Current Issue : January-March Volume : 2024 Issue Number : 1 Articles : 5 Articles
Background: With the increasing societal focus on sustainability and the critical need for innovative energy solutions, this research emphasizes the undervalued biomass originating from waste products of agroforestry activities. The traditional practice of disposing of these waste products through open-air burning has led to environmental challenges and a tragic loss of their inherent energy potential. Methods: This study adopts a multifaceted approach, integrating literature reviews, expert interviews from both the academic and professional sectors, and surveys. The central focus is on understanding supply chain inefficiencies and communication gaps that contribute to waste and addressing them through the Lean philosophy, renowned for its waste reduction benefits. Results: Our research culminated in the development of a unique information management model based on a web application. Additionally, the study provides a theoretical groundwork for an application that backs the proposed model. Conclusions: The presented strategy and web-based model offer promising avenues for managing waste products from agroforestry activities more sustainably and efficiently. This approach not only addresses the environmental issues arising from waste disposal but also taps into the significant energy potential these waste products hold....
The emergence and diffusion of coronavirus (COVID-19) have brought a lot of impacts on various spheres of human endeavours including maritime trading. This paper explores the effect of the lockdown on maritime port calls for selected vessels in the sub-Saharan African (SSA) regions (East, Middle, South, and West Africa). The study utilizes port calls data of the maritime profile of the global economies obtained from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development Statistics between 2018 and 2021. Data include port calls for liquid bulk carrier, liquefied petroleum gas, dry bulk carrier, dry break bulk carrier, roll-on-roll-off, and container carrier. The analysis of data involves the use of exploratory technique to reveal dimensions of performance by various carriers across the regions. The results picture the kind of response of port calls in all the regions akin to the response from other regions of the world. However, the study observes that though responses to COVID- 19 lockdown across the globe were similar, SSA regions were slow in recovering from the decline in port calls when compared to the developed and some rapidly developing economies of the world due to the region’s lack of economic resilience. Thus, since ports have been identified as vulnerable to economic, social, institutional, and environmental shocks, and to dynamic and highly unpredictable demand for port services, policymakers of various nationals in the SSA may need to examine the patterns of performance of vessels in the regions to manage trade flows more effectively as a way of responding to future dynamics in maritime trade in the region....
Background: This study aims to explore how domestic entrepreneurs can benefit from the thriving global agribusiness by establishing themselves in agro-industrial segments that can best remunerate capital and labour. The ways in which domestic entrepreneurs in Brazil enter different segments of the agribusiness industry were assessed with specific attention to implications for the development of local agro-industrial capabilities. Methods: We assessed the current market share of domestic companies in relation to foreign multinationals in various segments of the sugar and ethanol supply chain in Brazil. Results: Foreign multinationals are market leaders in the fertilizers, machinery and trading segments (domestic companies market share is 20.3%, 33.3% and 42.9% in those segments respectively). However, Brazilian companies have achieved higher market share in segments such as plant breeding, sugarcane processing and farming (domestic market share is 93.2%, 67.4% and 75.5% respectively). Plant breeding, farming and trading benefit from governmental support in research, subsidized credits and market policies respectively. Conclusions: By investing in agro-industrial sectors developing countries can benefit from agribusiness expansion for their economic growth. Investments in science and technology and domestic regulatory actions can help to build country capabilities, although the impacts are sometimes limited to the agro-industrial sectors where domestic companies are more competitive. These lessons can help other developing countries to assess their opportunities and challenges for agro-industrial development....
Within the bustling freight forwarding industry of Malaysia, the effects of supply chain management on environmental performance stand largely uncharted. This article delves deep into the intricate relationships between logistic practices, reversed logistics, fleet management, and their cumulative environmental ramifications. Spurred by the surge in demand for freight forwarding and its consequential environmental footprint, the research underscores the transformative potential of green supply chain adoption. Not only as a beacon of environmental stewardship but as a formidable competitive edge. As the freight forwarding realm grapples with ambiguity over the true environmental weight of their supply chain operations, our findings unveil pivotal insights. By bridging this knowledge chasm, the research paves the way for fostering sustainable practices that harmoniously marry operational prowess with ecological prudence. Beyond its immediate audience, this article beckons industries far and wide, championing the pivotal role of environmental conscientiousness in modern supply chain dynamics....
Perishable food supply chains (PFSCs) have been associated with a number of concerns, including an increase in food safety and quality challenges, increased food waste and loss, and poor profitability. Given the perishability and limited shelf life of such items, risk management in PFSCs has become crucial. Although several studies on perishable food supply chain have been conducted, challenges and mitigation measures have not gotten the essential priority. Consequently, the purpose of this study was to identify challenges in the perishable food supply chain system (PFSCS) and to provide ways to address such challenges. A complete evaluation of peer-reviewed papers published between 2005 and 2020 was undertaken from Scopus, Goggle Scholar, ScienceDirect, and MDPI. Eight key challenges were identified, and implied explanations were provided by exploring from the viewpoint of related published research. To address the identified issues, the authors proposed a number of possible risk mitigation measures....
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