Sustainable Value Chains Research Articles

Cleaner Production Standards and Increased Technical Complexity for Textile Exporters

An important prerequisite for promoting sustainable development and value chain climbing of textile enterprises is to achieve a win-win situation between environmental protection and export technical complexity. Thus, based on Chinese enterprises’ microdata, this paper investigates the impact of cleaner production standards implementation on the export technical complexity of Chinese textile enterprises using a double difference method. The results show that the implementation of cleaner production standards significantly increases the export technical complexity of Chinese textile enterprises. The results of the mechanism test indicate that cleaner production standards increase export technical complexity by enhancing capital and labor inputs of textile enterprises, as well as by promoting enterprise innovation and increasing productivity. Heterogeneity analysis shows that cleaner production standards have a significant role in increasing the export technical complexity of textile enterprises in the eastern region and larger scale; it is not significant in increasing the export technical complexity of textile enterprises in the central and western regions and smaller scale; in terms of enterprise ownership attributes, it has the greatest role in increasing the export technical complexity of state-owned textile enterprises, followed by foreign and private textile enterprises. The results of this paper show that cleaner production standards, as an environmental regulation policy, can achieve a win-win situation for environmental protection and export technical complexity increase.

A food-system approach to addressing food security and chronic child malnutrition in northern Vietnam

Despite recent improvements in health, Vietnam continues to face significant problems with food security and chronic malnutrition among children. In the Northern Mountainous Region, small-scale farmers and ethnic minority groups are particularly hit hard. Anemia is present in almost half the local population of children under two, and close to 20% of children experience stunted growth. Anemia and stunting can cause irreversible deficiencies in learning and child development. Fortification of food products that are complementary to breast milk has been identified as an option to intervene and tackle chronic child malnutrition, particularly in situations requiring rapid results. Our paper describes how the ECOSUN project addressed food security and chronic child malnutrition in northern Vietnam (Lào Cai, Lai Châu, and Hà Giang provinces) using a food-system approach to design and implement a viable and sustainable value chain for fortified complementary foods. Through public-private partnerships, the project procured locally grown crops from small-scale women farmers to produce affordable fortified complementary food products in a small-scale food processing plant. Social marketing campaigns and nutrition education counseling centers supported product distribution through local vendors while emphasizing and promoting the value of fortified foods for healthy child development. The ECOSUN project also aimed to contribute to the broader goal of transforming the local economy. The process, lessons, challenges, successes, and methods employed to assess and test the delivery mechanisms of the project can offer insights to researchers, program implementers, and decision-makers involved in research-integrated development projects embedded in local socio-ecological systems.

Linear, reuse or recycling? An environmental comparison of different life cycle options for cotton roller towels

The environmental impacts of current, predominantly linear, life cycles of textiles are widespread and substantial. Although applying circular economy (CE) approaches offers the potential to support the transition to more sustainable textile value chains, there is a lack of empirical evidence supporting the choice of individual CE strategies for different types of textiles. The aim of this paper is to study and compare the environmental impacts of introducing different CE strategies (reuse, recycle) into the life cycle of cotton roller towels in terms of climate change impact and water consumption. According to the results, a linear life cycle of a cotton roller towel causes a climate change impact of 12.4 g CO2e/hand-drying and water consumption of 2.4 l/hand-drying. Combining different CE strategies (reuse and recycling), the roller towel's impacts could be reduced to as low as 8.9 g CO2e and 0.5 l water/hand-drying. The results indicate that the key to reducing the climate change impacts and water consumption of the towel is the increase of use times of the product, but the impacts are more ambiguous for recycling. The benefits of recycling, and even the prioritization between different CE strategies depends on the type of recycling technology and substituted material. For gaining clearer benefits from CE of cotton roller towels or any cotton textiles, there is a further need for technology development and support for selecting the correct strategies and processes.

