Who's who in the value chain for the Mexican octopus fishery: Mapping the production chain

AbstractOne challenge in the area of supply chain management has been achieving sustainable compliance with labour rights throughout the entire production chain, including lower tiers of production. This article inquires specifically around sub-contracting, especially what is a brand's or a buyer's responsibility regarding workers' rights beyond its first tier of suppliers. In-depth literature on this issue remains scarce despite buyer's responsibility being at the core of outsourcing, the very area that brought disrepute to Nike and thus moved corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the international limelight 15 years ago. This article reviews 12 prominent CSR instruments and asks: do they provide legitimacy to calls that buyers should be responsible for labour conditions down their supply chains? Where do these responsibilities end as abuses become more remote and take place at lower tiers of the value chain? What are the concepts, the principles that attribute responsibility to the buyer company and what concepts are used to limit these responsibilities? What strategies exist to improve conditions at sub-contractor level? Reading a dozen CSR instruments with a keen eye to sub-contracting reveals a staggering diversity of answers. The responsibility of the core company, particularly the limits of responsibility, move in and out of focus. Questions around buyers' responsibilities remain open, but there is a wealth of concepts and experience to draw upon. Professor Ruggie, a United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary General, could bring clarity in this area of CSR and is invited to reconsider the justification, scope and content of a buyer company's responsibility to protect workers' rights in its value chains.

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Characterization of the Value Chain of Rice Cultivation in Ecuador

International Journal of Science and Engineering Invention ◽

10.23958/ijsei/vol03-i01/04 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 3 (01) ◽

Author(s):

Yanila Esther Granados Rivas ◽

Sandra Cecilia MuÃ±oz MacÃas ◽

Luis Amable Zambrano Medranda

Keyword(s):

Diagnostic Tool ◽

Value Chain ◽

National Level ◽

Production Chain ◽

Structural Problems ◽

Weak Association ◽

Private Actors ◽

Financing Market ◽

Chain Links

The purpose of the research was to identify and characterize the links in the production chain of rice. The study is descriptive, in which a diagnostic tool that was validated by the MAGAP where he summoned the chain links and participatory manner a plan to improve competitiveness chain was applied was determined. The actors of the links were identified, showing serious situation; They are related to climatic anomalies and pest attack snail; However, behind these problems juncture that absorb the attention of private actors and sector authorities, persistent structural problems of low productivity, lack of infrastructure, insufficient financing, market distortions, excessive intermediation difficulties export surplus and potential vulnerability to imports, weak association between producers and conflict between the links, tensions with the state and lack of coordination between the national level.

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Performance and Challenges in the Value Chain of the Anadara tuberculosa Bivalve Mollusk in Ecuador

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su131910863 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (19) ◽

pp. 10863

Author(s):

Eveligh Prado-Carpio ◽

María de Lourdes Olivo-Garrido ◽

Manuel Quiñonez-Cabeza ◽

Christine M. Beitl ◽

Moisés Martínez-Soto ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Value Chain ◽

Participation Rate ◽

Mangrove Ecosystem ◽

Bivalve Mollusk ◽

Survey Method ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Production Chain ◽

Ex Post

The bivalve mollusk, Anadara tuberculosa (Black Shell, in Spanish Concha Prieta), is found on America’s Pacific coast, where it is harvested for subsistence and commercial markets. This paper aims to diagnose the performance of the black shell’s value chain. We also identify several challenges that must be addressed to improve the sustainability of the black shell fishery in Ecuador. The applied methodology was quantitative and descriptive. Its design was non-experimental, field, cross-sectional and ex post facto. The investigation was carried out from January to October 2019 in the Jambelí archipelago, El Oro province, Ecuador. The study population consisted of 565 individuals, shellfish collectors, shellfish associations managers, traders, and restaurants from the A. tuberculosa production chain. The sample size was estimated at 222 informants. The type of sampling used was probabilistic, random, stratified, and with proportional allocation, with an effective participation rate of those selected of approximately 80%. The questionnaire was applied personally through the structured survey method, in writing, in the work area, and with their consent. The performance of the value chain was diagnosed in the dimensions of productivity, competitiveness, and quality of life, reaching a 75.1% index, a result that indicates that the value chain has a moderate to good performance level. The competitiveness dimension reached the highest performance, followed by productivity. Quality of life was the dimension with the lowest performance. The value chain can be improved if the following challenges are met: (1) Restoration of the mangrove ecosystem, (2) Promotion of low-intensity shellfish aquaculture, (3) Good sanitary management and purification, (4) Promotion of value-focused ventures, (5) Strengthening of organizations and agreements for the use and custody of mangroves, and (6) Strengthening of institutions that contribute to the advancement of these challenges.

