Horizontal Integration in Fresh Food Supply Chain

Abstract

Demand information sharing during planning and control of fresh meat production and replenishment in franchise supply chain is studied. Main findings are that some demand information is received much later upstream than when created downstream. Horizontal integration of systems in the supply chain allows all parties access to same critical information about store demand and availability in real-time. A conceptual model for horizontal integration in the triadic supply chain, allowing differentiated and timely sharing of information is suggested, to increase service level and reduce waste from over-/under-production.