Analysis of Downstream Dairy Value Chain in Ziway-Hawassa Milk Shed Areas of Ethiopia

The increasing demand for raw milk cannot be met with the current inefficient production and marketing systems; designing a sustainable dairy value chain has the potential to increase the availability and affordability of milk for poor consumers and reduce poverty. Therefore, this study aimed to characterize the downstream dairy value chain and evaluate the relationship among the chain actors and their share of profit margin in Ziway-Hawassa milk shed areas of Ethiopia. The downstream chain has several links and is operated by a number of actors. In this study, the upstream part of the chain includes the input supply and production of raw milk at the farm level, and the rest parts of the chain are considered. Producers, collectors, and consumers channel was reported as the dominant milk route in the Ziway-Hawassa milk shed. The results showed that the downstream chain was controlled and monopolized by a few large-scale collectors and processors. Milk collectors took the highest gross margin in fresh milk, but the value share was higher for producers. In general, milk collectors and processors sourced milk directly from producers. Unlike the gross margin, the value share for collectors on fresh milk was less than the share of producers which implies that chain sustainability is under question. Therefore, fair value addition and share must be maintained across each actor of the chain.

Optimized utilization of Salix—Perspectives for the genetic improvement toward sustainable biofuel value chains

AbstractBioenergy will be one of the most important renewable energy sources in the conversion from fossil fuels to bio‐based products. Short rotation coppice Salix could be a key player in this conversion since Salix has rapid growth, positive energy balance, easy to manage cultivation system with vegetative propagation of plant material and multiple harvests from the same plantation. The aim of the present paper is to provide an overview of the main challenges and key issues in willow genetic improvement toward sustainable biofuel value chains. Primarily based on results from the research project “Optimized Utilization of Salix” (OPTUS), the influence of Salix wood quality on the potential for biofuel use is discussed, followed by issues related to the conversion of Salix biomass into liquid and gaseous transportation fuels. Thereafter, the studies address genotypic influence on soil carbon sequestration in Salix plantations, as well as on soil carbon dynamics and climate change impacts. Finally, the opportunities for plant breeding are discussed using willow as a resource for sustainable biofuel production. Substantial phenotypic and genotypic variation was reported for different wood quality traits important in biological (i.e., enzymatic and anaerobic) and thermochemical conversion processes, which is a prerequisite for plant breeding. Furthermore, different Salix genotypes can affect soil carbon sequestration variably, and life cycle assessment illustrates that these differences can result in different climate mitigation potential depending on genotype. Thus, the potential of Salix plantations for sustainable biomass production and its conversion into biofuels is shown. Large genetic variation in various wood and biomass traits, important for different conversion processes and carbon sequestration, provides opportunities to enhance the sustainability of the production system via plant breeding. This includes new breeding targets in addition to traditional targets for high yield to improve biomass quality and carbon sequestration potential.

Café Solar® – Sustainable coffee in Central America

Coffee cultivation is a significant cause of deforestation, water shortages, and loss of habitat for migratory bird species in Central America. Coffee, however, is also one of the few viable industries providing employment to the region. Café Solar® embodies the vision of the founders to address a complex set of issues haunting the coffee industry in Honduras. Drawing from the experience and expertise of ornithologists, engineers, academics, coffee farmers, women activists and an array of partnerships, the nonprofit Mesoamerican Development Institute (MDI) developed innovative sustainable practices for coffee cultivation and processing. Further, in collaboration with the Fair-Trade cooperative, Cooperativa Mixta Subirana Yoro Limitada (COMISUYL), MDI translated the vision into strategy through its for-profit affiliate, MDI Honduras. The case includes specific areas in managing a sustainable enterprise, including creating a sustainable coffee value chain, and the application of budgeting and cash flows in supporting financial viability. Crucial to success was the creation of a brand that attracted a network of global customers desirous of Fair Trade and sustainable coffee. Hence, the case highlights opportunities, problems, and constraints to sustainability in the coffee industry in alignment with United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). The case was tested in three class sessions (with 45 MBA/MS Accounting students) and was found to meet the pedagogic goals set for the case.

