Title: Effects of produce perishability, supplier geographical distance, and supplier quality performance on buyer control in agri-food supply chains

Authors: Renger Kanani; Arnt Buvik

Addresses: Department of General Management, University of Dar es salaam Business School, P.O. Box 35046, Dar es salaam, Tanzania ' Faculty of Logistics, Molde University College – Specialized University in Logistics, Service Box 2110, 6402 Molde, Norway

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of the degree of produce perishability on buyer control and examine this effect across different levels of supplier geographical distance and quality performance. This study was motivated by the vulnerability of the quality of perishable agricultural produce to various logistical and transportation activities, including the packaging of products, loading, and offloading activities. Three hypotheses capturing our research variables were developed and tested by using data obtained from the owner-managers and decision makers in the food processing industry. Empirical evidence from 239 food processing firms revealed that the degree of produce perishability positively influences buyer decision to control food supply chain factors that are likely to affect the quality of agricultural produce. The findings demonstrated further that the effect of produce perishability diminished as supplier geographical distance and quality performance increased.

Keywords: supply chain; vertical coordination; buyer control; perishability; supplier geographical distance; supplier quality performance.

DOI: 10.1504/IJLSM.2021.113242

International Journal of Logistics Systems and Management, 2021 Vol.38 No.2, pp.194 - 216

Received: 03 Oct 2018
Accepted: 31 May 2019
Published online: 25 Feb 2021 *

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