The production and distribution of food are among the hot topics debated in the context of sustainable development. Short food supply chains (SFSCs) are now widely believed to be more sustainable in comparison to mass food delivery systems. To date, very little quantitative evidence exists on the impacts of various types of food supply chains. Using a cross-sectional quantitative approach, this study assesses the sustainability of distribution channels in short and long food supply chains based on 208 food producers across seven countries: France, Hungary, Italy, Norway, Poland, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam. Ten distribution channel types are used in this study. To provide a comprehensive sustainability assessment, a set of economic, social, and environmental indicators are applied. Indicators commonly used in the literature are used, supported by original indicators constructed specifically for the present study. In total, 486 chains are examined and the study confirms that individual producers participate simultaneously in several, short and long chains. Participation in SFSCs is beneficial for producers from an economic perspective. SFSCs allow producers to capture a large proportion of margin otherwise absorbed by different intermediaries. It appears, however, that ’longer’ supply channels generate lower environmental impacts per unit of production when measured in terms of food miles and carbon footprint. Finally, ambiguous results are found regarding social dimension, with significant differences across types of chains.

This study empirically analyzes the influence of contract farming on income and farming difficulties in Vietnam by using the econometric models and theoretically identifying the affecting mechanism of contract farming on income, sustainability, and welfare by using the qualitative method. The empirical results show that contract farming insignificantly impacts farms’ income while it can facilitate farming activities and decrease difficulties. The factors of education—head, gender of head, type of crop, and technology may affect farmers’ income. The impacting mechanism of contract farming on income, sustainability, and welfare is theoretically proposed as follows: Contract farming initially impacts the intermediate factors such as cooperative, market access, knowledge and skill, product quality, technology, and support. These factors then affect capacity, linkage, quality, and certification which can enhance farmers’ competitiveness. In the long term, stronger competitiveness, higher price, increasing productivity, and lower cost may significantly improve income, sustainability, and welfare. In general, contract farming may have positive impacts on income, sustainability, and welfare in the medium term and long term. In the short term, the result is not significant due to the similar or lower price comparing with the spot market price, growing production cost, decreasing productivity, and weak contract performance. The findings may help policymakers decide how to expand contract farming and its benefits. Economic scholars can test and compare both quantitative and qualitative findings in other contexts.

The rapid increases in environmental pollution, urbanization, health concerns, and technological progress enhance the demand for greener, healthier, and fairer food production and consumption. The short food supply chain (SFSC) becomes one of the crucial solutions for these issues. This study aims to propose a conceptual framework of the SFSC, assess the short vegetable supply chain (SVSC) in Vietnam, identify its barriers and challenges, and explore interventions and support as key success factors of the SVSC by using both qualitative and quantitative methods. This study initially proposes the SFSC framework with six pillars and 28 indicators, this model is used to assess the SVSC. The results show that the SVSC brings various social, economic, and environmental benefits: First, it can increase farmers’ income, employment, fairness, and health. Second, the SVSC can decrease environmental pollution, food waste, and energy consumption. Third, it can improve food quality and consumers’ health. Fourth, the SVSC enhances on-farm education, agricultural tourism, local livestock farming, and traditional culture and relationship. However, the SVSC encounters various barriers and challenges impeding its performances and benefits. The vegetable value chain gains several interventions and support from the government and the project to overcome these barriers. Overall, the SFSC, good agricultural practice, and sustainability are strongly associated: good agricultural practice and sustainability are inherent in the SFSC.

Purpose: This study aims to (1) identify the agricultural competitiveness of ASEAN countries in the global markets; (2) analyze the dynamics of these indicators for the period 1997–2015; and (3) test the consistency between trade indices.Design/methodology/approach: The study uses RCA, RTA, and NRCA for the first objective; OLS method and Markov matrix for the second objective; and statistic tool for the final purpose.Findings: The results show that: (1) ASEAN countries achieve the strongest competitiveness in rice, rubber, spices, vegetable fat and oils, wood, fuel wood, fish, and crustacean. Vietnam, Thailand, and Indonesia are the strongest competitive whilst Brunei, Singapore, and Cambodia are the weakest competitive; (2) They have convergent patterns in agricultural competitiveness; (3) They successfully maintain rankings of the strong competitive sectors; and (4) ASEAN countries obtain benefits from the regional integration and the specialization in competitive products.Research limitations/implications: ASEAN countries with strong competitiveness should specialize in and maintain their rankings to enhance competitiveness and maximize social welfare while the countries with weak agricultural competitiveness should specialize in the processed products and services based on their advantages of economic resources.Originality/value: Comprehensive results of the static and dynamic agricultural competitiveness of ASEAN countries as a whole are provided. The findings and policy recommendations can be used by policymakers and enterprises to improve competitiveness and benefit. The discussions and findings should be a significant reference for economists.

Governance and fairness in the food value chain have gained considerable attention from both policymakers and scholars, especially in developing countries. This study analysed the milk value chain, exploring its governance and fairness, and assessed the regulatory interventions across the milk value chain in Vietnam using a qualitative framework and the global value chain governance model. The results show that Vietnam’s milk production and dairy market have developed notably since the reforms. The value chain is structured according to three governance models, i.e., relational, captive, and hierarchy models. Vietnam’s milk value chain has progressed through three building phases, expanding in breadth, and undergoing in-depth development, and the governance models have adjusted accordingly. However, Vietnamese dairy farms have been exposed to a low level of fairness across the supply chain. Although dairy farmers in the relational model may benefit from more power and fairness in the short term, farmers in the captive model may gain benefits and potential fairness in the long term. Vietnam has diverse regulatory interventions to enhance farmers’ fairness and welfare, and the results are notable. However, not all farmers have benefitted from these policies, and measures regarding fairness and welfare should be diverse, gradual, and inclusive.