A Mixed Integer Linear Programming Model for Optimal Production Planning in Tangerine Supply Chain

Abstract

Tangerine is a variety of mandarin orange and the major export fruit of Thailand, with increased exports each year. There are tangerine production plants across the country, especially in the northern and central regions. For marketing reasons, there is a strong need for a reliable decision tool to manage the whole business. To address this problem, a harvesting and production planning model was developed as a realistic planning model of a production plant for the tangerine supply chain in the northern region. The supply chain problem was formulated as a mixed-integer linear programming model. Analysis of the optimization results when compared with traditional planning showed that the proposed model can save up to 10.16% of the operational cost. In addition, the model can be applied to estimate the tangerine processing capacity of the facility in order to establish future sales policies.