20.500.12556/DKUM-96563 Independent vs. collaborative blockchain research and development: operational decisions in food supply chains As blockchain increasingly demonstrates advantages in enhancing consumer trust and reducing collaborative production costs in food supply chains, more food companies are developing blockchain-based supply chain management platforms. However, in a complex and competitive supply chain environment, food companies face critical operational management challenges in selecting appropriate blockchain R&D approaches and determining optimal R&D levels. This study examines two competing food companies deciding on their optimal food production and blockchain R&D levels. We first established a benchmark model without blockchain adoption. Then, we constructed supply chain operation models for both independent and collaborative blockchain R&D scenarios. By comparing equilibrium decisions across different models, we derived the optimal blockchain R&D model and operational strategies in food supply chains. Furthermore, we extended our analysis to consider asymmetric food substitution scenarios. Our findings revealed that independent blockchain R&D tends to increase equilibrium food production and is more suitable for premium food supply chains. Conversely, collaborative blockchain R&D significantly enhanced overall supply chain profitability. As spillover effects increase, food companies are likely to favor independent blockchain R&D to achieve higher R&D levels and stronger market competitiveness. Additionally, we demonstrated that blockchain R&D levels are influenced by food substitutability and quality credibility. blockchain adoption food supply chains game theory competitive collaboration operation strategy spillover effects prehrambne nabavne verige upravljanje nabavnih verig veriženje blokov teorija iger true false true Fakulteta za strojništvo Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik https://apem-journal.org/ Članek v reviji 2026-01-19 15:06:09 2026-01-19 15:08:55 2026-03-11 11:33:27 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2025 0 0 str. 61-74 no. 1 Vol. 20 March 2025 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova Objavljeno NiDoloceno 2024-10-01 2025-04-07 2025-04-29 658.7 265279235 10.14743/apem2025.1.527 1854-6250 APEM20-1_061-074.pdf APEM20-1_061-074.pdf 1 BCBD071CF619AEE8C610631EAE9D19E1 a8af20f2bdd16aebc2d3f67b78a5f65f3cf00a5e1ffba280975254a389760389 3ac46939-f540-11f0-94a4-00155d580e02 https://dk.um.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=202186 https://apem-journal.org/Archives/2025/VOL20-ISSUE01.html 0 481a3d4a-f540-11f0-94a4-00155d580e02 https://dk.um.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=202187 Fakulteta za strojništvo Advances in production engineering & management 0 0 0