Purpose – The paper seeks to understand the conditions that motivate Asian supermarkets' choices for vegetable sourcing through wholesale procurement or preferred supplier systems. Design/methodology/approach – Insights from transaction cost theory are used to analyze the evolution of fresh produce procurement regimes by supermarkets in Bangkok and Nanjing. Findings – Trade-offs between higher production-cum-investment costs (i.e. fixed investments, variable production costs and economies of scale) with expected savings in transaction costs (governance and opportunistic behaviour) are registered that could hinder contractual delivery. Research limitations/implications – Transaction costs play an important role in shaping procurement regimes. Information, negotiation and monitoring costs are high in early phases of market development, but may be reduced when retailers establish direct and contractual relations with selected producers. Such preferred supplier arrangements may be helpful to reduce risks related to delivery frequency and product quality, but require substantial investments that only become feasible when opportunistic behaviour is adequately controlled. The nature of supplier-buyer relations alters in a number of subsequent phases from chain optimisation to integral chain care. Practical implications – With the establishment of large-scale supermarkets in Asia, buyers need more information about the quality of products and the creditworthiness and reputation of sellers and therefore increasingly rely on contractual delivery relationships. For preferred supplier regimes, scale economies and enforcement of mutual trust are key issues to establish stable relations. Originality/value – The shift from wholesale purchase towards preferred supplier regimes in emerging economies involves large investments that can only be met if governance costs are reduced.

Purpose: Supply chain integration (SCI) is one of the most distinctive dimensions in achieving long-term competitive advantage in the business world. Although considerable state-of-the-art studies regarding the SCI concept and its dimensions have been conducted, empirical research by using the data from agri-food firms in China to examine the relationship between SCI and firm performance attract little attention. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of SCI on firm performance in pork supply chains in China. Design/methodology/approach: The study follows a causal research approach and survey methodology to collect data from 229 pork processors. The SCI-firm performance link is examined in two relationships: the pork processors with their upstream pig (meat) suppliers and with their downstream customers. Partial least squares method was used to test the causal relationships. Findings: The results suggest that internal integration and buyer-supplier relationship coordination are significantly related to firm performance in both relationships. Information technology integration is not significantly related to both upstream and downstream relationships. Logistics integration significantly contributes to pork processors' performance in relationships with downstream customers. Originality/value: The extension of the SCI construct contributes to supply chain management theory in the context of China.

As the largest carbon emitter in the world, China is confronted with great challenges of mitigating carbon emissions, especially from its construction industry. Yet, the understanding of carbon emissions in the construction industry remains limited. As one of the first few attempts, this paper contributes to the literature by identifying the determinants of carbon emissions in the Chinese construction industry from the perspective of spatial spillover effects. A panel dataset of 30 provinces or municipalities from 2005 to 2015 was used for the analysis. We found that there is a significant and positive spatial autocorrelation of carbon emissions. The local Moran’s I showed local agglomeration characteristics of H-H (high-high) and L-L (low-low). The indicators of population density, economic growth, energy structure, and industrial structure had either direct or indirect effects on carbon emissions. In particular, we found that low-carbon technology innovation significantly reduces carbon emissions, both in local and neighboring regions. We also found that the industry agglomeration significantly increases carbon emissions in the local regions. Our results imply that the Chinese government can reduce carbon emissions by encouraging low-carbon technology innovations. Meanwhile, our results also highlight the negative environmental impacts of the current policies to promote industry agglomeration.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of network strength, transaction‐specific investments and inter‐personal trust on business relationship satisfaction for small‐and‐medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) involved in agri‐food processing and exporting in China.Design/methodology/approach: Survey data collected from 80 agri‐food SMEs in Jiangsu Province were used for empirical testing. The authors applied an ordered logit regression approach for model estimation.Findings: The results demonstrate that strongguanxinetworks, high level of transaction‐specific investments and inter‐personal trust significantly contribute to a high level of relationship satisfaction for agri‐food SMEs in China. In addition, inter‐personal trust shows a moderating effect on the relationship between transaction‐specific investments and relationship satisfaction.Practical implications: Business relationships play a critical role in the modern market environment. Relational arrangements (based onguanxiand inter‐personal trust) should be further enhanced in order to yield satisfied business relationships for SMEs in China.Originality/value: The paper extends our understanding of relationship (guanxi) marketing, as well as marketing practices for agri‐food SMEs in China.

Purpose: Following a guanxi value – buyer‐seller relationship quality – marketing behaviour scheme, this paper aims to explore how traditional guanxi supports small vegetable farmers in modern markets in China.Design/methodology/approach: Fieldwork was performed in Jiangsu Province, PR China. A stratified random sample of 167 vegetable farmers provided data for empirical testing with partial least squares analysis.Findings: The findings suggested that the value of guanxi networks is an antecedent to buyer‐seller relationship quality and marketing behaviour in China. Guanxi networks improve the quality of buyer‐seller relationships in terms of interpersonal trust and satisfaction. Buyer‐seller relationships influence smallholders' transaction relationships, their participation in modern markets and choice for formal contracts. Guanxi networks not only support Chinese small‐scale vegetable farmers to get access to modern high‐value markets (e.g. supermarkets and international markets), but also encourage informal transactions in the vegetable business.Practical implications: Guanxi networks play a critical role in the modern marketing environment in China. Marketing strategies based on personal relationships should be further enhanced in order to increase participation of smallholders in modern markets.Originality/value: Quantitative evaluation of the effects of the Chinese cultural embedded concept of guanxi in the Chinese agrifood sector fills in an important research gap.