Upstream information distortion in the agro-food supply chain

Purpose - The purpose of this research is to analyse the upstream information distortion among the various members of the agro-food supply chain, regarding the consumers' quality perceptions. Design/methodology/approach - The study focused on the beef chain, which is one of the most active in quality management terms. The study involved different actors in the chain: consumers (402), retailers (98), agro-industrials (40) and cattle farmers (84). Findings - The results demonstrated that the more the upstream agents move away from consumers, the more the information becomes distorted. The research also highlighted that the greater the number of links in the chain, the more the consumer's upstream information tends to be distorted. Originality/value - The information flow is one of the important aspects on which the supply chain management focuses. This paper contributes to information flow research between different actors in the supply chain regarding product quality from the consumer perspective. Therefore, for the members of the supply chain, this research represents the potential to direct management's value-added activities towards what consumers value the most.