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Quantifying differences in alternative food network supply chain activities and their relationship with socio-economic outcomes

Hunter, Erik ; Norrman, Andreas LU and Berg, Eva LU (2022) In International Food and Agribusiness Management Review 25(1). p.83-101
Abstract
Alternative food networks (AFNs) have the potential to enhance and redistribute value in favour of producers and consumers through novel ways of organizing supply chain activities. What is more, AFNs are often characterized by their ‘sustainability promise’ – or the idea that their networks foster social, ecological or environmental improvements over conventional food networks. Based on a purposive sample of 286 producers across five Swedish AFNs (i.e. community supported agriculture, REKO-rings, farmers’ markets, farm stores and food nodes), we explore how differences in how supply chain activities are managed and relate them to profitability, fair wages, cooperation, logistics efforts, happiness and future beliefs. Using a combination of... (More)
Alternative food networks (AFNs) have the potential to enhance and redistribute value in favour of producers and consumers through novel ways of organizing supply chain activities. What is more, AFNs are often characterized by their ‘sustainability promise’ – or the idea that their networks foster social, ecological or environmental improvements over conventional food networks. Based on a purposive sample of 286 producers across five Swedish AFNs (i.e. community supported agriculture, REKO-rings, farmers’ markets, farm stores and food nodes), we explore how differences in how supply chain activities are managed and relate them to profitability, fair wages, cooperation, logistics efforts, happiness and future beliefs. Using a combination of correlation analysis, linear regression and means comparisons, we challenge the notion that AFNs achieve their sustainability promise or enhance value through novel combinations of supply chain activities. Our findings include several key differences in how supply chain management (SCM) activities are organized across AFNs and their variant importance for profitability. Moreover, we find significant differences in happiness across AFNs that are better explained through beliefs about the future than profitability or fair wages. By exploring happiness and profitability, we offer insights into why some AFN actors thrive despite poor economic returns. (Less)
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author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Alternative Food Networks, Logistics, supply chain management, agriculture, happiness
in
International Food and Agribusiness Management Review
volume
25
issue
1
pages
19 pages
publisher
Brill
external identifiers
  • scopus:85121451553
ISSN
1559-2448
DOI
10.22434/IFAMR2020.0193
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
718c6b25-7045-4e3b-98cb-f5899670f7e0
date added to LUP
2021-11-25 09:14:34
date last changed
2024-03-23 14:50:29
@article{718c6b25-7045-4e3b-98cb-f5899670f7e0,
  abstract     = {{Alternative food networks (AFNs) have the potential to enhance and redistribute value in favour of producers and consumers through novel ways of organizing supply chain activities. What is more, AFNs are often characterized by their ‘sustainability promise’ – or the idea that their networks foster social, ecological or environmental improvements over conventional food networks. Based on a purposive sample of 286 producers across five Swedish AFNs (i.e. community supported agriculture, REKO-rings, farmers’ markets, farm stores and food nodes), we explore how differences in how supply chain activities are managed and relate them to profitability, fair wages, cooperation, logistics efforts, happiness and future beliefs. Using a combination of correlation analysis, linear regression and means comparisons, we challenge the notion that AFNs achieve their sustainability promise or enhance value through novel combinations of supply chain activities. Our findings include several key differences in how supply chain management (SCM) activities are organized across AFNs and their variant importance for profitability. Moreover, we find significant differences in happiness across AFNs that are better explained through beliefs about the future than profitability or fair wages. By exploring happiness and profitability, we offer insights into why some AFN actors thrive despite poor economic returns.}},
  author       = {{Hunter, Erik and Norrman, Andreas and Berg, Eva}},
  issn         = {{1559-2448}},
  keywords     = {{Alternative Food Networks; Logistics; supply chain management; agriculture; happiness}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{83--101}},
  publisher    = {{Brill}},
  series       = {{International Food and Agribusiness Management Review}},
  title        = {{Quantifying differences in alternative food network supply chain activities and their relationship with socio-economic outcomes}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.22434/IFAMR2020.0193}},
  doi          = {{10.22434/IFAMR2020.0193}},
  volume       = {{25}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}