APPLICATION OF ANALYTIC HIERARCHY PROCESS INDECISION MAKING OF PROCESSED BANANA PRODUCTS FOR COMMUNITY ENTERPRISES

Abstract

Bananas are one of the most produced and consumed fruit crops in the world. However, producers, especially farmers and small businesses, are currently facing many challenges in the market, particularly competitiveness. This article aims to analyze factors that influence the decision-making process of processing banana products for community enterprises. The selection of the best-processed banana products according to the different criteria uses the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) as a multi-criteria decision-making support tool. A case study of community enterprises that process banana products in Prachinburi Province, Thailand is presented. The criteria and priorities are considered based on the opinions of the community enterprises. There are five main factors: main raw materials, readiness for production, profitability and marketing channels, storage conditions, and environmental and societal impacts. The alternatives were divided into two cases: unripe and ripe bananas. The results show that the main factor with the highest priority in processing banana products is the readiness for production. For overall results, the banana chip is the best choice to produce if the supply is unripe bananas. If the supply is ripe bananas, the dried banana is the best choice to produce. These results provide a guideline for decision-making in banana product processing, which helps determine the best option for complex problems.