A snapshot of food supply chain in Wuhan under the COVID-19 pandemic
China Agricultural Economic Review
ISSN: 1756-137X
Article publication date: 10 September 2020
Issue publication date: 22 September 2020
Abstract
Purpose
The objective is to have a better understanding of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on food supply chain in Wuhan.
Design/methodology/approach
Through a simplified flow, the authors qualitatively analyze the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on food supply chain. Data was gathered through a telephone survey of food suppliers in Wuhan.
Findings
The prevention measures of the COVID-19 pandemic had negative impacts on food supply chain in Wuhan. About 83.1% of food suppliers experienced a decrease in revenues. This is influenced by factors including food category on sale, purchase channel of food, food supplier's household registration and the number of the COVID-19 patients in the located community.
Research limitations/implications
Due to the limitation of available data, there is a lack of quantitative analysis on the impact on food supply chain. The sample size of food suppliers is limited.
Practical implications
This study identifies the challenges in the food supply chain resulting from the control measures implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic in Wuhan and provides a reference for the design of control measures in other regions.
Originality/value
This study supplements the literature regarding the impact of public health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic on food supply chain, especially food suppliers' revenues.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors acknowledge the funding support from the Huazhong Agricultural University Scientific and Technological Self-innovation Foundation and Fundamental Research Funds for the Central University (No. 2662020JGPYG15). The research is financially supported by the National Natural Sciences Foundation of China (No. 71873050), the National Social Sciences Foundation of China (NO. 18ZDA072), and the Philosophy and Social Sciences Project of Ministry of Education (No. 19YJC630191).
Citation
Min, S., Zhang, X. and Li, G. (2020), "A snapshot of food supply chain in Wuhan under the COVID-19 pandemic", China Agricultural Economic Review, Vol. 12 No. 4, pp. 689-704. https://doi.org/10.1108/CAER-04-2020-0056
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited