Implications of green logistics management on sustainable business and supply chain performance: evidence from a survey in the greek agri-food sector

Abstract

Green agri-food supply chains are increasingly attracting research interest, owing to their potential capacity for resilience against recent crises (e.g., financial, COVID-19) as well as end-consumers’ concerns on sustainability issues. In this context, this paper aims to explore the relationship between green supply chain management practices and three different performance aspects, namely, supply chain, green (environmental) and business performance, and controlling for environmental dynamism. Field research was conducted through a structured questionnaire contacted to 134 executives of firms in the agri-food sector in Greece. The results reveal that information sharing, logistics networking and transportation are the most powerful factors that impact sustainable, business and supply chain performance. In addition, green packaging is related to financial and social performance aspects. Interestingly, green warehousing and logistics emissions failed to establish any relationship with performance outcomes. The conclusions and recommendations drawn in the present study are expected to provide meaningful guidance for the supply chain decision-making process, as logistics managers are becoming increasingly aware of exploiting all available resources, knowhow and competitive advantages for attaining sustainable performance.