Environment-Social-Governance Disclosures nexus between Financial Performance: A Sustainable Value Chain Approach

Governments, institutions, and organisations are being persuaded by the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) to include environmental-social-governance (ESG) measures in their disclosure systems and sustainable management practices. With the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, institutional investors are shifting their focus from profit-making to sustainable and ethical investment. Investors are majorly focussing on ESG measures with financial incentives while making investment decisions. Empirical evidences indicate that firms disclosing ESG measures are likely to outperform others by reducing the risk and enhancing the economic performance, although the results may vary. ESG measures not only promote economic incentives but also encourage sustainable production through value accretive supply chain mechanism. The present study tries to explore the ESG disclosure-Corporate Financial Performance (CFP) nexus w.r.t the presence of sustainable value chains, considering the panel data of 1,170 firm-level observations from 2012 to 2020. In order to resolve endogeneity issue, we use Generalized Methods of Moments (GMM) and system GMM approach. The study also focuses on the presence of foreign ownership along with the environmental and social supply chain management practices in ESG–CFP nexus. The findings highlight ESG as an indicator of a sustainable manufacturing strategy and support the link between ESG and CFP.

Bio-Economy and Sustainable Agri-Food Value Chains: Involvement of Local Stakeholders through Contract Farming

Due to expanding middle-class populations’ increased awareness of food safety and quality as well as the high standards set by developed countries’ export markets, contract farming has a bright future. In many developing nations, contract farming has become more significant. Previous research examined the impact of contracts on the welfare of smallholder farmers, but they often did not take into account the variety of contractual arrangements. As a result, agrifood sustainability makes an effort to use acceptable farming methods’ potential for mitigation to lessen rather than exacerbate the environmental problem and climate change. Prior to now, the focus of policymakers has mostly been on the production end of the food chain. However, for food systems to be sustainable, they must also be productive, environmentally friendly, and provide equitable revenue distribution across the food chain. Whether the products are bought by governmental organizations, multinational corporations, smaller businesses, farmer cooperatives, or independent business owners, it is a factor that is becoming more and more significant in agribusiness. Sponsors must therefore assess how a replacement crop might also be introduced and take into account social attitudes before implementing new cropping practices. Contract farming is frequently seen as a crucial strategy for raising social welfare, strengthening food security, increasing food quality and productivity, and protecting the environment. It aids farmers in overcoming obstacles such lack of capital, insurance, good input availability, output markets, and managerial and technical skills. The majority of studies show that contract farming increases income. The influence of contract farming on farmers’ income, according to certain research findings, is either negligible or even detrimental. This study empirically examines the effects of local stakeholder participation in contract farming on income and farming challenges and theoretically hypothesizes the influencing mechanism.

Setting the standard: Does Rainforest Alliance Certification increase environmental and socio‐economic outcomes for small‐scale coffee producers in Rwanda?

AbstractSustainability certification has become an important tool for promoting sustainable agricultural value chains. Nevertheless, its economic and environmental effects on the producer level remain unclear. We investigate the relationship of Rainforest Alliance Certification with socio‐economic and environmental outcomes in Rwanda and consider potential tradeoffs between dimensions. To reduce potential selection bias in the econometric estimation, we use inverse probability weighted regression adjustment. We find no significant association between certification and socio‐economic indicators but a significant correlation between certification and good agricultural practices and biodiversity‐related practices. Effects on economic outcomes and biodiversity‐related practices are linked; their relationship differs across climatic regions.

