SUPPLY CHAIN COLLABORATION OF NAM DOK MAI MANGO EXPORTS FROM THAILAND TO JAPAN

Abstract

            This paper attempts to provide an overview of existing supply chain of Nam Dok Mai mangoes in Thailand and identify strengths and weakness in the supply chain and to develop the supply chain collaboration in the management of fresh Nam Dok Mai mangoes for exports to Japan. The discussion and analysis based on the six case studies of mango export companies, which are the main exporters in Thailand. Semi-structured interviews are conducted to gather data from growers and exporters. A cross-case analysis is applied to examine the collaboration and to compare similarities and differences among six companies. The outcomes of this analysis contribute to the introduction of grower-exporter collaboration in agro-food supply chain. The results demonstrate that information sharing, decision synchronisation, relationship and trust are the keys to improve production capability. Incentive alignment can provide the motivation for increasing growers’ performances. Traceability can be determined as a critical issue for product quality improvement in terms of food safety. The collaboration can increase production efficiency. The consistency in good performance can develop trust and long-term relationship in the supply chain. Thus, the value in collaborative supply chain has a positive impact on the agribusiness in terms of increasing competitive advantage.