Strategic adoption of additive manufacturing in edible product supply chains: a resource-based view on sustainability

Abstract

This study aims to examine how the strategic value of additive manufacturing (AM) is created in edible product supply chains, using the resource-based view (RBV) as a theoretical lens. Drawing on 29 semi-structured interviews with experts from the food, pharmaceutical and AM sectors, this research refines an initial, literature-based conceptual model and develops an empirically grounded framework. AM’s VRIN attributes are necessary but not sufficient for strategic value; value depends on deployment within supply chain configurations. Three pathways are identified: supply chain transformation, product innovation and operational improvement. SMEs integrate AM strategically, while large incumbents often contain it within R&D. Sustainability outcomes remain conditional on economic viability, which acts as a gatekeeper for environmental and social value. The framework offers decision guidance for practitioners: SMEs are shown the organisational prerequisites for pursuing supply chain transformation through AM, while large firms are given concrete signals for when to migrate AM from R&D into core operations. Policy levers for lowering adoption barriers are also identified. This study extends the RBV by revealing that resources generate competitive advantage through multiple independent pathways, and that organisational context determines resource strategic status, not merely moderating effectiveness but fundamentally shaping whether resources function strategically or operationally. It provides the first interview-based evidence of these dynamics in the previously underexamined context of edible product supply chains.