Improving Access to Export Market for Fresh Vegetables through Reduction of Phytosanitary and Pesticide Residue Constraints

The horticultural sector is a key contributor to Kenya’s gross domestic product through the export of fresh-cut flowers, fruits and vegetables to various niche markets. It employs over 350,000 people, while about six million depend on it. However, the sector is constrained by the strict technical and phytosanitary quality requirements set by the export markets. The phytosanitary concerns include the presence of pests and microbial contaminants, while the presence of chemical residues constitute the major technical challenge. These constraints cause the interception and rejection of produce at the export destinations. The fresh produce should be free of quarantine and regulated non-quarantine pests, pest damage, pesticides above the stipulated maximum residue levels (MRLs) and phytosanitary certification. This review discusses the following four-tiered approach to compliance with phytosanitary and pesticide residue requirements: (i) use of alternative pest management approaches, including biocontrol options, cultural and physical practices; (ii) collaboration among regulatory agencies, institutions, producers and regional countries in the enforcement of standards; (iii) investment in research and the adoption of innovative technologies; (iv) awareness creation and training of actors along the fresh vegetable value chain. It is envisaged that this approach will contribute to sustainable fresh vegetable value chains, leading to improved access to export markets, and increased export volumes and income to smallholder farmers and other actors in the fresh vegetable value chain.

Organic cultivation and sustainable value chain development for tea smallholders: Findings from Assam, India

Tea smallholders form a significant part of the global tea industry. They support the rural economy in several tea-producing regions in the world. However, their limited role in the tea value chain and numerous other issues pose major challenges to promote sustainability in the smallholders' tea sector. Of late, it has been observed that the adoption of organic cultivation has encouraged some of the tea smallholders to involve in the processing and marketing of tea, enabling the development of an alternative value chain. Based on the premise that value chain development is crucial to improve the smallholders' situation, we follow a mixed methods research approach to draw upon the recent developments in the tea sub-sector in Assam, India. The findings indicate the potential for the development of sustainable and inclusive value chain for the tea smallholders. However, such progress would requisite encouraging more growers to participate in the value chain, and mobilizing and organizing them towards collective actions through suitable institutional arrangements like producer organizations. Further, policy measures focusing on better governance of the smallholders' collectives, building trust, and creating value networks through strategic collaboration would be crucial to empower the growers and promote sustainability in the smallholders' tea production sector.

To see and be seen: Technological change and power in deforestation driving global value chains

AbstractNew digital tools for monitoring forest‐ and land‐cover change have made it easier for civil society actors to call firms to account for deforestation. In response, companies in deforestation‐linked global value chains (GVCs) have turned to these technologies themselves. In contrast to many case analyses of technology in GVCs, which focus on how technology changes production processes, forcing governance to adapt, forest‐monitoring technologies change governance directly. Synthesising work on transaction characteristics and power relations in GVCs to address this novel situation, we argue that monitoring technologies’ effects on GVCs will likely depend on their accessibility. Proprietary technologies favour large‐scale operations and already established lead firms, while open technologies could support democratization. Treating forest‐ and value‐chain information as a public good could support more inclusive, equitable and sustainable value chains.

Consumer Social Responsibility (CnSR) in the Circular Economy of Global Value Chains

What does it mean for global consumers to be 'socially responsible' in the context of sustainable supply chains? Why should Consumer Social Responsibility (CnSR) in the sustainable value chains matter? In this paper, we examine global consumers' responsibilities in the context of the United Nations' Sustainable Agenda 2030, Goal 12. Goal 12 addresses sustainable production and consumption. We explore CnSR from normative and descriptive standpoints. We look explicitly at the consumers' duties and responsibilities to influence global production and supply networks. To accomplish this purpose, we apply philosophical theories to the importance of sustainable value chains, especially to the meaning of 'value' in a sustainable supply chain. Consumers can and should influence corporations with global supply chains to produce goods sustainably while still meeting consumers' needs worldwide. We also look at why consumers should be willing to live up to these responsibilities in the context of sustainable supply chains.

