Optimization of fresh -food supply chains in uncertain environments: an application to the meat-refrigeration process

In this paper we present a novel approach for the optimization of fresh-food supply chain by managing a trade-off between logistics and some index measuring the quality of the food itself. We propose an hybrid model of the chain, with a part constituted by a event–driven dynamics (the supply chain itself) and a part with time–driven dynamics (the dynamics of some parameters characterizing the jobs in the supply chain). The proposed framework is applied to a real–world example relative to the process of beef–carcasses refrigeration and distribution.