Vehicle-routing problem for low-carbon cold chain logistics based on the idea of cost–benefit

In the low-carbon economy, the fresh industry constitutes an “impossible triangle” in products, prices and services. Therefore, based on the idea of cost–benefit, a comprehensive vehicle routing problem optimization model with the objective function of minimizing the cost of unit satisfied customer is presented. Then, a hybrid algorithm called local search genetic algorithm (LSGA) is proposed, which amalgamates the destroy-repair operator with GA algorithm. Extensive numerical experiments verify the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed model and algorithm. Furthermore, the sensitivity analysis of freshness-keeping cost, carbon price and customer satisfaction weights were conducted. The experimental results show that appropriate freshness-keeping effort can reduce total costs and improve customer satisfaction. Increasing carbon price within a certain range can effectively reduce carbon emissions, and there is a trade-off relationship between carbon emissions and customer satisfaction. The results of considering both time satisfaction and freshness satisfaction are better than considering time satisfaction alone.