Current & Emerging Trends to Achieve Sustainable Supply Trends

A special issue of Logistics (ISSN 2305-6290). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Supply Chains and Logistics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2025 | Viewed by 1691

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Maxwell School, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY 13244-1020, USA
Interests: dynamic sustainability; supply chains; energy; resiliency; bioeconomy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Department of Business Management, Poole College of Management, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA
Interests: strategic sourcing; supplier development; bioproducts; supply market intelligence; supply chain redesign; logistics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are at a unique juncture in time of new and emerging policies, strategies, and technologies to advance the sustainability and transparency of global supply chains. A new generation of policies are rapidly being enacted, requiring companies throughout the value chain to increase the transparency and traceability of supply chains in regard to greenhouse gas reporting, human rights, forced labor, biodiversity, chemical safety, and critical minerals, as well as financial disclosures. In some cases, such as the European Union, there are requirements to be transparent and communicate the information through their “Digital Passport” regulations.

In the United States, polices to track and trace supply chains are strictly enforced by Customs and Border Protection, which has impounded supply chain shipments of over USD 3.66 billion due to the suspicion that the goods originated from areas with forced labor.

While some smaller companies may be directly excluded from regulatory requirements and reporting, they will be required by their institutional customers, such as retailers, brands, government buyers, and manufactures, to report, through the supply chain, the required information that these large enterprises are required to report. The pace of these new regulations at the state, national, and international level are developing rapidly, and firms must put in place the systems, strategies, and investments to meet these new requirements for business.

Additionally, the emergence of AI and blockchain, as well as models and software packages to enhance the sustainability of supply chains, are showing to be critical tools. There are also numerous industry collaboratives that are beginning the work in a precompetitive environment to develop cost-effective solutions and practices. This Special Issue seeks articles that cover aspects of these emerging trends and explore their implications for sustainable supply chains in various sectors.

This Special Issue will present new and emerging research on how multi-national organizations are implementing the strategies, systems, and investments within their supply chains and logistics to meet the rapidly emerging requirements of traceability and transparency.

We seek to develop understandings of supply chain engagement practices, pre-competitive collaborations, development of the utility of AI and blockchain, and insights garnered from case examples.

Prof. Dr. Jay Golden
Prof. Dr. Robert Handfield
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Logistics is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • traceability
  • transparency
  • AI
  • blockchain
  • greenhouse gases
  • forced labor
  • circular economy
  • biodiversity

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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29 pages, 1086 KiB  
Article
Economic Logistics Optimization in Fire and Rescue Services: A Case Study of the Slovak Fire and Rescue Service
by Martina Mandlikova and Andrea Majlingova
Logistics 2025, 9(2), 74; https://doi.org/10.3390/logistics9020074 - 12 Jun 2025
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Abstract
Background: Economic logistics in fire and rescue services is a critical determinant of operational readiness, fiscal sustainability, and resilience to large-scale emergencies. Despite its strategic importance, logistics remains under-researched in Central and Eastern European contexts, where legacy governance structures and EU-funded modernization [...] Read more.
Background: Economic logistics in fire and rescue services is a critical determinant of operational readiness, fiscal sustainability, and resilience to large-scale emergencies. Despite its strategic importance, logistics remains under-researched in Central and Eastern European contexts, where legacy governance structures and EU-funded modernization coexist with systemic inefficiencies. This study focuses on the Slovak Fire and Rescue Service (HaZZ) as a case to explore how economic logistics systems can be restructured for greater performance and value. Objective: The objective of this paper was to evaluate the structure, performance, and reform potential of the logistics system supporting HaZZ, with a focus on procurement efficiency, lifecycle costing, digital integration, and alignment with EU civil protection standards. Methods: A mixed-methods design was applied, comprising the following: (1) Institutional analysis of governance, budgeting, and legal mandates based on semi-structured expert interviews with HaZZ and the Ministry of Interior officers (n = 12); (2) comparative benchmarking with Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, and the Netherlands; (3) financial analysis of national logistics expenditures (2019–2023) using Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) principles, completed with the visualization of cost trends and procurement price variance through original heat maps and time-series graphs. Results: The key findings are as follows: (1) HaZZ operates a formally centralized but practically fragmented logistics model across 51 district units, lacking national coordination mechanisms and digital infrastructure; (2) Maintenance costs have risen by 42% between 2019 and 2023 despite increasing capital investment due to insufficient lifecycle planning and asset heterogeneity; (3) Price variance for identical equipment categories across regions exceeds 30%, highlighting the inefficiencies in decentralized procurement; (4) Slovakia lacks a national Logistics Information System (LIS), unlike peer countries which have deployed integrated digital platforms (e.g., CELIS in the Czech Republic); (5) Benchmarking reveals high-impact practices in centralized procurement, lifecycle-based contracting, regional logistics hubs, and performance accountability—particularly in Austria and the Netherlands. Impacts: Four high-impact, feasible reforms were proposed: (1) Establishment of a centralized procurement framework; (2) national LIS deployment to unify inventory and asset tracking; (3) adoption of lifecycle-based and performance-based contracting models; (4) development of regional logistics hubs using underutilized infrastructure. This study is among the first to provide an integrated economic and institutional analysis of the Fire and Rescue Service logistics in a post-socialist EU member state. It offers a structured, transferable reform roadmap grounded in comparative evidence and adapted to Slovakia’s hybrid governance model. The research bridges gaps between modernization policy, procurement law, and digital public administration in the context of emergency services. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Current & Emerging Trends to Achieve Sustainable Supply Trends)
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30 pages, 2240 KiB  
Systematic Review
Mapping the Landscape of Blockchain for Transparent and Sustainable Supply Chains: A Bibliometric and Thematic Analysis
by Félix Díaz, Rafael Liza and Nhell Cerna
Logistics 2025, 9(3), 86; https://doi.org/10.3390/logistics9030086 - 30 Jun 2025
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Abstract
Background: The increasing complexity of global supply chains has intensified the demand for transparency, traceability, security, and sustainability in logistics and operations. Blockchain technology enables decentralized, immutable frameworks that improve data integrity, automate transactions via smart contracts, and integrate seamlessly with the IoT [...] Read more.
Background: The increasing complexity of global supply chains has intensified the demand for transparency, traceability, security, and sustainability in logistics and operations. Blockchain technology enables decentralized, immutable frameworks that improve data integrity, automate transactions via smart contracts, and integrate seamlessly with the IoT and AI. Methods: This bibliometric review analyzes 559 peer-reviewed publications retrieved from Scopus and Web of Science using a PRISMA-guided protocol. Data were processed with Bibliometrix and Biblioshiny to examine scientific production, contributing institutions, author countries, collaboration patterns, thematic clusters, and keyword evolution. Results: The analysis reveals a 400% increase in publications after 2020, with China, India, and the USA leading in output but with limited international collaboration. Keyword co-occurrence and thematic mapping reveal dominant topics, including smart contracts, food supply chain traceability, and sustainability, as well as emerging themes such as decentralization, privacy, and the circular economy. Conclusions: The field is marked by interdisciplinary growth, yet it remains thematically and geographically fragmented. This review maps the intellectual structure of blockchain-enabled sustainable supply chains, offering insights for policymakers, developers, and industry leaders and outlining future research avenues centered on global cooperation, platform efficiency, and ethical and regulatory dimensions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Current & Emerging Trends to Achieve Sustainable Supply Trends)
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