Minimizing losses at red meat supply chain with circular and central slaughterhouse model

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to find solutions to improve the red meat sector in an emerging economy, Turkey, from the circular economy point of view, and taking sustainability approach. The need for circular management within the red meat sector in Turkey is emphasized by using Grey method. As theoretical contribution of this study, the investigation of the causes of losses at the slaughter stages of the red meat supply chain leads to proposals for sustainable and circular solutions. Design/methodology/approach: Grey method is used to predict the number of slaughtered cattle and the amount of bone and blood waste in the slaughtering process between 2018 and 2020. Findings: It is revealed that according to Grey prediction calculations, although the amount of slaughtered cattle, bone and blood waste seem have decreased between 2018 and 2020, there are still significant losses in Turkish red meat sector. For bone waste, this is expected to be 56,581,200 kg in 2018, 48,235,840 kg in 2019 and 41,121,380 kg in 2020. For blood waste, it is expected to be 24,754,275 kg in 2018, 21,103,180 kg in 2019 and 17,990,604 kg in 2020. Social implications: The proposed model in the study will contribute on sector revitalization, increase in product safety, quality and hygiene, development in the management of training and education centers for farmers/labors and increase in employment. Originality/value: This paper represents policymakers with a proposal for triple bottom line (TBL) based circular and central slaughterhouse model, based on TBL, which brings social, economic and environmental benefits for the red meat sector in Turkey.