Supply chain management and sustainability: the case study of a food industry

Abstract

The prevailing approach nowadays is that in order to preserve global resources for future generations – an underlying concept of “sustainability” – business companies must assume an important role in this process. Environmental, economic and social challenges do not stop at the level of single companies but have to be considered alongside the supply chain around which material and information are organized. Τhrough this qualitative research (a case study method was selected), the scope was to analyze a series of crucial variables which are related to sustainable supply chain management. Factors as pressures, barriers, performance were researched. As a case study a food industry with a strong presence both in Greece and on a global level was selected. The results, which emerged, are of great interest and may be used in new academic studies on sustainability issues even outside the food sector. A general conclusion is that a company’s size as well as the culture and commitment of senior management are defining factors for the number, the kind and the successful implementation of sustainable supply chain management practices which will be selected. Also, regarding the correlation between sustainable supply chain management practices and sustainable performance, the results showed that only few of the practices implemented have a positive impact on the economic performance of the company, with most of them affecting positively the social and environmental performance of the company. However, a large-scale quantitative survey is considered necessary, involving more partners of the supply chain and more industries in order to build up a more complete image.