Is banana value chain in East Africa sustainable? Evidence from Ethiopia

Banana is an essential commercial fruit for smallholder farmers in East Africa including Ethiopia. It is also lifeblood of the majority of the farmers in Arba Minch district of Ethiopia. However, this sector is experiencing many constraints with limited investment on sustainable value chain management. Thus, this study aims to examine the sustainability performance assessment of the banana value chain by comparing and analyzing 25 attributes through triple bottom-line indicators. The critical aspects of the qualitative data were analyzed using Sustainability Assessment of Food and Agriculture Systems version 3.0 at Ethiopian context. The results show that banana product flow from the farmer and ends with the consumer through three market channels which link farmers directly with rural retailers, traveling traders, and farmer cooperatives. Largest volume of banana was sold through the traveling trader channel while the smallest volume was sold via the rural retailer channels. The banana payment flow begins from consumers and ends with input suppliers. Farmers have limited access to alternative markets for their banana products, but wholesalers have many connections and marketing options across the country. The results of the banana value chain sustainability assessment also reveal that the economic, social, and environmental indicators have moderate sustainability performance in the study area. The value of the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.7993 which shows that the five-point scale items of the experts’ judgment on the sustainability of banana value chain are consistent and reliable. The chain has several advantages in terms of profitability, emission of air pollutants, employment, and constraints in terms of coordination, profit margin, value share, market diversity, transportation, product and market information, safety and hygiene, and waste management. Thus, Government and non-governmental organizations give due attention towards the sustainable banana value chain. • Ethiopia is one of major banana producing country in East Africa. • The banana product flow starts from producers and ends with consumers. • Farmers have limited access to alternative markets for their Banana products in Ethiopia. • Banana value chain has moderate sustainability performance in Ethiopia.

FOREST PLANTATION DETECTION THROUGH DEEP SEMANTIC SEGMENTATION

Abstract. Forest plantations play an important role ecologically, contribute to carbon sequestration and support billions of dollars of economic activity each year through sustainable forest management and forest sector value chains. As the global demand for forest products and services increases, the marketplace is seeking more reliable data on forest plantations. Remote sensing technologies allied with machine learning, and most recently deep learning techniques, provide valuable data for inventorying forest plantations and related valuation products. In this work, deep semantic segmentation with U-net architecture was used to detect forest plantation areas using Sentinel-2 and CBERS-4A images of different areas of Brazil. First, the U-net models were built from an area of the Centre-East of Paraná State, and then the best models were tested in 3 new areas that present different characteristics. The U-net models built with Sentinel-2 images achieved promising results for areas similar to the ones used in the training set, with F1-score ranging from 0.9171 to 0.9499 and with Kappa values between 0.8712 to 0.9272, demonstrating the feasibility of deep semantic segmentation to detect forest plantations.

Towards sustainable North American wood product value chains, part 2: computer vision identification of ring-porous hardwoods

Wood identification is vitally important for ensuring the legality of North American hardwood value chains. Computer vision wood identification (CVWID) systems can identify wood without necessitating costly and time-consuming off-site visual inspections by highly trained wood anatomists. Previous work by Ravindran and colleagues presented macroscopic CVWID models for identification of North American diffuse porous hardwoods from 22 wood anatomically informed classes using the open-source XyloTron platform. This manuscript expands on that work by training and evaluating complementary 17-class XyloTron CVWID models for the identification of North American ring porous hardwoods — woods that display spatial heterogeneity in earlywood and latewood pore size and distribution and other radial growth-rate-related features. Deep-learning models trained using 4045 images from 452 ring-porous wood specimens from four xylaria demonstrated 98% five-fold cross-validation accuracy. A field model trained on all the training data and subsequently tested on 198 specimens drawn from two additional xylaria achieved top-1 and top-2 predictions of 91.4% and 100%, respectively, and images devoid of earlywood, latewood, or broad rays did not greatly reduce the prediction accuracy. This study advocates for continued cooperation between wood anatomy and machine-learning experts for implementing and evaluating field-operational CVWID systems.

