoretical research related to MCDM in supply chain evaluations. The results of the analysis can be used to guide supply chain decision makers to make optimization decisions accordingly, which will ensure overall benefits in terms of supply chain coordination, improving the capacity of preservation services, and loss reduction.

Study on The Supply Security of Fresh Products Under Public Health Emergencies

Strict control taken in response to public health emergencies (PHEs) can hinder fresh products supply, while stock-outs and the risk of epidemics can increase fresh products demand. To explore the interrelationship between outbreak control measures and the availability of fresh products, this paper establishes a dynamic synergistic model of epidemic transmission subsystem and fresh products supply-consumption subsystem based on system dynamics (SD). Taking the spread of COVID-19 in Shanghai from March to May 2022 as the actual background, the impact of different storage strategies and control measures on epidemic prevention and material supply was quantitatively evaluated. The results show that risk transmission factor (RTF) affects the number of infections and the intensity of community control contributes to controlling the spread of the epidemic, but it can continue to affect fresh product supply security. Therefore, increasing fresh product protection inputs and reducing in-transit time can reduce fresh product losses and improve fresh product supply security under PHEs. The findings can enable fresh products to effectively match supply and demand under PHEs, mitigate the impact of epidemic risks and provide decision support for relevant retailers.

Dynamic Decision-Making in Fresh Products Supply Chain With Strategic Consumers

Dynamic Decision-Making in Fresh Products Supply Chain With Strategic Consumers

Multitiered Fresh Produce Supply Chain: The Case of Tomatoes

The United States is one of the world’s top producers of fresh tomatoes. However, the industry supply chain is not well understood with little attention in the literature. To attend to this literature gap and to better inform business decisions and policy making, it is crucial to understand the industry structure on a deeper level. Applying a supply chain mapping approach, this study presents a complete picture of the U.S. fresh tomato supply chain with valuable insights into the fresh produce industry and lays the groundwork for future research on solving supply chain issues.