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The Bat Meat Chain and Perceptions of the risk of contracting Ebola in the Mount Cameroon Region

10.21203/rs.3.rs-15627/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Efuet Simon Akem ◽

Ngambouk Vitalis Pemunta

Keyword(s):

Value Chain ◽

Ebola Virus ◽

Virus Disease ◽

Cultural Beliefs ◽

Public Health Intervention ◽

Meat Production ◽

Production Chain ◽

Men And Women ◽

Mount Cameroon ◽

Gendered Patterns

Abstract Background Local people’s interaction with bats render them vulnerable to Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). This paper examines perceptions of risk involved in the hunting, handling, processing and consumption of bat meat in the Mount Cameroon region of Southwest Cameroon. It focuses on the myriad cultural beliefs, gendered patterns of activity and institutional arrangements in which the bat meat production chain is embedded. Methods We conducted 30 ethnographic interviews with a sample of purposively selected men and women involved in the bat meat trade. The interviews were tape recorded, transcribed verbatim and inductive analysis was performed on the data. Findings The findings suggests that more urban men than villagers and hunters consume bat meat. Different practices and behaviours expose the mostly uneducated, young, single men and women to the risk of Ebola infection depending on their differential level of intervention in the human-bat interaction and value chain linking hunters, sellers and customers. The killing of bats with the mouth during hunting expose hunters (young men) while the preparation of bat carcasses for consumption also put women, (mostly young and unmarried) at risk. Conclusions This study demonstrates that the complexity and nuances of gender, poverty and Ebola outcomes predispose some marginal groups to the risk of infection with zoonotic diseases. There is the need to improve public health intervention and health education among the rural masses in the Mount Cameroon region.

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Low-End Lock-In of Chinese Equipment Manufacturing Industry and the Global Value Chain

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su12072981 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (7) ◽

pp. 2981

Author(s):

Yan Li ◽

Huiying Sun ◽

Jincheng Huang ◽

Qingbo Huang

Keyword(s):

Value Chain ◽

Manufacturing Industry ◽

Value Added ◽

Global Value Chain ◽

Low Carbon ◽

Production Chain ◽

Physical Location ◽

Equipment Manufacturing ◽

Equipment Manufacturing Industry ◽

Lock In

This paper focuses on the low-end lock-in problem faced by China’s equipment manufacturing industry, which is heavily involved in the global value chain (GVC). Specifically, we use the production chain length system and total trade accounting framework to measure some physical and economic location indicators. The physical location measures the forward production length, backward production length, and the location index, whereas the economic location measures various types of value-added in industry exports. The results show that China’s equipment manufacturing industry has deepened its physical and economic low-end lock-in with the gradual deepening of China’s equipment manufacturing industry’s participation in GVC. From a segmented perspective, the manufacture of fabricated metal products (except machinery and equipment) and electrical equipment has the deepest degree of low-end lock-in physical location; the manufacture of computer, electronic, and optical products has the deepest degree of economic low-end lock-in. Therefore, China should accelerate its breakthroughs in the low-end locking dilemma and climb the GVC by adopting various measures such as accelerating the implementation of the intelligent manufacturing strategy, developing service-oriented equipment manufacturing industries, cultivating the domestic market, realizing low-carbon manufacturing, and improving enterprises’ independent innovation capabilities.

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Impact of Covid-19 on Livestock Production Chain and its Consequences on Food Security: A Review

Agricultural Science Digest - A Research Journal ◽

10.18805/ag.df-395 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Jean Bosco Nzeyimana ◽

Joseph Butore ◽

Libère Ndayishimiye ◽

Melchior Butoyi

Keyword(s):

Value Chain ◽

Livestock Production ◽

Crisis Response ◽

Production Chain ◽

Global Institutions ◽

Livestock Sector ◽

Export Restrictions ◽

Key Sectors ◽

Financial Losses ◽

Vulnerable Population Groups

Covid-19 represents an unprecedented public health threat and a severe crisis of society globally. Government agencies, policymakers and the global institutions, on the other hand, should give particular attention to and try to alleviate the problem (present and prospective) of the pandemic and related crisis response on key sectors that contribute to food stability, nutrition and livelihoods. The livestock sector plays an essential role in these areas, particularly for the particularly vulnerable population groups. Covid-19’s effects on livestock production are still largely unsubstantiated and not fully felt. Although case studies are not yet possible, observational data show interruptions in livestock’s entire value chain. The consequences of Covid-19 on the livestock production chain are in particular interruptions throughout the entire livestock value chain, lack of sales markets, import/export restrictions due to border closures, substantial financial losses to producers, increased cases of food insecurity.

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The effects of Ganoderma lucidum compound on goat weight and anti-inflammatory: a case study of circular agriculture

AIMS Environmental Science ◽

10.3934/environsci.2021035 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (6) ◽

pp. 553-566

Author(s):

Wen-Hung Lin ◽

◽

Kuo-Hua Lee ◽

Liang-Tu Chen ◽

◽

...