The Environmental Patents, Changing Investment, Trade Landscape, and Factors Contributing to Sustainable GVCs Participation: Evidence from Emerging Market Countries

Over the last two decades, the global investment and trade landscape has been transformed to include emerging economies. Theoretical studies have shown that countries can benefit from various channels to participate/integrate into global value chains. However, little is known empirically about the factors that determine the country-level and bilateral participation of emerging market countries in global value chains. We apply the generalized method of moments and fixed-effects approaches to the Eora-MRIO global value chains database to fill this research gap for twenty-three emerging market countries from 1995 to 2018. Key findings indicate that the most important determinants of country-level participation in global value chains are the country’s environmental patents and its level of economic development. Other indicators are positively associated with global value chain participation, if not determinative. The results of a gravity model for bilateral global value chains participation show that geographic proximity and policy and environmental measures are positively associated with value-added trade. These results provide insights and lessons for investors and emerging economies in creating or joining sustainable value chain activities.

A systematic approach for synthesis and optimisation of sustainable oil palm value chain (OPVC)

An oil palm value chain (OPVC) considers the interconnectivity between each activity within the oil palm industry to allow for a top-down overview of the industry, while capturing the details for more substantial system interactions. However, it is a challenge to deliver the big picture without a proper tool, especially for an extensive value chain network with various processes, the existence of multiple facilities for each process, and supply chain management system. In this respect, a novel systematic approach is developed to synthesise and optimise an integrated OPVC network for higher economic and environmental performance. In this work, an OPVC case study in Johor state is presented and solved to illustrate the proposed approach. Besides, the coalition reliability index is introduced to measure the reliability of the OPVC network formed under different supply chain management. The results demonstrated that the value-added across the entire value chain improves significantly, from 167.0 million US$/y in the conventional design to 220.2 million US$/y. Meanwhile, greenhouse gas emission is reduced substantially from 2700 to 1878 kt CO2e/y. To ensure more strategic sourcing of materials, and therefore, improves the likelihood of successful implementation for the value chain network developed, a Pareto-optimal front is plotted to predict the economic performance generated based on the changes in coalition reliability index.

Paradox of strategic partnerships for sustainable value chains: Perspectives of not‐for‐profit actors

AbstractThe study explores strategic partnerships themes for Sustainable Agricultural Value chains (SAVC) dimensions. Acknowledging the role of stakeholders, business and not‐for‐profit actors, and their engagement in such partnerships, this study focuses on the latter's perspective. Literature review followed by five exploratory case studies are used to examine SAVC partnership themes. The study identifies three themes influencing strategic partnerships: the interaction between partners through cooperation, coordination, and collaboration; management of information flow between partners; and product flow management with demand–supply coordination between partners. The level of information sharing between partners also influences SAVC value creation. The findings extend value chain literature by stressing the theoretical association between the identified antecedents and partnership in the sustainability value chain in general and the SAVC in particular. The exploratory case studies provide real‐life perspectives and a practical framework in the context of SAVC. Managers, policymakers and international funded programs can also benefit from the current key findings and the new framework as a referential basis to form a partnership strategy in agricultural sectors. This research suggests a further test for the conceptual framework using large‐scale surveys in diverse geographic contexts and looking at trans‐border value chain partnerships, especially in different country contexts that influence sustainable development and partnerships in SAVC.

Paddy straw management: A potential approach to a sustainable agriculture

Paddy straw is the vegetative part of rice plant which is left behind after harvesting the grains. It is the most abundant lignocellulosic waste material amounting to 731 million tons/year. Management of paddy straw remains a challenge in Asia where more rice is grown each year to meet rising hunger demands. The widespread burning of paddy straw in the open air is a major factor causing air pollution that is associated with a number of health issues. Researchers, engineers, and entrepreneurs are developing a range of possible solutions that turn paddy straw into a commodity with the help of which sustainable value chains can be built to benefit the environment. This waste to wealth approach can prove beneficial in the coming time. This review paper presents an overview of some efficient paddy straw management practices for the benefit of mankind and sustainable agriculture.