Edwin Obonyo, S. Wagura Ndiritu and Marco Formentini
The aim of this paper is to examine trust, commitment and social sustainability (SS) in agri-food supply chains (AFSCs) in an underexplored context, an emerging country. This adds…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to examine trust, commitment and social sustainability (SS) in agri-food supply chains (AFSCs) in an underexplored context, an emerging country. This adds to the literature on the benefits of trust and commitment in AFSCs.
Design/methodology/approach
Within four counties in Kenya — Nairobi, Machakos, Kiambu and Kajiado — 85 abattoirs and 164 traders were surveyed as part of data collection. Hypotheses were proposed, and partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was used to test them.
Findings
The findings indicate that trust (benevolent and credibility trust) as well as commitment (affective and continuance commitment) have a positive direct relationship with SS.
Practical implications
The study underlines how important trust and commitment are in improving the social well-being of AFSC actors. They enhance collaboration which empowers them to improve social welfare of the supply chain.
Originality/value
The study is one of the first to examine the effect of trust and commitment on SS within AFSC, a novel contribution to SS literature. It differentiates between types of trust (benevolent and credibility trust) and commitment (affective and continuance commitment), giving a clearer understanding of how each of the variables impact SS. The findings offer new insights into the relationship between trust and commitment in improving social sustainable practices in AFSCs.