Keyword(s):

Weight Gain ◽

Value Chain ◽

Ganoderma Lucidum ◽

Average Weight ◽

Agricultural Practice ◽

Livestock Farming ◽

Production Chain ◽

Livestock Breeding ◽

Anti Inflammatory

<abstract> <p>Green sustainable development is an extremely important concept, and the most representative industry is agriculture. The agricultural industry value chain covers the connotation of green and sustainable innovation. Circular agriculture is a revival of old agricultural practice, and the concept is a combination of crop planting and livestock farming to minimize the losses in the food production chain. This study explores the effects of Ganoderma lucidum compound added in feed on goat weight and anti-inflammatory through a case study. This study uses average weight difference analysis and an independent t-test to verify the goat weight gain and growth, and uses nitric oxide, interleukin 6, tumor necrosis factor α, and tetrazolium to verify goat health. This study shows that dietary supplementation of the Ganoderma lucidum compound has better performance in weight gain and growth of goats. It also provides a method of reducing antibiotics to promote health and welfare in the goat or even the livestock breeding industry. At the same time, it may help livestock owners to improve management efficiency.</p> </abstract>

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Cell-Based Meat and Firms’ Environmental Strategies: New Rationales as per Available Literature

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su12229418 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (22) ◽

pp. 9418

Author(s):

Germano Glufke Reis ◽

Marina Sucha Heidemann ◽

Katherine Helena Oliveira de Matos ◽

Carla Forte Maiolino Molento

Keyword(s):

Value Chain ◽

Large Scale ◽

Animal Ethics ◽

Consumer Attitudes ◽

Environmental Benefits ◽

Meat Production ◽

Review Of The Literature ◽

Production Chain ◽

Alternative Protein ◽

Environmental Strategies

Higher demand for meat production and limited inputs, as well as environmental and animal ethics issues, are bringing alternative protein sources to the market, such as cell-based meat (CBM), i.e., meat produced through cell culturing, without involving animal raising and killing. Although the potential social and environmental benefits of the technology have been recently addressed in the blossoming CBM literature, little has been discussed about the possible implications for the environmental strategies of firms that are entering the new cell-based production chain. Thus, drawing on the theoretical framework of competitive environmental strategies and a systematic review of the literature, we discuss prospects for cell-based meat regarding the possible adoption of environmental strategies by firms that are entering the CBM chain. The technology may be considered a potential means for mitigating most of the environmental impacts of large-scale meat production, e.g., extensive land use and greenhouse gas emissions. We discuss how such benefits and consumer attitudes towards cultivated meat could encourage the adoption of environmental strategies by firms, and the roles that value chain firms are likely to play in those strategies in the future.

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The Identification of Hotspots in the Bioenergy Production Chain

Energies ◽

10.3390/en13215757 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 (21) ◽

pp. 5757

Author(s):

Magdalena Muradin ◽

Joanna Kulczycka

Keyword(s):

Value Chain ◽

Fossil Fuels ◽

Raw Materials ◽

Road Transport ◽

Hotspot Analysis ◽

Production Chain ◽

Energy Return On Investment ◽

Bioenergy Production ◽

Biogas Plants ◽

Materials Used

Increasing interest in bioenergy production in the context of the transition towards a circular economy and the promotion of renewable energy has produced demands for optimization of the value chain of energy production to improve the environmental viability of the system. Hotspot analysis based on life cycle assessment (LCA) contributes to the mitigation of environmental burdens and is a very important step towards the implementation of a bioeconomy strategy. In this study, hotspots identified using two parallel pathways: a literature review and empirical research on four different biogas plants located in Poland. LCA and energy return on investment (EROI) analysis of the whole bioenergy production chain were considered to identify unit processes or activities that are highly damaging to the environment. The biogas plants differ mainly in the type of raw materials used as an input and in the method of delivery. The results show that the most impactful processes are those in the delivery of biomass, especially road transport by tractor. The second contributor was crop cultivation, where fossil fuels are also used. Although the EROI analysis indicates a negligible impact of transport on the energy efficiency of bioenergy plants, the environmental burden of biomass transportation should be taken into consideration when planning further measures to support the development of the bioeconomy.

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A Regional Socio-Economic Life Cycle Assessment of a Bioeconomy Value Chain

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su12031259 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (3) ◽

pp. 1259 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Lena Jarosch ◽

Walther Zeug ◽

Alberto Bezama ◽

Matthias Finkbeiner ◽

Daniela Thrän

Keyword(s):

Sustainable Development ◽

Life Cycle Assessment ◽

Life Cycle ◽

Value Chain ◽

Social Life ◽

Economic Life ◽

Social Dimension ◽

Social Life Cycle Assessment ◽

Production Chain ◽

The Social

A bioeconomy tackles sustainable development at both the global and regional levels, as it relies on the optimized use of renewable bio-based resources for the provisioning of food, materials, and energy to meet societal demands. The effects of the bioeconomy can be best observed at a regional level, as it supports regional development and affects the social dimension of sustainability. In order to assess the social impacts of wood-based production chains with regional differentiation, the social life cycle assessment framework “RESPONSA” was established in 2018. We present an initial study, in which this method is applied to an exemplary production chain in a case study of laminated veneer lumber produced in central Germany. The results show a relatively better social performance compared to the reference economic sector, reflecting a relatively low rate of female employees as a major social hotspot. Several social opportunities are identified, in terms of health and safety, equal opportunities, and adequate remuneration, for the organization taking part in the value chain. Finally, considering the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a global normative framework, a number of additional indicators for RESPONSA, as well as further developments and recommendations regarding its application in other regions and the upcoming social life cycle assessment (S-LCA) guidelines, are identified.

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