Supply chain and value chain analysis of agricultural waste materials in Hua Sai community Nakhon Si Thammarat Province

Abstract

This research aimed to 1. study the management characteristics of the agricultural waste supply chain throughout the entire process from upstream, midstream, and downstream and 2. analyze the supply chain and value chain of products made from agricultural waste. The study was conducted as a participatory action research using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Data were collected through questionnaires with a sample of 315 participants, interviews with 40 participants, and focus group discussions with 20 participants. Data were analyzed using basic statistics methods, including percentage, mean, and standard deviation, with the level of statistical significance set at 0.05. The results revealed that the majority of the sample (53.02%) were male, 34.60% were aged 50–59 years, had an education level below a bachelor's degree, had a monthly income of less than 10,000 baht, and were farmers. The main occupation of agricultural waste was animal manure (31.11%). Qualitative research revealed that the main waste material was goat manure, as villagers raised goats as a secondary occupation in addition to agriculture. The supply chain management was appropriate in terms of location and selection of male and female breeders in demand in the market; farmers lacked knowledge in raising goats, and barn hygiene was not up to standard. In terms of animal nutrition, this has led to problems with baby goat feed and has resulted in the impact of lower market prices due to imports. The supply chain and value chain analysis also revealed that there are complete main and supporting activities from raw material procurement quality control, raising processes, breeding and disease control, farmer knowledge development, animal feed management, and value creation from waste materials, which are important approaches to enhancing the competitiveness and sustainability of the production system.