Structural Complexity and Multiplier Effects in China’s Agri-Food Supply Chains: Implications for Alternative Food Networks and Operations Management

Structural Complexity and Multiplier Effects in China’s Agri-Food Supply Chains: Implications for Alternative Food Networks and Operations Management | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Structural Complexity and Multiplier Effects in China’s Agri-Food Supply Chains: Implications for Alternative Food Networks and Operations Management Xi Wang, Suhaiza Zailani This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6851090/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 6 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Conventional global food supply chains are facing growing scrutiny for their environmental externalities and inefficiencies. Alternative Food Networks (AFNs), often realized through Short Food Supply Chains (SFSCs), offer localized, transparent, and resilient alternatives. However, operations management lacks robust tools to capture AFNs’ systemic implications beyond local contexts. This study integrates national Input-Output (I-O) analysis with Average Propagation Length (APL) methodology to assess the structural complexity and diffusion dynamics of China’s agri-food supply chains. APL measures the average number of intersectoral linkages over which operational effects propagate, serving as a proxy for supply chain depth. Combined with linkage strength metrics, this approach identifies critical production chains. Multiplier analysis quantifies the total economic and operations management impact, revealing that each USD 1 of agricultural output generates over USD 17 in total economic output. While not directly comparing AFNs and conventional chains, this framework establishes an operations-focused methodology to capture AFN features such as shorter propagation paths and greater local retention. These insights provide a quantitative foundation for assessing the systemic role of agri-food networks in supporting sustainable, resilient local economies. Agri-food Supply Chains Alternative Food Networks Input-Output Analysis Production Chains Average Propagation Length Operations Management Sustainability China Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviews received at journal 09 Dec, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 09 Nov, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 04 Aug, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 10 Jun, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 10 Jun, 2025 First submitted to journal 09 Jun, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6851090","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":495645781,"identity":"21a8bc11-8485-4917-89e2-d0c0e60c95f9","order_by":0,"name":"Xi Wang","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"University of Malaya","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Xi","middleName":"","lastName":"Wang","suffix":""},{"id":495645784,"identity":"76a95b81-63ec-42bc-9f3f-eb5ef177acfe","order_by":1,"name":"Suhaiza Zailani","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAApElEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDACCSD+AGYlkKCFcQbJWph5SNIiP7s7+bNt2zYGfvYcA6abbURoMbhzdoNxbtttBsmeNwbMuURpkcjdkAzSYnAjh0gt8jNyNxy2BGqxJ1oLw43cjc2MIFskiNVicCN3M2PPuds8EmeeFRzOOUecwzZ/+FF2W46/PXnj45wyYhwGBeCoOcDIRoIWKPhDupZRMApGwSgY/gAAdEM2Ndo7zhEAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"","institution":"University of Malaya","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Suhaiza","middleName":"","lastName":"Zailani","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-06-09 06:08:14","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6851090/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6851090/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":88463291,"identity":"a4afbbfd-d32d-45ff-b978-1eaf02df3df6","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-08-06 17:03:00","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":627834,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6851090/v1_covered_c14815c5-5542-485f-ae9c-ec89c166456c.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Structural Complexity and Multiplier Effects in China’s Agri-Food Supply Chains: Implications for Alternative Food Networks and Operations Management","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"networks-and-spatial-economics","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"nets","sideBox":"Learn more about [Networks and Spatial Economics](http://link.springer.com/journal/11067)","snPcode":"11067","submissionUrl":"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/11067/3","title":"Networks and Spatial Economics","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"Agri-food Supply Chains, Alternative Food Networks, Input-Output Analysis, Production Chains, Average Propagation Length, Operations Management, Sustainability, China","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6851090/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6851090/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eConventional global food supply chains are facing growing scrutiny for their environmental externalities and inefficiencies. 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