Applications of agent-based modelling and simulation in the agri-food supply chains

Technological innovation, globalization and market segmentation have led to increasingly complex agri-food supply chains and networks. At the same time, they have also created opportunities for entrepreneurial firms to create new wealth. The objective of this study is to investigate the differences in entrepreneurial performance between firms that discover and exploit new wealth creation opportunities within existing supply chains as opposed to those that decide to establish the supply chain themselves. Using agent-based simulation, this study finds that agents that link with existing supply chains outperform those that do not both in terms of survival and wealth creation per firm. It also finds, however, that the presence of existing supply chains has positive effects for non-linked entrepreneurial firms as well.

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Toward a methodological framework for agent-based modelling and simulation of supply chains in a mass customization context

Simulation Modelling Practice and Theory ◽

10.1016/j.simpat.2006.09.014 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 15 (2) ◽

pp. 113-136 ◽

Cited By ~ 88

Author(s):

Olivier Labarthe ◽

Bernard Espinasse ◽

Alain Ferrarini ◽

Benoit Montreuil

Keyword(s):

Supply Chains ◽

Mass Customization ◽

Modelling And Simulation ◽

Methodological Framework ◽

Agent Based ◽

Agent Based Modelling

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An agent based model representation to assess resilience and efficiency of food supply chains

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0242323 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 15 (11) ◽

pp. e0242323

Author(s):

George Van Voorn ◽

Geerten Hengeveld ◽

Jan Verhagen

Keyword(s):

Supply Chains ◽

Food Supply ◽

Agent Based Model ◽

Agent Based ◽

Food And Nutrition Security ◽

Food Supply Chains ◽

Nutrition Security ◽

Food And Nutrition ◽

Food Requirement ◽

Different Types

Trying to meet the Sustainable Development Goals is challenging. Food supply chains may have to become more efficient to meet the increasing food requirement of 10 Billion people by 2050. At the same time, food and nutrition security are at risk from increasingly likely shocks like extreme climate events, market shocks, pandemics, changing consumer preferences, and price volatility. Here we consider some possibilities and limitations regarding the improvement of resilience (the capacity to deal with shocks) and efficiency (here interpreted as the share of produced food delivered to consumers) of food supply chains. We employ an Agent Based Model of a generic food chain network consisting of stylized individuals representing producers, traders, and consumers. We do this: 1/ to describe the dynamically changing disaggregated flows of crop items between these agents, and 2/ to be able to explicitly consider agent behaviour. The agents have implicit personal objectives for trading. We quantify resilience and efficiency by linking these to the fraction of fulfilment of the overall explicit objective to have all consumers meet their food requirement. We consider different types of network structures in combination with different agent interaction types under different types of stylized shocks. We find that generally the network structures with higher efficiency are also more sensitive to shocks, while less efficient network types display more resilience. At first glance these results seem to confirm the existence of a system-level trade-off between resilience and efficiency similar to what is reported in business management and ecology literature. However, the results are modified by the trading interactions and the type of shock. In our simulations resilience and efficiency are affected by ‘soft’ boundaries caused by the preference and trust of agents (i.e., social aspects) in trading. The ability of agents to switch between trading partners represents an important aspect of resilience, namely a capacity to reorganize. These insights may be relevant when considering the reorganization of real-life food chains to increase their resilience to meet future food and nutrition security goals.

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Local Dairy Supply Chains: A Profitability Analysis in Haryana

Indian Journal of Economics and Development ◽

10.35716/ijed/ns20-041 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 508-511

Keyword(s):

Supply Chains ◽

Food Supply ◽

Dairy Products ◽

Food System ◽

Economic Viability ◽

Milk Supply ◽

Food Supply Chains ◽

Financial Position ◽

Profitability Analysis ◽

Dairy Processing

The shorter food supply chains were the emerging trend in the agro-food system. The characteristic of local food supply chains are regional, freshness, quality products, and health benefits to the consumers. The present study explores the existing local dairy supply chains in the Haryana state. The local dairy supply chains were analysed and found that the shorter milk supply chains were more profitable with reduced intermediaries and higher producer shares in consumer rupees for all dairy products. The supply chains which involved intermediaries had lesser cost per unit of operation in dairy processing but fetched lower prices due to the quality issues and more distance travelled by dairy products. The economic viability and financial position of the processing units exhibited favourable results for both supply chains but it was higher for Supply Chain-I.

