A Two-Stage Stochastic Linear Programming Model for Tactical Planning in the Soybean Supply Chain

<i>Background:</i> The soybean market is representative of the world. Brazil is the largest producer and exporter of this crop and has low production costs but high logistical costs, which are influenced mainly by transport costs. Added to these characteristics, the disputed grain supply...

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Main Authors: Silvia Araújo dos Reis, José Eugenio Leal, Antônio Márcio Tavares Thomé
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2023-08-01
Series:Logistics
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2305-6290/7/3/49
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author Silvia Araújo dos Reis
José Eugenio Leal
Antônio Márcio Tavares Thomé
author_facet Silvia Araújo dos Reis
José Eugenio Leal
Antônio Márcio Tavares Thomé
author_sort Silvia Araújo dos Reis
collection DOAJ
description <i>Background:</i> The soybean market is representative of the world. Brazil is the largest producer and exporter of this crop and has low production costs but high logistical costs, which are influenced mainly by transport costs. Added to these characteristics, the disputed grain supply, the possibility of crop failure, and the randomness of some parameters that influence the soybean supply chain make decisions even more challenging. <i>Methods:</i> To mathematically model this problem, we carried out an analysis of the scientific production related to grain supply chain and the models used to address the problem, as well as a document analysis and a case study. <i>Results:</i> This paper proposes a new two-stage stochastic linear programming model with fixed recourse for tactical planning in the soybean supply chain from the perspective of the shipper under take or pay contracts over a one-year time horizon. The first-stage variables are the grain purchasing decisions and the volumes of rail and road transportation hired in advance. The model addresses 243 scenarios derived from four uncertainty sources: the purchase and sale prices of raw agricultural products on the spot market, the probability of crop failure, and the external demand. <i>Conclusions:</i> The model is successfully applied to a soybean trade firm in Brazil with expected gain of US$4,299,720 when using the stochastic model instead of the deterministic model. The stochastic model protected the firm from take or pay fines and crop failures, contracting a smaller volume of rail transport than what the company does.
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spelling doaj-art-58d76fe7993b4ffc9fcc1fd873ef61302025-08-20T02:51:30ZengMDPI AGLogistics2305-62902023-08-01734910.3390/logistics7030049A Two-Stage Stochastic Linear Programming Model for Tactical Planning in the Soybean Supply ChainSilvia Araújo dos Reis0José Eugenio Leal1Antônio Márcio Tavares Thomé2Department of Business and Agribusiness, University of Brasília-UnB, Brasília 70910-900, DF, BrazilDepartment of Industrial Engineering, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio), Rio de Janeiro 22541-041, RJ, BrazilDepartment of Industrial Engineering, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio), Rio de Janeiro 22541-041, RJ, Brazil<i>Background:</i> The soybean market is representative of the world. Brazil is the largest producer and exporter of this crop and has low production costs but high logistical costs, which are influenced mainly by transport costs. Added to these characteristics, the disputed grain supply, the possibility of crop failure, and the randomness of some parameters that influence the soybean supply chain make decisions even more challenging. <i>Methods:</i> To mathematically model this problem, we carried out an analysis of the scientific production related to grain supply chain and the models used to address the problem, as well as a document analysis and a case study. <i>Results:</i> This paper proposes a new two-stage stochastic linear programming model with fixed recourse for tactical planning in the soybean supply chain from the perspective of the shipper under take or pay contracts over a one-year time horizon. The first-stage variables are the grain purchasing decisions and the volumes of rail and road transportation hired in advance. The model addresses 243 scenarios derived from four uncertainty sources: the purchase and sale prices of raw agricultural products on the spot market, the probability of crop failure, and the external demand. <i>Conclusions:</i> The model is successfully applied to a soybean trade firm in Brazil with expected gain of US$4,299,720 when using the stochastic model instead of the deterministic model. The stochastic model protected the firm from take or pay fines and crop failures, contracting a smaller volume of rail transport than what the company does.https://www.mdpi.com/2305-6290/7/3/49soybean supply chaingrainagriculturetransportstochasticuncertainty
spellingShingle Silvia Araújo dos Reis
José Eugenio Leal
Antônio Márcio Tavares Thomé
A Two-Stage Stochastic Linear Programming Model for Tactical Planning in the Soybean Supply Chain
Logistics
soybean supply chain
grain
agriculture
transport
stochastic
uncertainty
title A Two-Stage Stochastic Linear Programming Model for Tactical Planning in the Soybean Supply Chain
title_full A Two-Stage Stochastic Linear Programming Model for Tactical Planning in the Soybean Supply Chain
title_fullStr A Two-Stage Stochastic Linear Programming Model for Tactical Planning in the Soybean Supply Chain
title_full_unstemmed A Two-Stage Stochastic Linear Programming Model for Tactical Planning in the Soybean Supply Chain
title_short A Two-Stage Stochastic Linear Programming Model for Tactical Planning in the Soybean Supply Chain
title_sort two stage stochastic linear programming model for tactical planning in the soybean supply chain
topic soybean supply chain
grain
agriculture
transport
stochastic
uncertainty
url https://www.mdpi.com/2305-6290/7/3/49
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