Supply chain integration and resilience in China’s pig sector: case study evidences from emerging institutional arrangements

Pig sector in China is faced with high risks, such as price fluctuation and food safety, and environmental regulation uncertainty. The recent African swine fever has caused public panic and drop down of pork consumption in a short term. The “wu-shui-gong-zhi” policy is a newly recognized environmental policy risk, and its key content is to shut down directly the pig farms close to water resources. Lots of small- and medium-sized farms have been affected, especially in coastal provinces. Supply chain integration received wide attention in supply chain management. Literature has shown that a well-coordinated food supply chain will bring positive outcomes for chain stakeholders. However, the relationship between food supply chain integration and resilience is not empirically captured. This research aims to explore the relationship between supply chain integration and supply chain resilience, and the mechanism of how supply chain integration works on supply chain resilience. To achieve the research purpose, an in-depth ethnographical case study is performed. Four cases in China’s pig sector were selected, with different types of supply chain integration between cooperative and companies. They differ in supply chain resilience levels. We found that supply chain integration has a positive effect on supply chain resilience through agility and robustness. Supply chain agility also has positive relationship with supply chain robustness. It implies that supply chain stakeholders should efficiently exchange information, enhance circulation rate, and jointly make plans to be more resilient to risks. The government needs to make policies to encourage and facilitate supply chain integration among supply chain members to enhance supply chain resilience.