Optimization Model of Supply Chain Network Design for Small-scale Banana Flour Production Using Deterministic and Metaheuristic Approach

Abstract

Problems concerning low-profit-generating production occur in many small producer enterprises, including banana flour production by small-scale Cavendish banana farmers. One usual difficulty is the inability of these small producers to adjust to market conditions due to limited resources. These farmers are unable to allocate adequate resources such as transport vehicles, equipment, and laborers to various activities in the production process. This paper formulated a mixed-integer linear programming model based on a supply chain network design for banana flour production. This model aimed to determine the optimal number of resources for a producer organization to maximize its total profit. The deterministic branch-and-bound technique and metaheuristic binary firefly algorithm were implemented to obtain the model solution. Based on a case study, both approaches consistently showed that to maximize the profit for small-scale banana flour production, they must operate one mill and one truck with a 4,000- kg maximum capacity and hire nine non-regular and 14 regular laborers. The methodology developed in this study can also be applied to other banana producer organizations with a similar supply chain network to explore alternative enterprises and improve profitability.