IMPROVING PROFITABILITY AND SUSTAINABILITY THROUGH FOOD HUB NETWORK FOR SMALL FARMERS IN SOUTH CAROLINA

• Sponsoring Institution: National Institute of Food and Agriculture
• Project Status: ACTIVE
• Funding Source: EVANS-ALLEN
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 1026707
• Project Start Date: Aug 16, 2021
• Project End Date: Jul 31, 2025
• Program Code: [(N/A)]- (N/A)

Recipient Organization
SOUTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY
(N/A)
ORANGEBURG,SC 29117

Performing Department
Agribusiness & Economics

Non Technical Summary
Although food supply chains have been studied over the last few decades, little attention has been paid to profitability and sustainability issues in the regional food hub network. In this project, we will jointly study these issues through food hub network evaluation and modeling. Examining these issues is vital to agribusiness and community development for the following reasons: (1) The food hub network is crucial to job creation, sustainability, rural prosperity, and the local economy. (2) There are urgent needs for jointly studying profitability and sustainability from both academia and practices. (3) Since these issues in the emerging food hub network are understudied, this area calls for a better supply chain model to address these issues. (4) Improving the food hub network can benefit small farmers and the general public in South Carolina.This research aims to improve profitability and sustainability through a food hub network for small farmers in South Carolina over four years of study. The supporting objectives for this research include: (1) accessing the status quo of the South Carolina's food hub network through surveys and interviews and reviewing the relevant literature and best practice in the field; (2) identifying the challenges, risks, and opportunities for small farmers selling to South Carolina's food hub network; (3) developing a conceptual framework for the food hub network, especially the small farmers, for jointly improving profitability and sustainability; (4) evaluating the conceptual framework through simulation modeling; (5) validating the simulation model through computational case studies; and (6) documenting the research findings and disseminating the research results.Our research objectives are aligned with SC State University's mission to enhance citizens' quality of life and contribute to the state's and nation's economic development. Our objectives are also in line with 1890 Research and Extension Program's goal and one of its priority areas, Agribusiness and Community Development. The goal of the 1890 Research and Extension Program is to offer an essential public service for rural and urban limited-resource families who need the latest research-based scientific knowledge, sustainable practices in agriculture, and business development.To achieve these objectives, we will conduct the proposed research with 1890 Research and Extension Program's assistance. Dr. Feng will serve as the principal investigator (PI) and lead the research team to carry out this research.The research project is expected to benefit SC State University by: (1) enhancing business faculty's research experience and capacity in the critical area of food supply chain management, (2) improving students' research ability and experience and better preparing them for the future career, (3) supporting faculty to produce more quality research for small farmers and food hubs, (4) increasing university publicity through research publication, (5) preparing faculty for external funding opportunities, (6) integrating research and teaching and strengthening academic program.We expect that this project will help small farmers enhance their profitability, sustainability, and marketing channels by integrating themselves into the regional food hub network. We also expect that the public benefit from this research will be a more sustainable food system, higher availability of local food products, an improved local economy.

Animal Health Component

25%

Research Effort Categories

Basic

75%

Applied

25%

Developmental

0%

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
603	6299	3010	100%

Knowledge Area
603 - Market Economics;

Subject Of Investigation
6299 - Marketing, general/other;

Field Of Science
3010 - Economics;

Keywords

food hub

food hub network

sustainability

small farmers

simulation modeling

survey

Goals / Objectives
Project GoalsThe goal of this research is to improve profitability and sustainability through a food hub network for small farmers in South Carolina. The food hub network can provide a better channel for small farmers to sell their products to more customers and a better way for consumers to purchase local fresh produce. This study will emphasize the viability for small farmers to sell produces to the food hub network and thus increase their profitability.Project ObjectivesTo achieve the project goal, the project objectives are listed as follows:Objective 1: To assess the status quo of the food hub network in South CarolinaObjective 2: To identify the challenges, risks, and opportunities for small farmers selling to South Carolina's food hub network Objective 3: To develop a conceptual framework for the food hub network, especially for small farmers, to improve profitability and sustainability jointlyObjective 4: To evaluate the conceptual framework through simulation modeling Objective 5: To validate the simulation model through a computational case study Objective 6: To document the research findings and disseminate the research results

Project Methods
This research will employ mixed methods (qualitative and quantitative methods) to conduct the investigation. The qualitative method is the interview method, and the quantitative methods are survey and simulation modeling. We will site visit the existing food hubs in South Carolina and interview the food hub entrepreneurs with predesigned questions. The answers to those questions will be compiled, analyzed, and documented. We will also design survey questions and distribute them to food hub entrepreneurs and their participating small farmers via mail survey or online survey. The survey results will be compiled, analyzed, and documented as well.We will evaluate and compare the food hub network's main performance measures before and after food hub collaboration using Anylogic® simulation software. The performance measures include profitability (e.g., revenue increase/cost reduction) and sustainability (e.g., greenhouse gas emission). We will also conduct a computational study to evaluate the impact of food hub collaboration and new food hubs addition.We identified the following important evaluation items for this project:• The number of small farmers and food hub entrepreneurs surveyed or interviewed: at least 50 small farmers surveyed and 5 food hub entrepreneurs interviewed.• The number of faculty conference presentations: At least one presentation per year and 4 over four years• The number of student presentations: At least one presentation per year and 4 over four years• The number of paper or conference proceeding publications: At least three publications over four years• The number of conceptual frameworks developed: 1 conceptual framework will be designed and developed.• The number of simulation models developed: At least 2 simulation models will be designed and developed. Two computational case studies will be performed.• The number of brochures published: At least 1 brochure on the food hub network will be designed and distributed.• The number of project websites developed: 1 project website will be designed, developed, and maintained by the project team. The number of visits will be at least 500.• The number of farmers reached for advisement: At least 50 small farmers advised.

Progress 08/16/21 to 09/30/21

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience of this research are the general public, including academic and professional (farmer) communities. Dr. Feng and the research team will present their study at national and regional conferences. The audience of the presentations consists of scholars, researchers, and practitioners. The research abstracts will be published online. They can be accessible from general public. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The project provides great opportunities for training and professional development. (1) 1890 Research and Extension provides training workshops related to DocuSign, Banner purchase requisition, and travel authorization. (2) Dr. Feng submit a paper presentation to Southeast Decision Science Institute (SEDSI) Annual Conference. The conference provides Dr. Feng the opportunity to present the paper to the academic community and allow Dr. Feng to keep abreast of the current development in the field. (3) 1890 ARD conference provides student assistants the opportunities to present their research study and socialize with other students and faculty during the national level bi-annual meeting. (4) The project provides great opportunities for students. Student research assistants were involved in the process of research (such as literature review, survey design, and documentation). How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Dr. Feng and the research assistant will present their study at Southeast Decision Science Institute annual conference and the 20th Biennial Research Symposium of ARD conference in 2022. The results will be disseminated to academic and practitioner communities of interest. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?The research team will plan to do the following, (1) continue to conduct literature review on food hub network research, (2) distribute surveys for food hubs and small farmers by mail or online, (3) collect data based on the surveys for food hubs and small farmers, (4) design the project website, (5) advise student researchers to participate and present at ARD meeting.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Dr. Feng and his research assistants reviewed the literature related to food hub and food hub network research during this report period. Dr. Feng trained the research assistants how to conduct literature review using various academic database such as Google Scholar, Academic Search Complete, Jstor, ProQuest, and Business Source Complete. The research team compared and summarized the research findings in a literature review working paper. Dr. Feng submitted the paper abstract for presentation at Southeast Decision Science Institute (SEDSI) Annual Conference which is held in Jacksonville, FL in February 2022. The paper's title is Food Hub Network: A Literature Review. The presentation was accepted for SEDSI annual conference. Dr. Feng and his two research assistants also submitted abstracts for presentation at the 20th Biennial Research Symposium of ARD held in Atlanta, GA. Dr. Feng's presentation is entitled Improving Profitability and Sustainability through Food Hub Network for Small Farmers in South Carolina: Project Overview. The presentation title of the first student assistant is Food hub Network in South Carolina: An Overview. The presentation title of the second student assistant is Food Hub Network: A Literature Review. Dr. Feng and his research assistants also identified food hubs and small farmers for surveys in South Carolina during this report period. Additionally, Dr. Feng purchased a simulation software, Anylogic, and reviewed software manual and examples. Dr. Feng acquired a portion of necessary equipment, supplies, software for the project as well. Dr. Feng also participated in the training workshops organized by 1890 Research and Extension such as DocuSign, Banner purchase requisition, and Travel authorization training.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Submitted Year Published: 2022 Citation: K. Feng*, Food Hub Network: A Literature Review.at Southeast Decision Science Institute (SEDSI) Annual Conference in Jacksonville, FL February 2022.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2022 Citation: K. Feng*. Improving Profitability and Sustainability through Food Hub Network for Small Farmers in South Carolina: Project Overview, Department of Business Administration and Information Systems, South Carolina State University, Orangeburg, SC 29117. Submitted to ARD Research Symposium, April 2-5, 2022, Atlanta, Georgia.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2022 Citation: M. Ben Ali*, College of Business and Information Systems, South Carolina State University, Orangeburg, SC 29117; K. Feng, Department of Business Administration and Information Systems, South Carolina State University, Orangeburg, SC 29117. Food hub Network in South Carolina: An Overview. Submitted to ARD Research Symposium, April 2-5, 2022, Atlanta, Georgia.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2022 Citation: O. Gorgun*, College of Business and Information Systems, South Carolina State University, Orangeburg, SC 29117; K. Feng, Department of Business Administration and Information Systems, South Carolina State University, Orangeburg, SC 29117. Food Hub Network: A Literature Review. Submitted to ARD Research Symposium, April 2-5, 2022, Atlanta, Georgia.