Modeling sustainable fresh produce supply chain systems in the Northeast U.S

Haoyue Liang, Houtian Ge, Miguel I. Gomez and Christian J. Peters

No 361063, 2025 AAEA & WAEA Joint Annual Meeting, July 27-29, 2025, Denver, CO from Agricultural and Applied Economics Association

Abstract: Efficient facility location is vital for optimizing perishable fresh produce supply chains, especially in regions with fragmented production and dense demand. This study develops a mixed-integer programming framework to identify cost-optimal food hub locations and capacities for the U.S. fresh produce supply chain, with a particular focus on the New York–New England (NY–NE) region. The model integrates spatially resolved data on production, trade, and consumption across nine food categories and applies a two-tiered resolution strategy: national-scale aggregation using Major Land Resource Areas and Grocery Marketing Areas, and county-level disaggregation within NY–NE. Results reveal a hub-and-spoke network shaped by cost efficiencies, with strategic hubs emerging in both production-heavy and consumption-dense areas. The NY–NE sub model highlights the region's heavy reliance on long-distance sourcing and the need for region-specific infrastructure planning. By linking optimization with granular flow analysis, this work advances supply chain modeling for regional food resilience and cost-effective distribution planning.

Keywords: Production; Economics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 33
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:aaea25:361063

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.361063

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