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Agent-based Modelling and Simulation for Circular Business Model Experimentation

Resources, Conservation & Recycling Advances ◽

10.1016/j.rcradv.2021.200055 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 200055

Author(s):

Kasper P.H. Lange ◽

Gijsbert Korevaar ◽

Inge F. Oskam ◽

Igor Nikolic ◽

Paulien M. Herder

Keyword(s):

Business Model ◽

Modelling And Simulation ◽

Agent Based ◽

Agent Based Modelling

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Kurze Ketten im Lebensmittelbereich

Standort ◽

10.1007/s00548-021-00704-y ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Gesine Tuitjer

Keyword(s):

Supply Chains ◽

Food Supply ◽

Food Supply Chains ◽

Short Food Supply Chains

ZusammenfassungShort Food Supply Chains (SFSC), also kurze Wertschöpfungsketten im Lebensmittelbereich, sind ein verbreiteter Ansatz in der Regionalentwicklung – im ländlichen wie auch im städtischen Kontext. Aufgrund der Breite des Konzeptes sind empirische Belege für die regionalen Auswirkungen von kurzen Ketten jedoch uneindeutig und ihrem konkreten Aufbau stehen teilweise große Herausforderungen gegenüber. Im vorliegenden Text werden Direktvermarktung, Regionalvermarktungsinitiativen und regionalisierte vertikale Wertschöpfungsketten behandelt. Der Text fasst Ergebnisse einzelner Fallstudien zusammen, die zwischen 2015 und 2019 in 6 ländlichen Kreisen durchgeführt wurden. Im Text werden Herausforderungen für die Entwicklung dieser kurzen Ketten skizziert und mögliche Chancen aufgezeigt. Der Ausbau von alternativen Vermarktungswegen kann beispielsweise durch Infrastruktur im Bereich der Lagerung und Logistik unterstützt werden. Ein weiteres zentrales Ergebnis stellt die Notwendigkeit von Netzwerkvermittlern dar, die Kooperationen zwischen Produzenten innerhalb einer Region entlang vertikaler Wertschöpfungsketten begleiten bzw. initiieren.

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Artisanal mining versus sustainability of agricultural food supply chains: effects of the conflicts in Southern Zimbabwe

Development in Practice ◽

10.1080/09614524.2021.1937543 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-12

Author(s):

Felix Chari ◽

Cawe Novukela ◽

Bethuel Sibongiseni Ngcamu

Keyword(s):

Supply Chains ◽

Food Supply ◽

Artisanal Mining ◽

Food Supply Chains ◽

Agricultural Food

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Distributed Ledger Technology Applications in Food Supply Chains: A Review of Challenges and Future Research Directions

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13084206 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (8) ◽

pp. 4206

Author(s):

Jamilya Nurgazina ◽

Udsanee Pakdeetrakulwong ◽

Thomas Moser ◽

Gerald Reiner

Keyword(s):

Supply Chains ◽

Food Supply ◽

Information Exchange ◽

Security And Privacy ◽

Future Research ◽

Research Directions ◽

Practical Applications ◽

Food Supply Chains ◽

Distributed Ledger ◽

Future Research Directions

The lack of transparency and traceability in food supply chains (FSCs) is raising concerns among consumers and stakeholders about food information credibility, food quality, and safety. Insufficient records, a lack of digitalization and standardization of processes, and information exchange are some of the most critical challenges, which can be tackled with disruptive technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), blockchain, and distributed ledger technologies (DLTs). Studies provide evidence that novel technological and sustainable practices in FSCs are necessary. This paper aims to describe current practical applications of DLTs and IoT in FSCs, investigating the challenges of implementation, and potentials for future research directions, thus contributing to achievement of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Within a systematic literature review, the content of 69 academic publications was analyzed, describing aspects of implementation and measures to address the challenges of scalability, security, and privacy of DLT, and IoT solutions. The challenges of high costs, standardization, regulation, interoperability, and energy consumption of DLT solutions were also classified as highly relevant, but were not widely addressed in literature. The application of DLTs in FSCs can potentially contribute to 6 strategic SDGs, providing synergies and possibilities for more sustainable, traceable, and transparent FSCs.

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The Behavior of Dairy Consumers in Short Food Supply Chains during COVID-19 Pandemic in Suceava Area, Romania

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13063072 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (6) ◽

pp. 3072 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ioan Sebastian Brumă ◽

Codrin Dinu Vasiliu ◽

Steliana Rodino ◽

Marian Butu ◽

Lucian Tanasă ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Supply Chains ◽

Food Supply ◽

Distribution System ◽

Dairy Products ◽

Virus Disease ◽

Emerging Market ◽

Buying Behavior ◽

Food Supply Chains ◽

Short Food Supply Chains ◽

Quantitative And Qualitative Methods

In Romania, there is an emerging market of dairy products delivered through short food supply chains. Although this distribution system has existed since the communist period, and even though more than three decades have passed since then, the market fails to be mature, subject to taxation, or achieve a high diversity in terms of dairy categories, with a consolidated marketing culture that has significant effects on the regional socio-economic environment. The aim of this study was to observe whether the Corona Virus Disease of 2019 (COVID-19) crisis has influenced consumer behavior regarding dairy products delivered directly from producers in Suceava County, Romania. The research is based on a survey conducted between April and May, 2020, and the analysis relies on both quantitative and qualitative methods (namely, anthropological and ethnographic). From the provided responses, it a change was observed in the future buying behavior on short food supply chains, in a positive sense. One of the key findings was that family represents the main environment for passing on the values that influence the buying behavior. Another key finding was that the behavioral changes on the short food supply chains exert pressure on their digital transformations.

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