Food waste in the era of e-commerce: A novel farm-to-fork management methodology

Abstract

Online shopping is a growing market, and research on food waste (FW) in e-commerce food supply chains (e-FSCs) is limited. The e-FSC comprises competitive, complex, and evolving value streams, requiring advanced methodologies to address the issue of e-food wastage. This work develops a novel empirical-analytical farm-to-fork e-FW management methodology (F-t-F-eFWMM) to explore, measure, and mitigate FW in e-FSCs, focusing on the Sultanate of Oman as an empirical case study. As the case study, questionnaires were developed and administered to collect data from two leading retailers. The data collection extends to their suppliers, distributors, last-mile transporters (delivery), and consumers within the e-FSC. In addition, two rounds of meetings with senior managers and supply chain partners upstream and downstream of the e-FSC were facilitated to validate and extend prior findings. Subsequently, multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) algorithms were employed to analytically identify the root causes of FW across the e-FSC network. The research highlighted ‘lack of production planning,’ ‘overstocking,’ and ‘inadequate storage’ as significant factors at the supply, distribution, and consumption stages, respectively. The main contributors to food waste (FW) were consumers, suppliers, and retailers, with retailers playing a crucial role in e-FSC compared to traditional physical FSC. Identified strategies for mitigation included the implementation of legislation, the adoption of advanced technologies, and enhanced forecasting methods. This study offers practical guidance for policymakers and practitioners to create effective interventions for electronic food supply chains.