Structural Modeling Based on Supply Chain Integration in Relation to Supply Chain Risk, Product Quality and Innovation Capability

This study aims to investigate the unique features of the food supply chain, examining the impact of food supply chain integration, consisting of internal integration, supplier and customer, the quality of food products and product innovation capability. Managers need to understand the importance of supplier and customer integration when responding to supply chain risk and company uncertainty. The data were collected from 168 managers active in the food industry in Tehran province. The partial least squares tool (SmartPLS 3.0) was used to analyze the data using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) technique. The results show that there is a strong relationship between uncertainty and supply chain integration including customer, supplier and internal integration. The findings indicate that customer integration and supplier integration are critical factors in improving product quality in the food supply chain. The results can be related to the prominent role of customer relations and contact in the development of innovation capabilities in manufactured products, which has also been approved by some previous studies. Additionally, analyzing the various dimensions of supply chain integration separately revealed that internal integration is a capability factor for external integration. This study can help businesses in the food industry understand the value-creating roles of food supply chain integration and provide valuable guidance for them to decide how to meet the various challenges and manage food supply chain integration in order to improve product quality and product innovation capability.