Analysis of Logistical Aspect of Food-Safety System in the Green Supply Chain using Vehicle Routing Problem Model

Abstract

Green supply chain is considered an emerging concept based on the supply chain management discipline to improve environmental sustainability with different green initiatives. Activities related to the green supply chain also include aspects of low-waste production, environmentally friendly action, and social awareness. In this research, we investigate the particular food-safety system under the green supply chain’s scope by focusing on logistical aspect using the Vehicle Routing Problem (VRP) model. Initially, the model is developed by taking into account transportation distance, vehicle capacity, supply amount, and locations of stakeholders into account. In order to enhance green activities, both organic agriculture and distance optimization are investigated. In particular, locations of community enterprises with organics and Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS) certified crops are used as a basis for the supply sources. Then, the transportation route between the New Donklang Market, Ubonratchathani, to these supply sources is analyzed as a case study to verify and validate the proposed VRP model. Our initial result shows promising illustration for improving the food-safety system with environmentally-driven objective.