Considering reverse logistics’ benefit for sustainability, it has gained significant attention as a strategic decision. Additionally, a geometric expansion occurs in reverse logistics and sustainability performance. Despite this, little has been written about this evolution retrospectively. Therefore, this study aims to conceptualise and perform a systematic scientometric review of reverse logistics and sustainability performance to identify research hotspots and emerging trends and offer suggestions for future research agendas by reviewing, retrieving, and analysing 848 papers from the Scopus databases. Based on the analysis, there was a rapid rise in the number of publications within this domain, while, at the same time, increasing interdisciplinary subject research has appeared. Furthermore, scholars and institutions from China, India, and the USA were the most prolific in this research domain. Mainly, the current study underscored some pivotal research hotspots, such as assessing the reverse logistics effect on different sustainability performance dimensions and developing a reverse logistics and sustainability performance network. Moreover, emerging trends include game theory, artificial intelligence, Industry 4.0, the manufacturing industry of developing countries, and the circular economy. Finally, a moderator was also sought to be proposed to optimise the relationship between reverse logistics and sustainability performance due to the inconsistent link between them. Having a comprehensive overview of reverse logistics and sustainability performance over the last 24 years may help practitioners and researchers better understand global trends and directions in this field.

Purpose: This research attempts to explore how reverse logistics (RL) and sustainable supply chain initiatives (SSCI) affect sustainability performance (SP) in the manufacturing industry under the moderating effects of organisational learning capability (OLC). At the same time, this study is expected to allow manufacturers to advance towards a high level of model generation in the green economy.Design/methodology/approach: The data for this study was obtained from 451 manufacturing companies in the Hebei Province, China. This study develops a model and tests all hypothesised relationships using partial least square–structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) with two-step analytical procedures.Findings: The results indicate that SSCI and RL have a positive relationship with SP, and SSCI is positively related to RL. Moreover, the OLC moderates the relationship between RL and SP as well as the relationship between SSCI and SP.Research limitations/implications: The findings of the study yield valuable managerial insights on how the effective implementation of green practices, coupled with the utilisation of learning capabilities, can contribute to improving the sustainability of manufacturing firms. The study has certain limitations that suggest potential avenues for future research, the most significant of which is our reliance on data from a single country, which may impede the generalisability of the findings.Originality/value: This study contributes to the existing literature on SP by considering RL and SSCI and offers a unique theoretical argument that describes the relationships by considering the moderating effect of OLC, which has not been empirically explored.

Background: Current global economic activities are increasingly being perceived as unsustainable. With the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) statement in 2015, sustainability performance has received significant attention. Thus, it is necessary to better understand the topics of interest and expand cooperation networks to advance studies in integrated efforts. The present bibliometric research intends to assess worldwide research tendency in sustainability performance. Methods: We conducted an extensive bibliometric analysis of published academic articles on sustainability performance (SP) from 1997 to 2021. We reviewed, retrieved, and analysed 3680 papers published in Scopus. Specifically, VOSviewer software was used to conduct document co-authorship and co-occurrence analyses and burst detection analyses. Results: The outcomes reveal that since 1997, the sum of publications has been on the rise steadily. About a third of all global papers on sustainability performance were produced by researchers from the United States and Australia, outnumbering the remaining 138 countries/territories. Furthermore, the ten most prolific authors of sustainability performance are all from universities. Haapala, Karl R. and Murat Kucukvar were the most influential authors found, based on the total publication number of sustainability performance. Conclusions: The bibliometric analysis was conducted to identify the trends in the area of sustainability performance. Therefore, this study identified a significant research gap for future study of practitioners and researchers. The social sustainability and the relationship between the material flow analysis and sustainability performance should be noted. In addition, only the Scopus database has been considered due to its academic prestige. The database includes a large number of articles on sustainability performance. Therefore, the analysis was limited to the Scopus database only. However, other databases, such as Web of Science, Google Scholar, and MedLine, can be used for future research. These can also be used in combination.

Purpose: This study aims to review the influences of green purchasing (GP), green manufacturing (GM) and green packaging (GK) on sustainability performance (SP) with a focus on the mediating role of reverse logistics (RL). At the same time, this study is expected to examine the effect of GP, GM and GK on RL. Design/methodology/approach: Quantitative analysis was conducted using data from 418 manufacturing enterprises in the Hebei province of China. Data analyses were conducted using the Smart-PLS 4.0 software and SPSS software. Findings: This findings reveals that GM, GK and RL have a positive relationship with SP. However, GP were found not to significantly influence SP. Also, GP, GM and GK is positively related to RL. Also, RL influences the successful implementation of GK, GM and GP which results in building better SP. Practical implications: This study offers practical evidence supporting the notion that GP, GM and GK can complement and enhance the effectiveness of RL. Also, for firms engaging in GP, GM and GK, RL is a crucial success factor for improved SP. Social implications: This paper discusses benefits or outcomes of GP, GM and GK. As well as how GP, GM and GP can improve SP with a focus on the mediating role of RL. Originality/value: Through the consideration of green environmental concerns, this study contributes to the existing literature on green practices and SP. Furthermore, by examining the mediating effect of RL strategies, this study offers a unique theoretical explanation for these relationships.